by account deleted by request » Sat Jul 07, 2007 12:30 am
Liverpool bank £16m as Cisse and Bellamy are moved onJames Ducker
Rafael Benítez, the Liverpool manager, was stepping up his search for a world-class winger last night after off-loading Craig Bellamy and Djibril Cissé for a combined fee of about £16 million. Bellamy, the Wales forward, has joined West Ham United in a deal worth up to £8 million after passing a medical in East London yesterday and agreeing a four-year contract worth about £70,000 a week.
Alan Curbishley, the West Ham manager, turned his attention to Bellamy after missing out to Tottenham Hotspur for Darren Bent. Bellamy’s departure brings to an end a frustrating 12 months for the Welshman, who struggled to adapt to BenÍtez’s rotation policy and whose spell at Liverpool was marred by controversy when he was accused of attacking John Arne Riise with a golf club at a training camp.
Bellamy was reluctant to leave Anfield but came to accept that his chances of first-team football next season were limited and favoured a move to West Ham over a return to Black-burn Rovers, whom he left last summer, or Aston Villa, where Martin O’Neill, who has worked with the player at Celtic, was thought to be keen to sign him.
Yossi Benayoun, the Israel midfield player, is expected to move in the opposite direction and become Liverpool’s second significant signing of the summer after the £20.2 million capture of Fernando Torres, although a deal had still to be concluded last night. Liverpool have also agreed to sell Cissé to Marseilles for about £8 million. Cissé will sign a three or four-year contract with the French club, who have also signed Boudewijin Zenden on a free transfer after he was released by Liverpool.
Although Liverpool will make a significant loss on Cissé, whom they signed for £14.2 million from Auxerre in 2004, the money from his sale, and that of Bellamy, will give Benítez the funds to make another big signing.
Bellamy, 27, is joining his seventh club since making his debut for Nor-wich City in 1996 and despite having cost a total of more than £30 million in transfer fees, he has yet to make the impact that his talent suggests he should. Benayoun will offer BenÍtez more options on the right side of midfield, but the Spaniard is keen to bring in a second winger who can play on either flank. Alessandro Mancini, the AS Roma winger, and Ricardo Quares-ma, of FC Porto, are thought to be interesting BenÍtez, although the manager appears to have conceded defeat in his efforts to sign Florent Malouda, with the Lyons winger likely to join Chelsea.
While all the talk on Merseyside this week may have been about Torres, one player also hoping to make a big impression at Anfield is Andriy Voronin. The Ukraine striker, signed on a free transfer from Bayer Leverkusen, was formally welcomed yesterday after signing a four-year contract with the club.
With Dirk Kuyt or Peter Crouch expected to be the preferred partners for Torres up front, Voronin appears to have been signed to offer cover in attack, but the player does not see it that way.
“I haven’t made this decision to just sit on the bench,” he said. “I am coming to get into the team and form a partnership with someone. I played against Liverpool two years ago in the Champions League and I remember the madness before the game of all the supporters. I will never forget the atmosphere at the stadium and can’t wait to experience it as a Liverpool player.”
Benítez believes that Voronin could prove a real asset. “He’s a free transfer, but maybe that’s better for him because he won’t have the pressure of the others,” the manager said. “These players play better because they aren’t under pressure.”
Liverpool have agreed an undisclosed fee with Stockport County for Ryan Crowther, the young winger.
Clubs in the bag
Craig Bellamy has played for six clubs. More often than not, he has not left fond memories behind.
Norwich City 1996-2000 Showed his potential at Carrow Road, despite suffering injuries
Coventry City 2000-01 Cost £6.5 million but left when Coventry went down
Newcastle United 2001-05 Run-ins with Graeme Souness led to the £6 million striker being loaned out
Celtic 2005 Upset Alan Shearer with abusive text messages while in exile in Scotland
Blackburn Rovers 2005-06 Fine season after £5 million move but was off at first interest from Anfield
Liverpool 2006-07 Hit John Arne Riise with a golf club and scored in the Nou Camp to help to beat Barcelona. Fair return for £6 million
If we got £8million for Cisse(which I find hard to believe) we have got a decent deal for a change.
, we will sell you to anyone "
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