It’s always a great feeling when Madrid want you, especially considering the phase of the career I am in now…I will talk to him [Benitez], sure, but the first thing to do when I arrive [in Austria] is to greet him.

But I imagine that in the next few days, there will be time for all that, even though in reality, there’s nothing in particular to talk to Rafa about. It’s the clubs who have to negotiate to reach an agreement.

Okay, so Xabi wants to leave and doesn’t have any interest in talking to the manager that did not even rate an invitation to his wedding. Who will fill the void in the midfield when the inevitable happens? Will it be Aquilinai? Or, will the tactics significantly change and force us to rely more on wingers like Ashley Young? Either player would be a great addition to the squad, but you know where the money will have to come from…

After registering the first loss of the preseason to Rapid Vienna (1-0), the squad will head to Thailand and then Singapore where they will say hello to Kai and Nadia. Hopefully, they will be able to provide some photos from the match. And hopefully, Nadia’s will cover more than the backside of Fernando Torres.

I really hope Xabi doesn’t go anywhere because I see him as part of the spine that makes the team work. No one can match his passing ability. It would also be nice to see Arbeloa stick around. He was one of the most consistent players last season, but I do not know that he will want to play off the bench with Glen Johnson in the picture. Personally, I was happy with Carragher at right back now and then. The only player that might go would be Mascherano. I just don’t see a defensive midfielder working in the current setup. The only thing that could possibly change that is if Gerrard continues to play right behind Torres.

It was said today that Rafa has challenged the youngsters to show that they have what it takes to be in the first team. If players like Pacheco, Kelly, and Nemeth can step up and earn a place in the squad, then hell, maybe we won’t need to buy or sell anyone else. Keep your fingers crossed.

Oh, and my boy Yossi got an extension on his contract. Woot!

Whilst I’d love to tell you that this deal was close to being finalised, the reality of this whole ordeal is that we’re no closer to making Barry an Anfield star now than when we started this whole transfer mess with Aston Villa.

The papers are making the situation sound very bleak, and from the talk going on here in the States, it doesn’t sound like Uncle’s Tom and George are going to throw another £18m at another transfer this summer. I’ll admit that I was more than happy to let Barry stay at Villa after we signed Robbie Keane; however, Rafa has now gotten my hopes back up with the recent talk about adding Barry back to the squad before the start of the season.

A story in the Telegraph this week definitely got me excited. Like many, I wondered where the hell this new found cash flow was coming from. Then I heard about the club trying to peddle Kuyt, among others, to get the cash flow.

Look, I’m all for adding Barry, but unless we find some way to move Alonso before the start of the season, then I see no reason to spend money we don’t have. If G&H don’t want to spend the money, then that’s fine with me. I’ll take Alonso, a player many supporters have thrown off to the side, 9 times out of 10.

Needless to say, the transfer market has had more names and news linking players with clubs this summer than ever before. However, if you wade through all the crap rumours and see who made a move this summer, I think you’d be shocked to see that the market has been quiet. I believe that even without Barry this squad is good enough to contend for the Premier League title.

Barry is a great player, don’t get me wrong. But this whole saga is just turning into a complete mess. I’d rather the club accept the fact that Robbie is our big transfer target this summer and move on. With a big third round tie next week in the Champions League, and Sunderland coming up on the 16th to start the season, I think it’s time we embraced the current squad and forget about Barry. We don’t need this whole transfer mess hanging over our heads with big matches coming up. You saw what that did to the squad last season when G&H added an unnecessary black cloud to the club.

It’s time to get ready for the season and move into the future. Ok, I’ll get off my soapbox now.

This is the signing I’ve been most excited about when I first heard the rumor that Keane wanted to leave Spurs for his boyhood heroes, Liverpool. He’s a proven striker, the captain of his country, and also doesn’t have to adjust to the English game. I believe he’ll slide right in and fit nicely alongside Torres and at the end of the season we’ll be saying what a bargain he was at £20m.

There’s hope that the deal will be done in time for the friendly against Villareal on Wednesday. It’s far more likely though that if we see Keane soon, it will be against Rangers on Aug 2nd. I just don’t see him having one training session and then being thrown out there.

Of course now the formation will have to be switched around. What do you think the new starting XI will look like? Here’s my shot in the dark…

………Torres…..Keane
………….Gerrard
….Kuyt……Alonso…..Babel
Degen…Skrtel…Agger…Carragher
……………Reina………………

Kuyt, Babel, Degen, and Carragher will all be inclined to push up while Skrtel, Agger and Alonso form a diamond with Reina to defend the center. Meanwhile, Gerrard, Torres and Keane go on to form the TRIANGLE OF TERROR. Oh come on, you knew it was coming.

*EDIT*
Now official.

With only 30 minutes before the Spain/Russia clash at Euro 2008, I thought it would only be fitting to post this glorious photo for you (I mean ME) to drool over courtesy of Lydnsey_LFC over at RAWK. Let it sink in for a moment… Now tell me that Villa and Torres weren’t made to play football at the same club! One can always dream, but I for one think that this is a match made in transfer speculation heaven. Here’s hoping The Kid and his future counterpart (*fingers crossed*) will make it happen tonight against Russia.

But before we act as oil speculators and drive the price up more on either player, let’s think of the world as we know it at this moment. If the club can only buy one of the two players, which should they pursue? Should Liverpool be content that Kuyt will end up being the striking partner Torres needs and pursue a solid defensive midfielder? Or should we focus on attack power and go after Villa, creating a Triangle of Terror with Torres, Villa, and Gerrard. Side note, if Villa signs and anyone starts using the phrase “Triangle of Terror,” I am so suing. Another thing to think about is the possibility of the 6+5 rule being implemented. In that case, another Englishman would definitely be needed.

So interweb world, what do you think?

It seems that the big wigs at Aston Villa are finally accepting that Gareth Barry will be signed by Liverpool and the only smart thing for them to do is try to get the best deal out of it that they can. According to the Daily Mail, Aston Villa will be willing to accept the bid of £14mil by Liverpool, but will have to wait for Rafa to scrape together the money from the sale of Xabi Alonso and other players.

I wouldn’t be too concerned on the financial side. Gareth Barry seems to be Rafa’s number one target for the summer, and if that’s the case, the money will manifest from somewhere.

I’m pretty excited at the notion of Barry joining the squad. I don’t think that his signing will solve all of our offensive problems, but it should be a big step in the right direction. He and Steven Gerrard already have a great relationship from the England national team and can turn the Gerrard/Torres partnership into a trifecta. The best thing about him possibly joining the team is that he’s played in the Premier League a long time and there would not be an adjustment period like we’ve seen with Babel.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed that if Rafa can’t find the cash that Uncles G & H will open their wallets.

To look back on the first couple of weeks of the transfer season takes all of a split second, and can be summed up with two words: Philipp Degen. Degen, of course, is Liverpool’s only transfer signing to date. I’ll be the first to admit that I was more excited about Voronin being our first transfer signing last season (yes, I feel like a total fool now) than I was of seeing Degen’s name being linked with Liverpool. But like most Rafa signings, it’s usually the names we don’t know much about (Martin Škrtel) that end up pleasantly surprising us when we least expect it.

I’ve come to the realization that after going into a transfer overdrive last season with the additions of Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano, and Ryan Babel, there is probably a pretty good chance we won’t be breaking the bank this summer for another Torres. If you read the ECHO like I’m sure most of us do, you have to figure that the £20 million “squad enhancement” number that’s being thrown around is probably spot-on. Why else would we only be linked currently with Udinese left-back Andrea Dossena and Bristol City centre-back Liam Fontaine? In reality, the David Bentley’s and Gareth Barry’s of the world will probably only be making a move to Anfield if — and that’s a BIG if — Rafa is able to move Xabi Alonso, Peter Crouch, and a cast of other players this summer.

In a perfect world Rafa would be able to move every one of them, and would in turn be handed an extra £50 million to go after another Torres-like player. But honestly, that £50 million number is based on valuations that most teams probably won’t pay. If we could get about half that number, I believe we’d be in very good shape to see Rafa bring in some big name talent.

But until we’re able to start selling away some of our current team, I have to be honest with myself and know that the Dossena’s of the footballing world are probably going to remain linked with us going forward. Mind you, it’s not a bad thing to have squad talent, but when you’re trying to fight for a Premiership title, only top quality will do.

As Parry is trying to patch things up with Rafa, Liverpool’s boss is rumored to be lining up some major transfers for this summer. Gareth Barry from Aston Villa and Michael Johnson from Manchester City top the list. The rumors are also brewing that Rafa, who has quit over board problems before, might be looking at leaving the Reds at the end of the season.

So why on earth would Rafa want to boost a lineup if he has no intention of being around? Leverage; and so far, he has plenty of it. Sure, the Reds sit in 4th, but he’s the guy that brought in Torres. He’s the guy that led the club to a Champions League victory not so long ago and have them right back in the semi-finals. If Liverpool wins the Champions League this season, look out.

Any transfers that Rafa would like to make have to be approved by the board which basically means that Hicks, Gillett, and Parry have to agree on something. By leaking who he would like to go after, Rafa can setup a huge fan backlash against the board if those transfers do not happen. That creates an incentive to give him what he wants, and then if he sticks around next season, he has the team he wants.

If the Reds win the CL, it will create a nightmare for the board. Everyone will look at them to take care of Rafa. If he’s denied a transfer or if he’s mistreated, then you will really see some protesting. Our love for Torres and thirst for another sip out of the Champions League cup will erase any pains we had over winning the league. Rafa’s recent request to meet with Parry to clear up some unresolved issue about the Jürgen Klinsmann row reminds me of the many episodes of I Love Lucy where Ricky declares, “Lucy, you got some ’splainin to do.”

The board definitely does have some ’splainin to do and the worst thing right now for them is to have to ’splain it to a manager who has just delivered another big piece of silverware to the club.