Curtains for our Captain?

So the news has flooded in that Harry has accepted an offer from Sunderland for our captain, Keano. The £9 million quoted, is a far cry from the £40 million Harry wanted for Robbie, but I suppose it will do for now.

Do I think there's any truth to the story? Yes, I do. The fact that no one has come out to quash the rumour, speaks volumes.

Isn't football a funny game? All this time, we thought Eidur Gudjohnsen was brought in to replace the outbound Pavlyuchenko. Maybe we should have taken stock in what Harry had been saying for ages; "He (Pav) can only go for the right price" and comments like; "He's (Pav) a great player and I don't want to sell him".

Saying that, football could come back and bite us in the unmentionables. Don't rule out Keane and Pavlyuchenko being sold before tomorrow's deadline.

If that happens, should we make a cheeky bid for Beckford?


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New Signings

Right then, where were we? That's right, on the deals that are supposed to have happened, but according to Tottenham Hotspur, haven't.

Just so that we're clear, Eidur Gudjohnsen has signed up until the end of the season on loan. I'll get to him in a minute.

The news I'm not too sure about, is the Kaboul/Begovic signings. Have we signed them, or not? Today's Sun even had Harry talking about the transfer of Kaboul.

If we have/are about to sign Kaboul, I think it could be a good deal for us. The lad has done a lot of growing up in the last few seasons. Thing is, I'm not sure Kaboul is the type of player that will really push us on. Do you?

That Begovic lad looks like a fine keeper (from what I've seen of him). God knows we've needed another keeper so as to keep Gomes on his toes. Maybe Begovic can be a good addition to our squad?As to the Eidur Gudjohnsen deal, do you think it offers value for money? What's he on, £100,000 per week? Will he get into the side?

With the way things are at the moment, I can't see the lad shifting the Crouch/Defoe partnership, although I hope he does. As I mentioned in the Crouchillitis article, anything to stop us lumping the ball up to the front men is a bonus.

All in all, if we have/are about to sign the two Pompey players, plus the short-term addition of Gudjohnsen, Harry's pulled another blinder.

Going back to the stories relating to Kaboul's transfer value; we would be crazy to spend the reported £11 million on him. I personally think the real value is/will be nowhere near the one stated. Harry's a hard player. He won't make the signings unless he can get them on the cheap. I also think these deals hinge on the sale of Pavlyuchenko. Our Russian's future could be sorted by 5pm Monday.


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One Hit Wonder

I hate having to write articles like this, but I do think it's time that someone seriously brought up the fact that we're becoming a one-man team.

Is that man Aaron Lennon?

Well, Harry did give a mention to us missing the little guy, during the Liverpool post-match conference. Thing is, Harry didn't mention the real reason as to why we lost to a team that to all intense and purposes, was clearly so inept of their key players.

To be fair, the best team won, but I'd hate to think what the Reds would have done had Azza been on the pitch? Or maybe the story wouldn't have been that much different, even if the lad had started?

The good news is that Lennon's back on the mend and God do we need him.

We lacked pace. That was clearly obvious. It also seemed to trouble me why a midfield with Modrić, Kranjčar and Jenas in it, found it particularly hard to create much of anything, let alone link up with Defoe and Crouch.

Ah, but there it is, the magic, highly superfluous paradox that is Peter Crouch. Now, don't get me wrong, I think he's a great asset to have, if used appropriately.

I bet you thought this article was going to be about us being a one man team, with that one man being Aaron Lennon? Well, you're wrong if you thought that. You see, when Crouch plays, we become a one man team. I should reiterate that when Crouch plays and Lennon doesn't, we become a one man outfit.

Why?

Because our players seem confident enough to simply lump the ball up to Crouchie (you could spell it Crouchy, but I prefer it this way). Forget the midfield, who needs it, we've got Crouchie. Pace, meh, who needs pace? No player can run faster that a ball in mid-flight....

As soon as we can learn to play the ball back on the grass, we will suffer from Crouchillitis.

Anyone with me on this?


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In for Horseface

I've just heard the news that it is quite possible that Ruud van Nistelrooy could become our first Winter Sales signing.

Harry has said that he's definitely interested in the Dutch striker, although I'd think we'd have to do something about Pavlyuchenko before bringing in another striker.

I personally feel Ruud could do a job for us, as long as he's comfortable coming off the bench. Would he be happy doing that in the run-up to the World Cup?

We all know Pav's off, but where would the signing of van Nistelrooy leave our captain, Keano?

For those of us that have watched our Irishman in action this season, it's very obvious that he left his form somewhere in White Hart Lane prior to joining his "boyhood club". Either way, I can't see the lad starting in Lilywhite next season. Whether or not he should, is down to him.


COYS!!!

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Win, Lose, or Draw?

Sunday's match up at Anfield will be tough for us, especially with the news that Aaron Lennon will most likely miss the match. Harry will make a decision on whether to include him in the squad or not tomorrow.

Can we call on Bentley? Probably not. When I look back on his stint with us, it really annoys me that he simply couldn't be asked.

With Aazza missing, it looks as though Harry's got two options;

1. Stick the Croatian lads on both wings
2. Play Keane on the left and one of the Croatian lads on the right

Let's hope Harry goes with option 1. Keane, for whatever reason, isn't with it. He's lost his mojo and it looks like he won't be getting it back any time soon.

I was reading Alan Hansen's column on the game and had to back-track when I read Liverpool aren't "playing at nowhere near their best." You what? Is he for real? I don't want to turn this article into a Liverpool Lovin' but I am pretty sure the players that Rafa has, are playing to the best of their ability. You can argue that Gerrard is off form, but that doesn't account for the rest of them, does it? Torres is injured, or has some sort of issue, that's plain to see. Saying that, would you swap any of their players for ours (excluding G & T)? The only one I would consider, would be José Reina.

So, do I think we can beat them? Yes. They have the home advantage, but we have the better players and obvious buzz about us at the moment. I also think the game will be an open affair and our recent flutter with clean-sheets will be a thing of the past.

Carlos' Prediction: Liverpool 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur

Kick-Off: 4pm GMT

The game can be viewed on the following satellite channels:

Alfa TV Cyprus
BHT 1
C+ Sport 1 (D/F/N/S)
C+ Sport 1 (Pol)
Diema
EuroSport 2 FAPL (Hun)
EuroSport 2 FAPL (Rom)
Fox Sports Espanyol **
Hi Soccer
Lider TV
Nova Sport (Cze)
Nova Sports 2 (Hellas)
Pink M
RTS 2 (Ser)
Show Sports 1 & 2
Showtime Maghreb (ART)
Sky Sport 1 (Germany)
Sky Sport 3 (Italy)
Sky Sports 1 (uk)
Spormax Digiturk
Sport 1 (Ukr)
Sport 1.1 (Ned)
Sportsmax
STV 3 Slovakia
SuperSport 3 (ZA)
Tele Deporte
YES Sport 2
C+ Sport HD (D/F/N/S)
C+ Sport HD (Pol)
Sky Sport HD (Germany)
Sky Sport HD3 (Italy)
Sky Sports HD1 (uk)
Sport HD (Ukr)


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We could be in luck!

It looks as though our game on Sunday may be postponed as the weather continues to cause havoc. I suppose the only good news to come from this is that Aaron Lennon, who would have probably missed the game on Sunday, should be fit enough to face them when the game is back on again.

According to a few colleagues, the rules state that a game can be called off 24 hours in advance, unless circumstances allow for a cancellation prior to the stated 24 hours.

We should be given an answer on whether or not it's officially off, later this evening.


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Compare The Pavlyuchenko.com

I had a chat with one of our Russian clients this morning. I've mentioned him on here before and thought it prudent to relate to you what Mr. X said to me today in relation to Roman Pavlyuchenko.

The last time we had an in depth chat about our sulky Russian, Mr. X stated that Pavlyuchenko was a class act and that he should have been at a better club, such as Arsenal, where they play the type of football that suits him (you can read the article here).

I've tried to document the conversation just as it happened. It would be better if you read his comments with the accent of Aleksandr the Meerkat.

Mr. X: "Some clubs in Russia are interested in taking him, but Tottenham Hotspur want at minimum of €12 million (£11 million)."

Carlos: "Fair enough. We paid nearer to €16 million (approximately £13.8 million) only a year and a half ago." He looked puzzled at this point, then smiled; then laughed out loud.

Mr. X: "Spartak did not want to sell him and so told you stupid figure. This, they thought, would put you off. Roman was worth around €7 million, €8 million at the most (£6.2 or £7 million). But your club continued in coming back and in the end, paid the silly amount of €16 million.

"Spartak and Rubin tried with offers of around €6 million in the summer. Oh, that was low, but they were testing the waters. We're Russian, remember?

"He is not worth more than €8 million and Gusev (owner of Rubin Kazan) told the newspapers this.

"Roman will stay a Tottenham Hotspur player until the price you want for him is changed, or he can leave with the new contract directive on players that are of his age. Either way, he is very depressed. His family are now back in Russia and he is alone in London. He still cannot speak English because it was clear to him that he made a mistake in coming to England."

So, there you have it. It looks like the sulk of Roman will continue to stain the Lilywhite.

Thanks a lot Comolli.


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