Liverpool FC Forum

[ivor_the_injun]

The Brum Post are very, very reliable for transfer news, hence me posting here as opposed to the rumour mill. If they say O'Neill's bidding for both, that's almost certainly true...

http://icbirmingham.icnetwork.co.uk/birming....ge.html

O'Neill plots £12m bid for Liverpool pair

May 30 2007

By Lisa Smith

Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill is planning an audacious double swoop for Liverpool's Craig Bellamy and Harry Kewell in a deal rumoured to be worth around £12million.

The two players are set to be shipped out of Anfield this summer as Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez prepares for a spending spree.

The Spaniard is eager to clear out his squad and rebuild after the disappointment of losing in the Champions League final and only finishing third, 21 points behind champions Manchester United, in the Barclays Premiership.

Benitez is rumoured to be making a bid for French midfielder Florent Malouda from Ligue Un champions Lyon but first needs to generate transfer funds.

That clear-out will enable O'Neill to make a move for Bellamy who he has long been interested in. It would also reunite the pair, who worked together when O'Neill was manager at Celtic.

The Welsh forward is believed to have been lined up for a move to Villa Park last January in an £8million deal, but the transfer foundered as Bellamy wanted to hang on at Anfield and fulfil a lifetime's ambition of playing in a Champions League final.

But the 28-year-old did not even get off the substitutes bench in Liverpool's 1-0 defeat at the hands of AC Milan in Athens last week.

It is understood he would be keen to work with O'Neill again and is looking to resettle, after his wife moved out of Liverpool and back to the family home in Cardiff claiming that she was homesick.

Kewell, 29, did appear as a substitute in the Athens final after coming back from injury. He has been at Liverpool for four years after signing from Leeds United in 2003 for £5million.

The Australian midfielder is one of Liverpool's highest wage-earners and has only one year left on his current contract.

The double sale would free up funds for Benitez to snap up Malouda, who is said to be worth around £8million.

Bellamy has said he will not be held to ransom by Liverpool, who are also looking to snap up West Ham United's Carlos Tevez and reunite him with his Argentinian international partner, Javier Mascherano.

Villa will have funds available for purchases this summer, with chairman Randy Lerner proposing to make some £30 million available to his manager. O'Neill is already said to have expressed an interest in Portsmouth midfielder Matty Taylor but the Fratton Park side last night scoffed at suggestions that they would allow the player to walk away for £5million.

[Elchris]

would harry kewell want to go to a club like villa..?? but i don't want to keep him anyway....itz sad he's too injury prone...wat a waste of talent...could have been one of liverpool legends...

[ivor_the_injun]

For me, Bellamy can leave at almost any price. If we recoup what we paid, great, but it's clear that he has no future at the club. If he goes to Villa though, it'll be like Baros all over again. A big drop off in the quality of the club, motivation suffers, player goes into steep decline.

Kewell's a tricky one though. If he leaves for a nominal fee, and then has the season of his life next year, it's terrible business. If he leaves and his leg falls off while on international duty this summer, Rafa suddenly looks like a genius.

I'd personally keep him. If he's doing the business, extend his contract. If injuries kick in before the January window, move him on and get a few mill for him.

[aCe']

wouldnt sell kewell cuz wed look soft in the left mid. department..even if malouda signs...gonzales and zenden aree out and we suddenly look thin there again... keep kewell for 1 more season... he'll get the best out of malouda or any other player we sign and he might even make tht spot his own given his abilities.... id sell bellamy for anything more than 7 or 8 mill....12 mill for both doesnt sound bad...but unless we get cover for the left...i wouldnt sell kewell...

[stoney]

sounds like a great deal, a profit on our original outlay of the two players. Kewell just cannot be relied upon anymore.

[redtrader74]

I hope we have the players Rafa wants lined up before we let anyone go.

[fivecups]

I'd sell them for £12million.

[LFC2007]

It depends on a few things

1) How much is on offer

2) Can we get in a left mid

3) Can Kewell stay fit


I can't see Kewell leaving this summer with Gonzales and Zenden on their way. Losing him would mean we have no recognisable left mid.

I see him staying and a new left mid arriving, that would be that area of the squad sorted.

If his injuries persist into next season, then he's on his way IMO.

As for Bellamy, I can see him going for a fee similar to what we paid for him.

As for a joint deal, I wouldn't see it as viable for the reason that Kewell leaving would mean a huge deficit on the left side of the pitch.

[mikopool]

We are going to get screwed either way, if we sell them both, if we are trying to buy someone to fill their spots, the teams we deal with will up the price being fully aware that we have no other options. If we replace them first, then any team we try to unload them to will offer less, again fully aware, that we are desperate to move them out..

[HacksawJimDuggin]

£12m for that pair....f*cking grab it with both hands Rafa. That would present no loss (apart from wages) on either of them and that's good business considering what they've done for us!!!

If I was Rafa I would be on my way to Villa park at the moment with Harry and Craig in the car ready to strike a deal with Mr O'Neill

[Sabre]

wouldnt sell kewell cuz wed look soft in the left mid. department..even if malouda signs...gonzales and zenden aree out and we suddenly look thin there again... keep kewell for 1 more season... he'll get the best out of malouda or any other player we sign and he might even make tht spot his own given his abilities.... id sell bellamy for anything more than 7 or 8 mill....12 mill for both doesnt sound bad...but unless we get cover for the left...i wouldnt sell kewell...

There are things that I can't understand. And it's not due to my lack of english nuances understanding.

So, one of the arguements that it's being wielded in the Alonso thread, by you, for instance, is "if selling Alonso helps to buy a new striker, then so be it".

Well, fair enough, I think when I read that, despite I disagree.

But then I come to this thread and I see a 12M offer for Bellamy, who hasn't done a bad season in my view, but he's easily replaceable, and Kewell, who unlike Alonso hasn't been under his par, but he has provided absolutely nothing this season.

And then I read you and you say "dont sell cuz". Cuz what? how could Kewell make the left mid softer than this year?. Even at his best, is he good enough to make a great squad? because I can name a few better  left wingers than him.

I wouldn't mind if Bellamy stays because he's proven to be useful, and a decent squad player. But 12M is a money I'd consider.

[aCe']

£12m for that pair....f*cking grab it with both hands Rafa. That would present no loss (apart from wages) on either of them and that's good business considering what they've done for us!!!

If I was Rafa I would be on my way to Villa park at the moment with Harry and Craig in the car ready to strike a deal with Mr O'Neill

[The Manhattan Project]

Make it 12 million with Gareth Barry in exchange and we should accept that deal.

[ivor_the_injun]

I must admit I'm not sure about letting Kewell go. Yes he's had a nightmare time with injuries, but on his day he's capable of being the best player in the Prem.

There are a lot of contradictions on this board, and it is a bit odd that some users have no problem with us going in for Owen, but at the same time they want us to cut Kewell loose. They've been as injury-prone as one another, they're both world class talents... one rule for everyone please.

Harry's weight is under control again, which should help him avoid injuries. We've seen little of him this season, but most of it looked good to me. Pace, trickery, good crosses... why sell him now that he looks that part again?

The more I think about it, the more I think that selling him would be a mistake. World class talent doesn't come cheap, and Kewell's one of the best in the business in my book. We've missed him, and having him and another top-drawer option on the left is the way to go as far as I'm concerned. By all means bring in Malouda and make the left genuinely competitive (not forgetting we also have Aurelio should Kewell's injury problems crop up again).

No deal, I reckon. O'Neill can have Bellamy for £6m though.

[aCe']

wouldnt sell kewell cuz wed look soft in the left mid. department..even if malouda signs...gonzales and zenden aree out and we suddenly look thin there again... keep kewell for 1 more season... he'll get the best out of malouda or any other player we sign and he might even make tht spot his own given his abilities.... id sell bellamy for anything more than 7 or 8 mill....12 mill for both doesnt sound bad...but unless we get cover for the left...i wouldnt sell kewell...

There are things that I can't understand. And it's not due to my lack of english nuances understanding.

So, one of the arguements that it's being wielded in the Alonso thread, by you, for instance, is "if selling Alonso helps to buy a new striker, then so be it".

Well, fair enough, I think when I read that, despite I disagree.

But then I come to this thread and I see a 12M offer for Bellamy, who hasn't done a bad season in my view, but he's easily replaceable, and Kewell, who unlike Alonso hasn't been under his par, but he has provided absolutely nothing this season.

And then I read you and you say "dont sell cuz". Cuz what? how could Kewell make the left mid softer than this year?. Even at his best, is he good enough to make a great squad? because I can name a few better  left wingers than him.

I wouldn't mind if Bellamy stays because he's proven to be useful, and a decent squad player. But 12M is a money I'd consider.

read my post again sabre mate ... nice and slow...

the 12mill offer is nt only bellamy...its both him and kewell...
and if you dont think that a fit and in-form kewell would be a good squad member then i dont really see the point of us even having a discussion... to me, kewell is obviously a talented player...  if we had any other options at the left side besides kewell i would sell but ...and as i clearly say in the post... "unless we get cover for the left...i wouldnt sell kewell" its not about how valuable Kewell is to the first team its about having cover in that position...

i really dont see what this has to do with what i said in the alonso thread though... a whole different discussion all together... i dont mind selling bellamy... i dont mind selling kewell but to me.. atm as things stand... selling kewell is not an option as he seems to be our only left sided midfielder after Gonzales and Zenden are out...

"And then I read you and you say "dont sell cuz". Cuz what? how could Kewell make the left mid softer than this year?. Even at his best, is he good enough to make a great squad? because I can name a few better  left wingers than him."

- well if you had read the thing...my only objection was to kewell leaving ...not the amount we were offered or anything else....didnt even say i valued kewell much as a first team player...when i mentioned him.. i said hed make good backup

-dont know what u mean by softer than this year...but for all i know... if we had kewell this season...we would have played much much better football... we needed a player like him and just seeing what he did in the couple of sub. appearances u know what we were missing all season .

- id love to see who ud buy as backup for a few million whos better than kewell... and no giovanni albar the youth player of Getafe B please...some realistic targets...

- and by the way... i would mind if bellamy stays...he hasnt been useful and hes a waste of time and space...id sell him for whatever we can get for him...anything...