by FANTÔMAS » Wed Jul 30, 2008 6:58 pm
In a way I'm glad we didn't end up signing him, at least at the time being. Not that I don't rate Barry, I think he's quite excellent, but I think that after the past fiasco's with McManaman, Owen and Gerrard when players were either forced or almost forced out of the club, I stick by my beliefs. I'm quite biased towards local lads staying with their local sides, and I wasn't impressed with Benítez' continuing bids for him when Aston Villa weren't willing to sell in the first place. It just made the whole affair more embarassing for us, especially after all the embarassment in the news over the last nine months.
It's one of the main points which I find really irritating about the Spaniards reign, much like Wenger or Mourinho/Grant/Scolari, he hasn't given any of the local lads a chance to get into the first team, he's more willing to buy than allow for that chance to happen, especially when you have back-up players like Voronin getting starts.
However, I'm quite biased either way. I'd like to see more English/British players in the premiership. It's the only way to improve the overall national sides of the British home nations. That's the thing about bringing in Foreign managers, the likelihood of allowing youth players into the first team are slimmer than ever.
