Football Focus

[matthew123]

Sandperson what have I said that has hit home so hard with you about Ferguson?

As for Rafa not having a personality to make headlines maybe it is because we at Liverpool like to do our talking on the pitch - rather than making negative comments about other teams.

I'm fed up with this inferiority complex from United. Smell the coffee Sandperson, Liverpool are top of the league and they're gonna stay top so get used to it!

[Sandperson]

Ha, ha, ha. Talking on the pitch!? So that'll be no league title for 18 years?

Let's see where you are in May eh?

Long live Fergie!

[mockney piers]

"Liverpool are top of the league and they're gonna stay top so get used to it!"

What's the old adage? Pride comes before a fall?

[ratty]

Sandperson Wrote:

Isn't it true that Pompey (under

> Redknapp) didn't pay the fee for Defoe?

Nope, it is not true whatsoever. As in almost all EPL deals, the first half was paid and the second delayed for 1 year. This was waived by Tottenham in bringing him back to WHL (they also doubled his wages). There were further complications on the deal as we owed spurs some cash for Kaboul who transfered in the summer.

Just heard an amusing story, from a certain 7ft striker, that a certain scouse exhibitionist was so p***ed off with Defoe's lack of effort after the PFC Vs WHFC game on Boxing Day that he took it upon himself to spark him straight out in the dressing room! Flu my arse!

Also an interesting side note is that JD has been living at HR's Sandbanks residence since this incident. Tapped up? Of course not!

[Ladygooner]

mockney piers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> "Liverpool are top of the league and they're gonna

> stay top so get used to it!"

>

> What's the old adage? Pride comes before a fall?

Remember last season? Arsenal were top until February and then look what happened!

[ratty]

The league will go to Man U or Chelsea like it always does.

[mockney piers]

Arsenal want Upson back, perhaps for Bentdner (or however it spelt).

TOrn, we need cash, and bendtner is a decent enough player who would suit the team, especially if Etherington goes to Stoke (he'll be sorely missed even if he is a tad erratic at the mo), but Upson is absolutely at the core of our new found defensive solidity, and if he stays will almost certainly get player of the season.

[Rhinestone Cowboy]

Why would Etherington goto Stoke. Ok this season but straight back down next Season. Saying that we could go down as well but West Ham bigger club. Maybe just wants to play regular football.

[ratty]

Sorry Piers but we are swapping Kranjcar for Bentdner (or however it is spelt!) ;)

Rumours runours runmours!

[ratty]

Anyway, what sort of idiot team sells a player one minute, then decides they want him back the next and...............

Oh!

[mockney piers]

LOL!!!

[Rhinestone Cowboy]

Spurs had 30% sell on so they pay pompey pompey pay them Defoe pretty much doubles from 35k a week to 60k and he's still not that good. Bent and Defoe I hope they work well at least for England side

[Ladygooner]

mockney piers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Arsenal want Upson back, perhaps for Bentdner (or

> however it spelt).

> TOrn, we need cash, and bendtner is a decent

> enough player who would suit the team, especially

> if Etherington goes to Stoke (he'll be sorely

> missed even if he is a tad erratic at the mo), but

> Upson is absolutely at the core of our new found

> defensive solidity, and if he stays will almost

> certainly get player of the season.

Its Bendtner! His lovely pink boots will go down a treat in Plaistow!

[Annasfield]

matthew123 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I'm fed up with this inferiority complex from

> United. Smell the coffee Sandperson, Liverpool are

> top of the league and they're gonna stay top so

> get used to it!

Hate saying stuff like that. Hope you've not jinxed us. :'(

[Keef]

I'm fed up with this inferiority complex from United. Smell the coffee Sandperson, Liverpool are top of the league and they're gonna stay top so get used to it!

Anna just beat me to it. Matthew, if we don't win the league (which as LadyG points out, is quite possible), I blame you personally for it!

[Rhinestone Cowboy]

From Spurs fan site.. Not sure all the facts are true but makes an interesting read.

The papers are full today of our "new" signing being paraded on the pitch before last nights game and the figures being stated range from ?13m-?16m but in reality how much did he cost us?

Firstly let me say that this is only my take on the matter, not any form of insider knowledge, so the numbers will be "ball park" from information available but they'll be close.

Firstly last season we sold Jermaine, Noe Pamarot, Sean Davies, Pedro Mendes and Younes Kaboul to Pompey. Pamarot, Mendes & Davies were combined together as a lump sum value of ?7.5m, Defoe was ?9m and Kaboul was an "undisclosed fee" rumoured to be about ?3.5m. This made an estimated total of ?20m we were owed by Pompey.

As most people know teams don't just pass each other wads of cash any more and usually spread the payments out over stages, generally acknowledged as one third up front, a third after a year and the final third 18months/2 years down the line.

So for arguements sake Pompey owed us the final payment of c?7m.

Next thing to bear in mind is that Levy is not a stupid man when it comes to business. The only reason Defoe was sold was that he was entering his last year of his contract and refusing to sign a new one so rather than getting stung the way we did with our ex-captain "who should not be named" for fear of legal action we accepted Pompey's bid which many of us said at the time was too low. But Levy knew that given games Defoe would score goals and it'd be likely he'd be sold for a profit by Portsmouth so he added in a "sell on clause" into the deal.

This is a common occurance in football these days, especially with young and talented players, and rumours are that Defoe had a ?4m sell on clause. So we'd receive ?4m back should Pompey sell Defoe.

So if we take the mid range and accept we agreed a fee with Portsmouth of ?15m then that would immediately become ?11m when we got our sell on cash back, take off the ?7m outstanding and that drops the cash paid to ?4m.

So we've basically paid Portsmouth ?4m to give our striker a years worth of first team football.

When we loan players out to lower league clubs to "get match experience" we generally pick up 50% of the wage costs and when he left us Defoe was on ?35k a week = ?1.8m a year. If we'd sent him there on loan we'd still have paid, rounded up, ?1m in wages.

So in an optomists eyes, ignoring the accountancy realism we paid Pompey the sum total of ?3m to give JD a years worth of matches.

[ratty]

Alternative version:

The sell on clause was waived

Spurs owed Pompey ?5m compensation for Judas

Money on Mendes was paid over when he moved to Scotland. (By the way these players signed 3 seasons ago now.) O/S debts in EPL must be paid within 12 months.

Sad fact is that Spurs have been royally bummed on this deal. Even sadder fact is that Pompey will not be able to spend the money on players due to the debt left by Redknapp.

Happy fact is that Spurs will probably be bankrupt by the Jowlly faced shyster by February 9th!

[Jah Lush]

Two sides to every story. I'm really glad Defoe is back. He's quick and he scores goals and if he can strike up a good partnership Pavloychenko all the better.

I was at White Hart Lane last night and we were bloody awful in the first half but one substitution later - Jamie O'Hara for a flash and bone idle David Bentley - and 21 minutes later we're 4-1 up. Job done.

[ratty]

Yep - just hoping Man U reserves scrape through against Derby tonight! ;)

[matthew123]

I learnt long ago that holding fire or making predictions has no effect on the final result - unless you give team talk! Which reminds me of when I once give Sami Hyypia a 'pep talk' in Switzerland after Liverpool went out of Champions League to Basle in group stage. I sat down next to the skipper after we found him in a hotel with bottle of beer in hand and told him all would be forgiven by winning on weekend... we took another 12 league games before we won again!

[Sandperson]

Before anyone else puts the knife in, we were poor tonight, we had no midfield structure. All I can think is that it was damage limitation for the weekend, then we put out a full strength side on the 20th to give em a good tonking.

[Annasfield]

I thought you had a reasonably strong side out tonight anyway?

[Sandperson]

Well, Tevez, Vidic and Rafael on from the start. Rooney, Ronaldo and Carrick on mid-second half. I wouldn't say the rest were 'first team' exactly. Reasonably strong compared to a Championship side...yes.

[Mick Mac]

Who is Well - I don't know him. Anyway - its a two legger so prob just making it exciting for the neutral.

[matthew123]

It was a much stronger United line-up than I expected, and don't forget Scholes and Tevez also started. Rio is still injured and Evra suspended - but both are back for Sunday's blockbuster which will go a long way to decide which team finishes 2nd or 3rd this season. Ronaldo, Carrick and Rooney made no difference to the flow of the game so I'd say much work still to be done for United in 2nd leg, although I expect United to meet Spurs in Final. I thought Phil Dowd refereed the game well (only saw 2nd half) and I'd probably put him up there now as the best in PL on evidence of recent weeks.