Bonus Brian Reade: Why Gareth Bale's £85m transfer will have made Liverpool owners laugh and cry – Brian Reade

Rex

Liverpool’s owners must have felt relieved this week.

And it had nothing to do with a rival club losing a world-class player.

It’s because no one can now refer to the £35million they wasted on Andy Carroll as the transfer record for a British player.

It’s a stat that, rightly, had them cringing for two years.

But a look at the fee Spurs chairman Daniel Levy recouped for Bale must have made them wince even harder – at the head-scratching deals previous Liverpool owners did with Real Madrid, which partly explains why the club fell out of the elite.

Spurs squeezed £85m out of Real for a player who has played only 10 Champions League games, no international tournament games and has never won a trophy.

 

Compare that deal with what Liverpool recouped for giving them Michael Owen (then a 24-year-old European Footballer of the Year) and Steve McManaman (who went on to score in a Champions League Final for them): A combined sum of £8m, plus the mighty Antonio Nunez.

I don’t know if that says more about the bargaining genius of Levy or the dithering ineptitude of Liverpool’s then-chairman David Moores.

Although the disastrous sale of the club to Tom Hicks and George Gillett probably puts that one to bed…

Shock hides a Real Mes

Why the horror from Real Madrid players and former coaches about the ?

All of them know the dishonesty that surrounds “the greatest football club on earth” – including that very claim from a team which hasn’t won a European Cup since 2002.

What they’re the greatest at is propping up that myth with a failed Galactico system that puts the pursuit of the world’s most marketable players above team-building.

Hence having to be seen breaking the world transfer record to bring in the hottest property of the moment, Gareth Bale, who scores goals and looks sexy (now he’s had his ears done), so sells shirts.

But needing to recoup half the fee by flogging Ozil, who doesn’t score many goals, looks like Marty Feldman and thus doesn’t sell shirts.

Getty 

Which makes the quote from Real’s assistant coach Paul Clement that Bale’s starting place is “not ­guaranteed” a comic gem.

It’s even more guaranteed than a Cristiano Ronaldo-led white hankie protest aimed at club president Florentino Perez if Bale struggles early on at the Bernabeu while Ozil sets the Premier League alight.

If so, let’s hope that Galactico “unveiling stage” doubles as a gallows.

Talent lost in translation

Two former wonderboys slipped under the radar and out of the country during the transfer window.

Bebe, who cost Manchester United £7.5million three years ago, went on loan to Portuguese club Pacos de Ferreira.

Dani Pacheco, who Liverpool saw as their future when they raided Barcelona’s academy in 2007, moved to Spanish second-tier side Alcorcon.

Matthew Peters 

They serve as reminders that YouTube clips, foreign names and wild prophecies do not ensure success.

In a few years’ time, possibly a third of this summer’s foreign gambles will have backfired.

In the meantime, how many local lads will end up playing for lower league teams because of their arrival?

Transfer circus sends in clowns

There is a growing backlash against the mobs that stand behind Sky reporters outside training grounds on deadline day, entertaining us with genitalia-based hand gestures.

According to some Mary Whitehous-esque critics, they “spoil the excitement for the real football fans”.

Hang on, most real football fans hate these transfer windows – especially the over-hyped final few hours, which have been elevated to the dramatic heights of Nelson Mandela’s freedom walk from Victor Verster prison.

Football introduced this circus, and is more than happy to take the cash off the Sky ringmasters, so why moan when it attracts clowns?

Click here for Brian Reade on about England.

Brian Reade on Greg Dyke: Here's what he could have said in THAT speech about England.. – Brian Reade

AFP

When it comes to football, Greg Dyke has always talked a good game.

Good, that is, until the dust settles on the soundbites, at which point it usually looks about as good as a goalless draw between a Tony Pulis side and a Mick McCarthy one.

When he took over as BBC Director General he cited his main ambition as winning back rights to show the people’s game.

“You can get football if you duck and dive a bit,” he assured us.

It didn’t happen.

In fact, he lost the jewel in its crown, Match of the Day, to ITV, causing then Shadow Heritage Secretary Peter Ainsworth to question his competence.

“I don’t know how Greg Dyke can reconcile this loss with his statement that Match of the Day was going to be his priority. He has obviously massively miscalculated the value of these rights,” said Ainsworth.

In 2001, when the Football League’s deal with ITV Digital hit the buffers, Dyke warned that the bubble had burst.

“The gravy train for football is coming to an end,” he said, giving this Armageddon-style warning to Premier League clubs:

“Don’t go signing five-year contracts with players at inflated salaries on the assumption that the next time the TV rights are coming up there will be another big jump in the price – there could well be a big fall.”

It didn’t happen.

When the Glazers took over Manchester United in 2005 he claimed United could “become the next Leeds” and the Americans would be gone “in five years”.

It didn’t happen.

Lamenting on United’s plight, he said: “Perhaps football clubs are not suited to being public companies in the first place.”

Oh dear.

This from the man who, as ITV boss, cajoled the leading clubs into breaking away from the smaller ones and ushered in the era of plc greed that sucked in foreign sharks like the Glazers.

Dyke helped to create the haves and have-nots of football, helping the naive FA – who wanted to smash the Football League – into believing that the formation of a Premier League was in the interests of the national team.

That certainly didn’t happen, which is why Dyke, as FA chairman, now assumes the role of People’s Hero by and something needs to be done.

And he’s going to do it.

with no terms of reference or time frame, the result of which will somehow be England winning the 2022 World Cup… in 100-degree heat in Qatar.

It won’t happen.

Once Dyke’s gallery-playing is forgotten (when this international break ends?) the Premier League bosses, club owners and managers won’t even remember what he said.

Instead of cynically playing the blind patriot card by , he could have bravely argued that it is too easy to blame all football’s ills on the nasty Premier League.

He could have done a mea culpa on behalf of the FA by attacking its antiquated structure, ineffectual figures such as Trevor Brooking and and developing talent.

He could have attacked successive governments for the criminal way they have damaged school sport provision.

By common consent, .

The thing is, anyone could have said it.

He may have good intentions but he is not a football visionary, just a clever company man.

A shrewd, wealthy businessman with a decent bloke persona, who talks a good game.

But that’s all it is.

And his talk, unlike the price of admission into the Premier League he created, is cheap.

Click here for .

Manchester United news: Marouane Fellaini admits to deadline day nerves ahead of Old Trafford transfer

Julian Finney

Marouane Fellaini admits he was feeling nervous on transfer deadline day .

The 25-year-old, who starred in Belgium’s 2-0 World Cup qualifying win against Scotland last night, admits it is a "big step" to move to Old Trafford, but that he is relishing the opportunity.

Fellaini was David Moyes’ only signing on deadline day, .

And now he has his eyes set on winning trophies at his new club.

"It is a big step for me," he said. "But I have played five years in England, I know the league and I know the players so I don’t think I will have a problem with this move.

"Of course I look forward to it, I am playing with big players so I need to work hard for my place.

"To win a trophy with Manchester United and play a lot of games, that is important.

Julian Finney 

"I watched the game (against Liverpool) and in the second half the team played very well and had a lot of chances but couldn’t score, but football is like this.

"It will be tough, every year is tough for the big teams but I think Manchester United has the quality to win the championship so I look forward to this."

The Belgian also said that while he hadn’t had his best game in the qualifier at Hampden, he’s happy to have taken the three points.

"When I started the campaign with Everton I looked forward to the transfer so in the end I was happy," he said.

"I was a little bit nervous on Monday but in the end I have my transfer and I have won with Belgium so I am happy.

"It wasn’t my best game but we won and it was a good game for us.

"We scored the first half and dominated the game and that was important."

Daniel Sturridge OUT of England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine as FA confirm injury hasn't improved

Scott Heavey

Daniel Sturridge will not be featuring for England on Tuesday night in their World Cup qualifier against Ukraine after being ruled out through injury.

It had been hoped that would recover enough to feature in Kiev next week, but the FA confirmed in a statement that his thigh problem has not healed sufficiently.

The injury occurred during last week’s 1-0 win against Manchester United, .

, boss Roy Hodgson has decided not to call up a replacement.

"The FA can confirm that Daniel Sturridge will not return to the England squad ahead of the World Cup qualifier with Ukraine on Tuesday," said the FA in a statement.

"Club England medical staff have been in constant contact with their counterparts at Liverpool football club since he returned there on Thursday, his injury has not progressed as had been hoped and it is now clear that Sturridge will not be fit for the match in Kiev on Tuesday evening."

 

Stiliyan Petrov says John Terry is one of football's good guys

Getty

If you asked most people for their list of football’s good guys then John Terry would probably not be a name that would figure.

Great player, courageous defender, ­captain, leader, legend if you are a Chelsea fan.

But a string of off-the-field scandals, feuds, alleged affairs, rows and arguments – – leave his reputation more than soured for the rest of the game.

Talk to Stiliyan Petrov, ­however, and a ­different ­picture emerges.

When Aston Villa’s former midfield star was first diagnosed with acute leukaemia, Terry was the first rival Premier League ­captain to get in touch and wish him well.

And today the Chelsea star will underline his commitment to support Petrov’s recovery by flying to Glasgow to play at sold-out Celtic Park in support of his charities.

and planning to play at least part of the match ­himself, wants the world to know the softer side of a man who has become .

The Bulgarian said: “Before I was ill I knew John only from ­shaking hands ­before ­kick-off in ­matches, and as a fierce ­competitor.

“We had also met and talked at the ­meetings the ­Premier League hold for ­captains before the start of each ­season.

“But from the ­moment the news came out about my illness he was one of the first to get in touch and he has ­carried on being ­supportive ever since. He doesn’t ­always have an easy time with the fans, but I have seen a very different man to that image.

“He has gone out of his way to encourage me at different times – always sending ­messages and texts while I was going through treatment, even though sometimes it might have been a month before I felt strong enough to return them.

“When I was planning this game he was the first to sign up. I rang and asked if he could take part and he just said: ‘Tell me when and I’ll be there. Who wouldn’t want to play in the atmosphere of a sold-out Celtic Park?’”

Petrov’s courageous fight against leukaemia has drawn backing from ­players and fans from every club in the ­country, and the 34-year-old is now ­trying to put something back having launched his own ­?cancer c­harity.

And he admits he’s humbled by the ­response to his match which features a ­Celtic XI against a Stiliyan XI – with a line-up that includes singer Louis Tomlinson from One Direction.

He said: “It definitely helped the ticket sales – I doubt we will hear the referee over the screams from the girls!”

Petrov starred for Celtic in a seven-year stint at Parkhead which included a UEFA Cup final in 2003.

“It is emotional for me knowing how many people will be there, and I am looking forward to meeting up with some of the people I played with ­during my time at Celtic because they were great days,” he added.

“We had a terrific group of ­characters who knew when to laugh and when to work and I have ­amazing memories of ­reaching the UEFA Cup final and all the other success we enjoyed.

“I don’t know how I will react – I hope I don’t cry.

“I haven’t cried ?all through these hard times so ?I don’t want to start now.”

Ukraine star says England are lost without Wayne Rooney

Christopher Lee – The FA

Roy Hodgson has been sent a chilling warning that England will not cope in Ukraine without Wayne Rooney.

That is the view of striker Yevhen ­Konoplyanka, who scored Ukraine’s goal in the 1-1 draw at Wembley against last September.

Only Frank Lampard’s late ­penalty saved England’s blushes that night.

Manager Hodgson is again ­without for the vital World Cup qualifying trip to Ukraine, as the striker recovers from a nasty gash to his forehead.

­Konoplyanka, 23, said: “We were unfortunate not to beat England in London, we should have won.

“We dominated for a lot of the game and it took a late penalty for them to draw with us in their own stadium.

“They didn’t have Rooney that night and it is good news for us England won’t have him again.

“England are a different team when he plays. When he isn’t, you can see they are looking for ­inspiration from somebody else, but can’t find it.

“Every nation has their ­stand-out player, but I can’t think of any ­nation that are as reliant on one player as England are on Rooney.” England beat Ukraine in the European Championships in Donetsk last June thanks to a header from Rooney.

The 27-year-old is fifth in the list of all-time leading England ­goalscorers with 36 goals in 84 international appearances.

Without Rooney and the suspended Danny Welbeck, England are set to rely on Southampton striker and international rookie Rickie Lambert against Ukraine.

Having thrashed San Marino 9-0, Ukraine are aiming to beat England in Kiev in front of a sell-out crowd on Tuesday night and knock Hodgson’s men off top spot in Group H of World Cup qualifying.

Konoplyanka said: “England won’t find it easy. We are confident we can win.”

Swansea boss Michael Laudrup linked with Benfica job

Michael Regan

Michael Laudrup and Gus Poyet are among a list of managers drawn up by Portuguese club Benfica.

They handed boss Jorge Jesus a new two-year contract in the summer, despite a disastrous run that saw them lose two cup finals and miss out on the league title. But sources close to Benfica claim ­contingency plans have been ­discussed if Jesus cannot turnaround last season’s collapse.

features prominently among Benfica’s ­potential successors for Jesus, while Poyet’s current availability has been noted.

Benfica have won, drawn and lost their opening three games and it ­remains to be seen how long Jesus will be given.

Laudrup has agreed a truce with Swansea owner Huw Jenkins, following a turbulent start to the summer that saw the Welsh club cut ties with the manager’s agent Bayram Tutumlu. He has close links to ­Benfica, and he and Laudrup went to watch the Portuguese club play ­Sporting Lisbon last season.

Laudrup, who has a £10million ­release clause in his contract, was ­approached to take over at Benfica in 2008 by director of football Rui Costa. Poyet, sacked by Brighton in June, is the

Rickie Lambert: You can count on me to help England beat Ukraine

Rickie Lambert has told Roy Hodgson he can fire England towards the World Cup in Ukraine.

made it two goals in two England games against Moldova at Wembley.

And now the 31-year-old is ready to prove himself again in Kiev on Tuesday night, with Hodgson short of attacking options.

, knowing victory would give them a great chance of qualifying for next summer’s World Cup in Brazil.

“Whatever the gaffer’s plans for me on ­Tuesday, I’m confident,” said Lambert. “Whether that’s starting or off the bench, I’m confident when I get a chance, I’ll put it away.

“It’s been a surreal few weeks. To score on my debut and again on Friday night, it’s a dream and I’m hoping there’s more to come.

“The game on Tuesday night is another chance to impress. Getting moments like Friday night, I want more now, I want more.

“We understand it will be completely ­different in Ukraine, but we’re in a good place at the minute and the boys are really confident, and there is a feel-good factor around. We’re ­looking forward to it.”

Rickie Lambert’s career in pictures:

 

Hodgson insists he is not worried by the prospect of starting with Lambert as his main striker against Ukraine.

“I don’t have any qualms about it,” said Hodgson. “The fact is Rickie was selected to play against Moldova because he merited it. He did well enough to justify the selection.

“If you play well in a game and justify the selection, you are entitled to think you will continue. Qualms would definitely not be the right word, even though we can’t deny either that the competition for places at centre forward has been diminished enormously.

“The most important thing for Rickie is to feel confident and feel he has the confidence of the coach and the coaching staff, and to feel the players have confidence in him.

“You don’t see anyone not wanting to give him the ball. I have not seen any sign, since he has been in the group, of him not being very well integrated. We have a very good group of players.”

Former beetroot factory worker Lambert was playing for League Two Rochdale just seven years ago and admits his life has changed dramatically since making his England debut.

“It’s been surreal the way the England fans have taken to me,” said Lambert. “I’ve been stopped at petrol stations and other places, it’s been a little bit different since I’ve played for England. The amount of attention from everyone has really gone up.

“I still don’t feel at home as an England player, I feel like I’ve still got a lot to prove.

“I’ve still got to impress every chance I get to try and make sure I’m a different option for the gaffer. I understand I’ve got a long way to go to try to stay in his plans.

“I’m a footballer, so it’s everyone’s dream to be playing for England. I didn’t always believe it, but I’ve always dreamed it. I haven’t had my caps delivered yet. I can’t wait to get them.”

Hodgson believes Lambert’s background is helping him grasp his England chance with both hands, adding: “You are talking about a very mature person who has seen all that football has to offer.

“He has also seen the fact that if you are not in football, what life has to offer is maybe not as good comparably.”

Hull boss Steve Bruce backs Gedo to get goals this season

Action Images

Steve Bruce is backing Gedo to Ged ’im the goals that will keep .

Tigers boss Bruce snapped up the Egyptian hit-man on a season-long loan from ­Al-Ahly just minutes before the transfer window slammed shut six days ago.

after initially hiring him on a temporary ­transfer last January.

The 28-year-old notched five goals in 12 outings to help the Tigers clinch their top flight return after three years in exile.

But he missed out on City’s promotion party with a foot injury, which required an ­operation to put right.

Despite penning a new three-year deal this ­summer, Gedo is keen to clinch a permanent switch to the KC Stadium.

And City are ready to sign him for £1.8million if he proves to be a success.

Bruce enthused: “This boy has got class. He is an ­international who has scored 17 goals in 33 games for his country, so we know all about his quality.

“We needed somebody to come in and give us some extra firepower, and Gedo provided that when he joined us on loan for the first time last season.

“He can do that again and be a big player for us this time around.

“Gedo will be able to cope with the ­Premier League – he just oozes class.”

Steven Gerrard pays tribute to 'tremendous' Frank Lampard and says they enjoy playing together

Steve Bardens – The FA

has paid tribute to Frank Lampard.

Chelsea midfielder Lampard is preparing to collect his 100th against Ukraine in Kiev on Tuesday.

He will become only the eighth player to join this exclusive club that includes Peter Shilton, David Beckham, Bobby Moore, Bobby Charlton, Billy Wright, Ashley Cole and ­Gerrard.

Skipper Gerrard declared: “Frank deserves all the accolades that he gets.” For years, the two players have been the focal point of endless debates about whether they can play in tandem.

Roy Hodgson clearly believes both can be accommodated and Gerrard has never had doubts.

“For me, it is always nice when we are in the same team,” said Gerrard, who has been both friend and foe to Lampard over more than a decade of Liverpool-Chelsea rivalry.

“A lot of people talk about me and Frank being in the same team. We enjoy playing together.”

Hodgson has decided to make full use of their vast combined experience with club and country as he attempts to guide England to the World Cup finals in Brazil next summer.

Both are Champions League winners, both have tasted hostile atmospheres on foreign territory and emerged victorious.

Gerrard was clearly delighted Lampard rejected the chance to play in California with LA Galaxy – a move that would have curtailed his England career – to stay stay at Stamford Bridge.

Gerrard, who has 104 caps for England, said: “Frank has been tremendous for club and country.

“No one deserves this 100 caps more than him.

“Hopefully, I will be on the pitch when he gets that 100th cap because I have been with him all the way through.

“He is a good friend.”

Gerrard added: “Roy Hodgson said last year when there was talk of him going to LA Galaxy that he wouldn’t play for England if he went there. He is too good for Galaxy. He made the right choice, of course he did. You saw his form at the back end of last season.

“I would have supported his decision if he had gone, but, for me, he still had so much to offer the Premier League and England.

“Frank is a great player and has been for club and country for a very long time.”