Monthly Archives: August 2013

Liverpool agree €17m deal for Sakho

Paris Saint-Germain accept the Premier League side’s offer, with the Reds also closing in on Sporting Lisbon defender Tiago Ilori as they look to bolster their defensive options

By Wayne Veysey

Liverpool have reached an agreement with Paris Saint-Germain to sign centre-back Mamadou Sakho.

The Reds will pay the Ligue 1 champions a €17 million fee for the 23-year-old defender as Brendan Rodgers looks to improve his defensive options for the 2013-14 campaign.

Sakho has played over 150 league games for PSG, with the Frenchman having been capped 14 times by his country, and he will compete with Daniel Agger and Kolo Toure for a place in Rodgers’s starting XI.

Liverpool are also close to agreeing a deal for Sporting Lisbon youngster Tiago Ilori, with the Reds having tabled a €7m offer plus performance related bonuses to sign the 20-year-old.

Rodgers has felt the need to dip into the market for defensive reinforcements with the future of Martin Skrtel remaining up in the air, with Napoli strongly linked with a move for the Slovakia international.

The Anfield manager’s options have been further limited with Sebastian Coates sidelined with a long-term knee injury, while Andre Wisdom’s patchy pre-season performances have done little to convince Rodgers that he is ready for a regular first-team berth.

There is better news regarding Kolo Toure’s fitness, however, with Rodgers revealing on Friday that the Ivorian could recover from a groin problem in time to face Manchester United on Sunday.

Coutinho had never heard of Moyes before Liverpool switch

The Brazilian also insists that he did not know about Manchester United’s title wins before last season but claims the Premier League champions still have their winning mentality

Philippe Coutinho admits that he had never heard of David Moyes before joining Liverpool.

The Brazilian, who is set to face the Premier League champions at Anfield on Sunday, also insists that he knew nothing of Manchester United’s title triumphs before last season.

Asked if he knew who Moyes was before moving to Liverpool, Coutinho told reporters: “No. I don’t remember watching United win any cups,” he added when pressed on their history.

“I remember last season they won the league, that’s as far as I know.”

The youngster believes, however, that the United players still possess their winning mentality despite the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson and sees Sunday’s fixture as a chance for Liverpool to edge closer to their rivals.

“They have some big players and just because they have changed manager does not mean they have lost their way,” he remarked. “We want to make up the ground we have lost on them and get back at them. Winning this match on Sunday can help us do that.

“I’ve not had the chance to play United yet, but from what I know about the history between the clubs, it’s even more passionate than the Milan derby.”

Daniel Sturridge has scored two goals in Liverpool’s opening two Premier League fixtures this season and Coutinho says that the striker has the hallmarks of a Brazilian player.

“Daniel is an excellent player and always makes his runs at the right time,” said the 21-year-old. “I think he’s similar to a Brazilian player because he is so quick with the ball at his feet. He has the qualities to be a Brazilian player.”

Liverpool – Manchester United Preview: Reds could take fifth successive league win for first time since 2009

Liverpool host Manchester United on Sunday looking to record a fifth successive Premier League win for the first time since May 2009.

Brendan Rodgers’s side have followed up their strong finish to last season by winning their opening two games of the new campaign against Stoke City and Aston Villa but, despite their good form, extending this sequence against their arch-rivals at Anfield will not be an easy task, as they have not beaten the Red Devils in their last four league meetings and lost the corresponding fixture 2-1 last season.

That victory was the first time that United had won at Liverpool in five attempts, though, and new boss David Moyes heads back to Merseyside looking for his first ever victory at Anfield.

The Scot masterminded just three wins in 22 matches against Liverpool during his 11-year stint in charge of Everton – with all of those successes coming at Goodison Park.

Captain Steven Gerrard and in-form striker Daniel Sturridge are the men to whom the hosts will look to for inspiration in the absence of Luis Suarez, who serves the seventh game of his 10-match suspension.

Gerrard has scored four goals in his last six league appearances against United – including a goal in each of the last two encounters at Anfield – while Sturridge has netted 10 goals in his last eight appearances in all competitions.

Robin van Persie is likely to be the main threat for the visitors. The Dutchman, who has finished as the Premier League’s leading goalscorer for the last two seasons, has netted four times in his last three top-flight appearances against Liverpool.

Rodgers will be without new signing Aly Cissokho as the 25-year-old is expected to be out for between four and six weeks after suffering an ankle injury during the Capital One Cup clash with Notts County.

However, close-season signing Kolo Toure, who also went off in Liverpool’s second-round win over the League One outfit, could be fit after recovering well from a groin problem.

United have doubts over Rafael and Chicharito (both hamstring), while Portugal international Nani continues to struggle with a groin injury. Darren Fletcher is unavailable indefinitely due to a bowel condition.