EPL 2010 - 2011

[ederson]

The more i think about Carrol the more overpayed he looks. I too like the player but 40m ?!??!?! Real payed 55 for Kaka.
I agree with mrkelly that young english players cost a lot (or even too much) but i can`t Liverpool getting the money back.

Also 25m euros for central defender is too much unless he is called Beckenbauer.

[mrkelly]

The more i think about Carrol the more overpayed he looks. I too like the player but 40m ?!??!?! Real payed 55 for Kaka.
I agree with mrkelly that young english players cost a lot (or even too much) but i can`t Liverpool getting the money back.

Also 25m euros for central defender is too much unless he is called Beckenbauer.

Well, it was 35. I agree we overpaid though.

But I think it's rather clear that this was a PR stint just as much as a football decision. The team is losing one of it's biggest stars and most popular players. The (still new) owners had to splash some money around to show both the supporters and other players around the world that they are still competitive and are not a selling club.

If they hadn't, the backlash from the fans would have been pretty unpleasant (and the fans are the ones who drove the previous owners out) and it would have been difficult to get top players in the future, as we would look unambitious.

[Who]

The more i think about Carrol the more overpayed he looks. I too like the player but 40m ?!??!?! Real payed 55 for Kaka.
I agree with mrkelly that young english players cost a lot (or even too much) but i can`t Liverpool getting the money back.

Also 25m euros for central defender is too much unless he is called Beckenbauer.

Well, it was 35. I agree we overpaid though.

But I think it's rather clear that this was a PR stint just as much as a football decision. The team is losing one of it's biggest stars and most popular players. The (still new) owners had to splash some money around to show both the supporters and other players around the world that they are still competitive and are not a selling club.

If they hadn't, the backlash from the fans would have been pretty unpleasant (and the fans are the ones who drove the previous owners out) and it would have been difficult to get top players in the future, as we would look unambitious.

Liverpool's owners were fantastic. They deserve a hand of applause.

Great show of commitment to the club in how they handled the Fernando Torres departure + their conduct in the transfer market in bringing in Luiz Suarez and Andy Carroll as well as their strong pursuit (£10 million bid rejected) for Charlie Adam.

Hopefully, Liverpool will add some width and creativity in midfield over the summer. That is one area I'd love to see them make improvements on.

[ederson]

Good point about Liverpool`s ownership. They are new inexperienced to Premier League and they had a difficult situation to handle. And it`s true that they did good with Torres. Suarez was also a good move.

And they ***** it up by throwing money around. Last summer Barcelona payed the exact same amound for Villa. The 35m bp (40m euros) is the 15nth highest payed fee. Caron is not (and i`m pretty sure won`t ever be) among the 15 best players in the PL. And i`m not sure that Carol can sweeten the Torres sell even a little

But anyway only time will tell. I hope he does well there cause i like his style. Besides MU is winning again so who cares about teams in the lower end of the table

[PAOBoston]

the combo of suarez/carroll > el hamstringo uno (aka torres)

i think this is a great step for liverpool. torres has been a whiny little **** for a while now. he clearly didint want to be at there and props to management to get rid of him. yes he was a good player but bringing in 2 young offensive guns in suarez and carroll is great. these 2 guys can be the foundation for liverpool up front for years and at their age (22,24 respectively, they can be sold again for a better deal if they succeed.

nesv said they would target young players with great potential and this fits that perfectly. giant step in the right direction imo.

[Who]

Andy Carroll is only 22 years old.

If Liverpool get 8 good years out of him and a regular supply of 15-20 goals a season + his quality build up play ... I think that transfer will work out alright for them.

It's not what you want. To pay such a huge sum. And especially not when you are paying so steeply for potential instead established ability ... but I think it'll work out alright in the end. I am hopeful.

Or Liverpool gets five good years of 15-20 goals + quality build up play + then chooses to re-sell Carroll for $20-25 million. Also a pretty good result for Liverpool.

[misha]

Stupid transfer. This is his first APL season, he has 12 goals so far and looks like a promising player. But to make him the most expensive English transfer ever and 8 overall! is carzy. HUGE risk. The guy never played in any european competition yet and to pay so much for him is insane. Liverpool is basically paying 35 mil pounds for a guy with half season PL experience. How many players in the past had good sesaon but then became mediocre? many and Carrol is not some world class talent IMO. Liverpool panicked, he's worth 15-20M at most

[mrkelly]

Stupid transfer. This is his first APL season, he has 12 goals so far and looks like a promising player. But to make him the most expensive English transfer ever and 8 overall! is carzy. HUGE risk. The guy never played in any european competition yet and to pay so much for him is insane. Liverpool is basically paying 35 mil pounds for a guy with half season PL experience. How many players in the past had good sesaon but then became mediocre? many and Carrol is not some world class talent IMO. Liverpool panicked, he's worth 15-20M at most

Aye, but again, they had to signal their intent. They most likely didn't want to bring in a foreign lad because of the new homegrown policies, so it had to be someone British.

So it was either Carroll or Wickham who has zero top flight experience.

As Who said, the board handled the Torres departure brilliantly. If they sat on the money until the summer, they might have been able to get a better player at a better price, but the fans would be p---ed off, and they would have the selling club label attached to them.

[misha]

Stupid transfer. This is his first APL season, he has 12 goals so far and looks like a promising player. But to make him the most expensive English transfer ever and 8 overall! is carzy. HUGE risk. The guy never played in any european competition yet and to pay so much for him is insane. Liverpool is basically paying 35 mil pounds for a guy with half season PL experience. How many players in the past had good sesaon but then became mediocre? many and Carrol is not some world class talent IMO. Liverpool panicked, he's worth 15-20M at most

Aye, but again, they had to signal their intent. They most likely didn't want to bring in a foreign lad because of the new homegrown policies, so it had to be someone British.

So it was either Carroll or Wickham who has zero top flight experience.

As Who said, the board handled the Torres departure brilliantly. If they sat on the money until the summer, they might have been able to get a better player at a better price, but the fans would be p---ed off, and they would have the selling club label attached to them.

This season is lost for Liverpoll, they won't get anything out of it and Carrol is slso injured for another month. They could have waited till the summer to see if Carrol keep improving and if so, they would had the entire summer to negotiate. Instead they panicked, Newcastle had them in the corner and Liverpool overpaid severely. Suarez was enough to signal their intent, but to pay 35mil pound for Carrol is plain stupid, no matter how you are looking at it. There is no way in hell that he should be on the following list:

Top 10 Transfers ever

1. Cristiano Ronaldo
(Man Utd to Real Madrid, 2009, £80 million)

2. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
(Inter Milan to Barcelona, 2009, £56.5 million)

3. Kaka
(AC Milan to Real Madrid, 2009, £56 million)

4. Fernando Torres
(Liverpool to Chelsea, 2011, £50 million)

5. Zinedine Zidane
(Juventus to Real Madrid, 2001, £46.5 million)

6. Luis Figo
(Barcelona to Real Madrid, 2000, £37 million)

7. Hernan Crespo
(Parma to Lazio, 2000, £35.5 million)

8. Andy Carrol
(Newcastle to Liverpool, 2011, £35 million)

9. David Villa
(Valencia to Barcelona, 2010, £34 million)

10. Gianluigi Buffon
(Parma to Juventus, 2001, £32.6 million)

[mrkelly]

Mate, I already said why they had to buy someone, and why I believe that someone had to be British, and we all know that British players prices inflate like mad. Again, if the parameters are young and British, there are really only two candidates, and as much as I like Connor Wickham, I'd rather go for Carroll who is at least a little bit Premiership tested.

Could we have bought both Wickham and Lukaku for 35? Probably. But they have zero Premiership goals between them.

If they don't buy, they are stuck without a proven striker compromising the rest of the season (whether you feel it's lost or not, they can still make top 6 and win the Europa League, without which they will lose more TV money, and become a very unpopular destination in the long run).

It would also empty out Anfield and cause a PR nightmare letting their star striker go without a replacement and lose fan support within their first 6 months in the club AND signal to other, prospective summer targets that they are a selling club without real ambition.

United paid 20 million for Rooney when he was 18 and had a far lesser strike rate (almost two-to-one) at Everton. Was it a gamble? Sure. Is Carroll? Sure.

[misha]

If you want to buy young and British, but there's not many strikers to choose from, then you don't have to buy a striker forcefully. You can buy a British midfielder like Adam or whoever and wait to the summer for better deal. Not to mention the fact that Carrol is injured and the date of return is still unknown.

The guy that really gonna replace Torres is Suarez. He's much better and more proven than Carrol and costs less. Suraez is your signal and surely Anfield would not empty out that easily. Liverpool has amzing fans and base. They will probably reach Europa League but that's small money compared to CL where a club like Liverpool really belongs.

Rooney and Carol is different type of risk. Rooney was playing in APL at 16 and even then you can see that he had a world class talent. Carrol is only breaking through now at 22 and he's not and won't be IMO as talented as much as Rooney. Rooney started playing for England at 17, was a starter at Euro2004 at 18. Not the same thing.

[mrkelly]

If you want to buy young and British, but there's not many strikers to choose from, then you don't have to buy a striker forcefully. You can buy a British midfielder like Adam or whoever and wait to the summer for better deal. Not to mention the fact that Carrol is injured and the date of return is still unknown.

The guy that really gonna replace Torres is Suarez. He's much better and more proven than Carrol and costs less. Suraez is your signal and surely Anfield would not empty out that easily. Liverpool has amzing fans and base. They will probably reach Europa League but that's small money compared to CL where a club like Liverpool really belongs.

Rooney and Carol is different type of risk. Rooney was playing in APL at 16 and even then you can see that he had a world class talent. Carrol is only breaking through now at 22 and he's not and won't be IMO as talented as much as Rooney. Rooney started playing for England at 17, was a starter at Euro2004 at 18. Not the same thing.

Aye, but we needed a centre forward, which Suarez really isn't. Plus, the Suarez transfer was all but complete before Torres put in his transfer request, so in the eyes of the fans, he was coming in to complement Torres, not replace him.

And last note, Carroll's due date actually is known, well at least to the effect that it's a month from now at the latest. Could be earlier.

I really only see him chipping in with five or so this season, in the summer, we won't have to think strikers and concentrate on wingers and a left back. Ideally, with the right service, we get 8-10 years out of him with about 20 a year. Wouldn't be a bad coup then.

[Who]

I don't think Carroll will become a world class striker but I believe he's capable of being a regular starting player on a top Champions League team.

He is not a one dimensional striker. He does other things. He holds up the ball very well. He brings his midfield into play. He has got pace and is able to run in behind defenses. He is excellent in the air. Very physical. Has a powerful long shot. Combines well with his fellow strikers in Newcastle.

The build up play and the goals, it's an impressive package.

It's a huge risk for Liverpool, absolutely. He hasn't properly established himself yet ... but he does look a quality player.

Given his age and the amount of years ahead of him and/or resale value down the road, I think there is a good chance this transfer is successful.

[Who]

Compare it to Berbatov who cost £30.75 million.

He is what, 27 years old at the time. He has already turned 30 and he hasn't even finished his third season yet. They get 4-5 years of Berbatov in the prime of his career while his value plummets to about $10 million. If they choose to keep a decline Berbatov for another year or two his value likely drops to $5 million.

Compare what Liverpool could get from a non-world class Andy Carroll vs what Man Utd got out of Berbatov.

I think there's a good chance things will work out well for Liverpool here.

[ederson]

Well Berbatov was bought as a proven player in both EPL and CL. He scores 10-15 goals a season without being the first option (not even second for some time) MU`s risk was much lower.

Liverpool had to find someone to sweeten the torres transfer in the last hours of the transfer window. Huge pressure. They could/should have kept the money for the summer where they could search better the market.

@mrkelly

where did you get the list? i ve read yesterday a similar one but Carol was ranked 15nth below Buffon. But the prices were in euro so i guess i has to do with the conversion from bp to eu .....