Liverpool FC Forum

by **Ciggy** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 3:29 pm

Oasis wrote:but it didn't happen.

Are you still goin on abar him

by **48-1119859832** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 4:44 pm

No Ciggy, I'm not, that was posted at 10am.

by **66-1120597113** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 4:58 pm

The cheek of that ex Manc Mark Hughes! :veryangry

Tried to do us,Blackburn wanted Steven Warnock plus cash as a deal for Lucas Niell..........thank feck Raffa told him to shove it!
We can take our chances with what we have from now until January!

by **112-1077774096** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 7:05 pm

chris bascombe liverpool echo

RAFA BENITEZ today explained why he refused to sacrifice Steve Warnock in a bid to bring Lucas Neill to Anfield.

The Liverpool boss admits it was a disappointing conclusion to deadline day, as no agreement was reached to sign the 28-year-old Aussie.

Neill has now been left in limbo until January, when the Reds may renew their interest.

However, the Blackburn defender can sign a pre-contract agreement then and leave for a Bosman next summer.

Benitez accepts there was an element of risk in selling Jan Kromkamp to PSV Eindhoven without securing his replacement, but he and his staff worked until midnight trying to agree a fee.

"It was disappointing. We tried but in the end the situation was impossible," explained Benitez.

"Blackburn wanted to sign Warnock, butwe made it clear we wanted to keep the player.

"They asked to sign Warnock and receive a fee, so we had to say forget it.

"Warnock is a good 24-year-old player who was in the England squad last year.

"The conversations I had with Blackburn were friendly and they are good people, but in the end we had to say 'okay, we can not do it'."

Liverpool were prepared to pay as muchas £2m for Neill, but Benitez refused to bid higher fora player who could be signed for a free in a year.

The manager admits Liverpool are now short of cover for Steve Finnan until January, but insists there are still options within his squad.

"We had to wait until the last minute with Lucas Neill because we needed the money from the Kromkamp deal, although we made our first approach before Kromkamp was sold.

"We knew there was a small risk doing this, but maybe we can do more business with a right-back in January. I know Lucas Neill really wanted to come here, and maybe there will be a possibility in the future, but we must also analyse the market in January.

"We can manage with Carra and Paletta if we have a problem at right-back, but the situation is going to be more difficult for four months.."

Although the transfer window is closed until January, the Reds would still be able to sign out-of-contract players before Christmas.

That's an avenue the club may still explore in the coming weeks.

by **lou93** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 7:30 pm

Hes a thug. After what he did to carra i still wouldn't like him. Even if hes in a liverpool shirt

by **red37** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 4:42 pm

there is still talk of Neill coming in January:

Neill set for Anfield

By JOHN EDWARDS Daily Mail

Lucas Neill's dream move to Liverpool moved a step nearer yesterday after Ukraine's top defender was lined up to replace him at Ewood Park.

Dynamo Kiev left-back Andriy Nesmachniy is expected in Blackburn for a medical in the next few days, prior to completing a transfer that would clear the way for Neill to become a Liverpool player when the January window opens.

The Blackburn skipper almost joined Liverpool last summer and has been so open about his desire to challenge for a place in Rafa Benitez's starting line-up that his own supporters have turned against him in recent weeks.

His wish is about to be granted after manager Mark Hughes finally abandoned any hope of persuading him to sign a new contract and stepped up the search for a replacement. After missing out on Dinamo Zagreb's Brazilian left-back Santos Carlos, Hughes quickly moved in for the vastly-experienced Nesmachniy.

Generally regarded as Ukraine's most accomplished defender, the 27-year old has won over 50 caps and was one of only three players to appear in every minute of their World Cup campaign last summer.

Dynamo's sports manager Leonid Buryak confirmed that the transfer was "almost done", while Nesmachniy said: "It is true that Blackburn have a strong interest, and I am just waiting to be told when I should fly to England. Unless something unforeseen happens, it should all go through."

Neill's versatility, in being able to fill either full-back position, is particularly appealing to Benitez, who rates the tough-tackling Aussie as a strong candidate for an automatic starting role.

The Liverpool manager feels Steve Finnan and John Arne Riise can both move forward to wide midfield positions, to make room for Neill at full-back, and believes the 28-year old can prove a valuable addition to his defensive options.

Benitez is also being linked with Livorno's highly-rated Italy squad keeper Marco Amelia (24), who is likely to reject the offer of a new contract after reportedly becoming a target for Milan, Juventus and Chelsea, as well as Liverpool.

"Liverpool want him in January, but I have had no contact from Milan, even though I know they are following him," said his agent Carlo Pallavicino

by **azriahmad** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 8:37 am

According to the Guardian, we have agreed a 1.5 million pounds fee for him:

Liverpool to finally net Neill after Blackburn look to Nesmachnyi

Dominic Fifield
Thursday December 21, 2006
The Guardian

Liverpool will sign the Australia international defender Lucas Neill in a cut-price deal from Blackburn Rovers next month with the Merseysiders' manager Rafael Benítez aware that the anticipated transfer funds from the takeover of the club by Dubai International Capital will not materialise until the summer.
Neill, who is out of contract at Ewood Park at the end of the season, will complete his move to Anfield having almost joined on deadline day in August only for the clubs to fail to agree a fee at the last minute. Blackburn had explored the possibility of taking the Liverpool full-back Stephen Warnock in part-exchange, but they are close to signing a replacement with the Dynamo Kiev defender Andriy Nesmachnyi in Lancashire and due to take a medical last night. Rovers will hope to raise around £1.5m from the sale of Neill.
Benítez's move for the 28-year-old Neill reflects the reality that DIC's proposed takeover is unlikely to be completed until nearer the end of January, thus denying him a chance to exploit the winter transfer window. The state-owned private equity firm is still scrutinising the books at Liverpool with both club and company confident that a deal can be struck which will see the chairman of 15 years, David Moores, sell his 51.6% stake at Anfield.
Company takeover law then dictates that DIC must make an offer for the rest of Liverpool's shares, an offer which would remain open for 60 days. Should they ultimately secure a stake of 90%, they would be able to make the club a private business, in the same way that West Ham were recently bought by Eggert Magnusson, though Moores and the current chief executive Rick Parry are likely to retain roles at Anfield in the future.

Benítez still hopes to benefit from significant transfer funds in the close season though, having met the chief executive of DIC, Sameer al-Ansari, after the recent victory over Fulham, he is aware that he will not be offered a blank cheque to plunder the market. As Parry and Al-Ansari have been at pains to insist, DIC's interest in Liverpool is considered an investment - such as their recent purchase of Madame Tussauds and the Travelodge chain of hotels - with the group attracted to the club partly because the playing squad would not require a radical overhaul.

The Blackburn manager, Mark Hughes, said he became aware of Nesmachnyi's qualities when he was in charge of Wales. "I know of him as I have come up against him at international level and was impressed with him. He can play wing-back, he knows the game and has good football intelligence. Not only that, he has great experience with 60-odd caps for Ukraine. It was made known to us that he may be available to come in and have a couple of days' training with us.

"We have taken up that option and will have a look at him. We may well do a medical anyway as it makes sense. It is always helpful if you can see someone at first hand rather than on videos. But it is no more than that at this stage."

by **LFC #1** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 3:54 pm

1.5 million is a lot more realistic, 4 million was a joke.

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