Well many people have been saying we need so many new players and that Rafa has to spend big to get us the EPL ...So lets see
GK) Reina
Cavallari
RB) Abe
Degan
Darby
Kelly
CB) Cara
Agger
Skrtel
Kelly
San Jose
LB) Aurelio
Insua
Dossena
CM) Xabi
Masch
Lucas
Spearing
Plessis
LM/LW)Reira
Babel
RM/RW)Kuyt
Benni
FWD)Torres
Gerrard
Kuyt
Ngog
SO how do we improve ...?
@ fullback one could make an argument for a more attacking RB , some one in the mould of Glen Johnson ...? But Degan has been very unfortunate with injuries and looks to have more going forward than Abe , so maybe spending 10m on a fullback is not vital !
CB we look set maybe if there is a freebie out there we could add a more experienced CB , maybe someone like Deigo Lugano @ Fenerbache who is out of contract this June , but I again would not be looking to spend funds here.
LB seems to be a straight fight between Fabio and Insua ... in truth both are great options and that leaves Dossena out in the cold as the 3rd choice , that could mean the end for his very short Anfield career.I know that there are plenty of sides in Italy that will pay around 4 to 5m for him ..but not a penny more.
CM .... now here it gets interesting , Will we sell Xabi ? I would like to think no but if we get the rumoured 25m pound offer from Real , we have to take it. We can add Barry and have alot of change over for another 15m pound player ...? Ideally i would not want to sell Xabi , add Barry on a 10m deal + Nemeth loaned for a season and our Midfield depth is as strong as ever .
Wingers, Kuyt for me is worth his place ,but i do feel he could be so much better if we had a real attacking force supporting him from RB , can Degan be that force ? Abe is good but limited going forward.
Benni has been sensational this season , from being on the outskirts of the squad to being argubly our most influential player this season. He is really going to push Kuyt hard next year for the RM slot + he also adds depth to the CAM position that SG occupies.
Babel .....What can i say , he looks to have all the talent but lack consistency , does that mean his time is up or does he deserve another chance ? I happen to feel that he does need more time , he needs to be given a role and not asked to be a LW , RW, LF or ST , he needs to be given one position to make his own , later on in his career he can add other positions.I like him upfront , he could prove a great understudy to Torres.
Reira has done well in parts but again lacks pace and consistency , yes it was his 1st season and maybe he could be better next season but if we got a good offer i for him i would let him go , if we could add someone with real pace i would love that , a Zirhkov , Silva , even Martin Petrov . Maybe Downing , maybe , I know he does have many critics but he could be more effective than Reira and Reira has been good for us ?
Upfront, well a real backup for Torres someone to push him to better things , many say Tevez ...I disagree he adds nothing that we don't have already. I like Dzeko , Santa Cruz and Llorente , a player with size and power and PACE , that can fill in as well as lead the line on his own.I like Pavlychenko @ Spurs , he is not the direct ST Harry wants him to be , and in away he is more like Torres , he links well, likes the ball into feet ,as well as into space and thrives on his supporting players getting in and around the box . Don't get me wrong i don't expect him to be Fowler in front of goal , but with the right service i think he could bang in 10-15 goals a season for us ?
OK so in short i feel we need a CM , LW , ST ?
My suggestions are : Barry(10m) , Zirhkov(15m) and Pavlychenko(6m)
Maybe sell , Dossena(4m) , Voronin(3m) , El Zhar(0.5m) ,Leto(1m) , Hobbs(0.5m) is gone , Itandje(free) ...?
Reira(8m) , Babel(8m) , Lucas(4m) and Degan(0.5) could be off but to replace them would cost quite a bit and i don't think they have done much wrong this season.
We are not going to have the money to spend like we did last yr , as much as i would love Silva , Santa Cruz , Lavezzi , J Martinez , Glen Johnson ...we don't have that kind of money.Rafa is building a squad and with adding 3 players and keeping the core of the squad we are in a good position for next year.
The Alonso sale is a contentious issue .. but imagine if sold him for 25m ....then added Barry and Javi Martinez for say around 20m that would still leave a profit of 5m to be added t Rafa's kitty , lets call is 25m then add the 5m ... so that would leave enough Zirhkov and a top ST , if Reira or Babel is sold we could then add Silva and a top ST.
So yeah i am glad that Rafa is pondering all these different possible outcomes and i have faith he will make the right choices.
