Big E

There's clearly a lot of speculation about transfers at the moment, but one of the main issues I see is the uncertainly of how much Rafa will be given to spend by the yanks. Personally, I think it will be £20m plus whatever we make from player sales (which I hope will pay for Barry, Dossena and have £10m+ spare). That should be enough for 1 top drawer signing at least. What do you reckon? I don't want to hijack the transfer thread, this is more about the 'Warchest'

I think Babel/Kuyt/Nemeth could end up being cover for Torres, but especially Babel who has the best attributes. Which means we need a LW backup and that's where Milner comes in. If you see the Alonso/Barry money equaling out, and Riise/Finnan/Guthrie/Voronin paying for Dossena with maybe a bit left over, then that leaves Pennant, Crouch and Carson to sell - £12-13m? That, plus the suggested £20m from the yanks would hopefully be enough for someone like Milner or better as LW cover and then a decent amount for a class RW signing who could also play up front if needed. My first choice 11 would be: Reina Degen Dossena Carra Agger Masch Barry Gerrard Babel Torres new RW (Villa/Silva/Quaresma?) with cover from: Arbeloa Aurelio Skrtel Sami Lucas Yossi Kuyt Milner? and kids such as Plessis, Insua, Nemeth too. I'd be pretty happy with that, and I think it won't be far from the end result. The big questions is who will the big signing be.

If Dos Santos, a talented winger, is going for 10m then I would have thought we might be interested. Clearly a good player, scores goals and can play anywhere up front

If we get Dossena and Barry, I reckon that leaves only a RW/FW needed for the first team. Babel/Kuyt/new striker could cover for Torres, and Kuyt cover one or both the wide positions. That means whatever we get for Carson, Riise etc plus any money from the yanks (£20m?). If we could get our RW and maybe a LW first teamer from that I'd be chuffed. Villa would be brilliant and Quaresma would be good, though Petrov or someone similar could do a job.

Personally, I'd rather he wasn't telling people stuff like that. Maybe other clubs hadn't thought of doing that, and he's giving up a secret that could give others an avantage. Anything that gives you an edge keep to yourself I say,

that's me worried, i applied in 95

Pennant for Babel if he's tiring, Kuyt on the left. Crouch for Alonso or Masch if we're chasing. That's what happened with Inter isn't it?

nicking the mancs new ronaldo one. They've had some of ours after all. Xabi Alonso, Xabi Alonso, When he gets the ball, hear the Kopites call Xabi Alonso

He can take it - he's strong at the back

I'm sat in San Jose having f***ed up and allowing myself to be away for this - haven't missed a Cl game since i don't know when and i'm way more nervous than i ever am normally. dunno whether to watch it on my own or to head to a bar

Do you literally just shout 'STOP - Babel time'? I've never heard this anywhere yet always read about it on here.

1 nil down, 4-2 up. Ryan Babel wrapped it up. When he came on as a supersub, he put Arsenal out the cup! Tune: 'River of babylon' Bring a winger called Babel on, when we're 1 nil down. He'll help us score a goal, and leave defenders crying. what do you reckon?

Has anyone read the actual details? http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N...080417-1130.htm Tickets linked to passports and visas, and not transferrable.

M-a-r-tin Skrtel Power, M-a-r-tin Skrtel Power, M-a-r-tin Skrtel Power. Hero in a red shirt - SKRTEL POWER!!!

I've heard Leicester sq, and IMO it's a better bet as there's bars all round it and the grassy area in the middle. Camden Lock not a bad shout tho

The point I was hoping to find out, but can't find accurate stats to back up, is that Rafa's spending is nearer to the likes of Spurs and Villa over the last few years than Man U or Chelsea.

I'd also be interested to know about net spending from the likes of Villa, Everton, Spurs and Portsmouth, as its these teams we're competing with at the moment according to the press.

Endorsed? I'd call it damage limitation, with - shock horror - a positive slant.

Fuel to the fire for every SSN and tabloid hack. He's a fantanstic player and I'm glad we have him, but he hasn't had a great season by his (very high) standards. And even if he had does it justify coming out with such negativity? Keep it behind closed doors if you have to, what are you hoping to achieve? And if you want to be successful how about doing what's best for the team and moving back to the right for a bit so we can play our best 11? Way to rally the troops, captain.

Was he t***ting Gerrard for his stupid comments?

Go back to Italy, go back to Italy

Lest we forget: Mourinho said don't worry Chelsea have nothing to fear But how he went so quiet when up popped Luis Garcia His shot it had no power but then he took his goal And that sent Rafa to Istanbul Rafael, Rafael! Rafa in Istanbul Benitez said don't worry I'll wipe away your tears Cos Stevie G's a Red and a Red he'll be for years You can keep your John Terry, stick your Lampard up your a*** Cos Carragher is here and Gerrard's staying ours Rafael, Rafael! Rafa in Istanbul

Link Get ready for some lengthy away trips..... The English Premier League is considering playing some matches overseas, BBC Sport has learned. At a meeting in London on Thursday, all 20 clubs agreed to explore a proposal to extend the season to 39 games. Those 10 extra games would be played at venues around the world, with cities bidding for the right to stage them. It is understood the additional fixtures could be determined by a draw but that the top-five teams could be seeded to avoid playing each other. Premier League's foreign plan explained Interview: Football Supporters Fed's Malcolm Clarke This is a chance for the Premier League to showcase its product around the world BBC sports editor Mihir Bose More details may emerge later on Thursday, but it is unlikely any decision will be taken before the Premier League's annual summer meeting in June. Should the proposal get the go-ahead, changes could come into effect for the 2010/11 season, with points from those extra games counting towards the final league table. It is believed each chosen venue would host two matches over a weekend. Cities in Asia, Middle East and North America are likely to show a strong interest in hosting the extra games. BBC sports editor Mihir Bose says the Premier League's decision to explore such a move is a "logical" one. "The growth of the Premier League has been impressive in the last 15 years thanks to the sale of television rights in this country," he said. 606: DEBATE Surely this is a joke, am checking my calendar now to see if its April 1st already!! atters1 "But now the market in the United Kingdom is becoming saturated and it is the overseas market which is now the big target area." The Premier League's income from the sale of overseas TV rights has already increased from £178m in 2001 to £625m for the current deal that runs until 2010. Broadcaster NowTV paid around £100m for the rights to Hong Kong alone. Premier League games are broadcast to over 600m homes in 202 countries worldwide, while an estimated 1bn people watched the Premier League game between Manchester United and Arsenal in November 2007. A number of top-flight clubs already play matches around the world as they seek to capitalise on the huge global interest in the English game. Man Utd make regular visits to Asia and are proving a big hit in China Manchester United are regular visitors to Asia, Middle East and America while other clubs are beginning to follow their lead. "This is a chance for the Premier League to showcase its product around the world," added Bose. "Some fans may feel aggrieved, but their concerns will be outweighed in the eyes of the clubs by the financial advantages. "The clubs will see this as a chance to make more money so they can invest in new facilities and better players." However, the co-chairman of the Football Supporters Federation suggested there would be a huge backlash to the Premier League's plan. "I'm fairly confident in predicting that the overwhelming majority of football supporters will be totally opposed to this proposal," Malcolm Clarke told the BBC. "This is yet another case of the Premier League threatening the tradition of our game simply to follow money. What I want to do is put a challenge to the Premier League to abandon this completely if the majority of supporters turn out to be against it Malcolm Clarke Football Supporters' Federation "The idea that teams can play a league game in a place where their supporters won't be able to go and watch them will be totally opposed by the vast majority of supporters. "What I want to do is put a challenge to the Premier League to abandon this completely if the majority of supporters turn out to be against it." Former Fulham and Northern Ireland boss Lawrie Sanchez added that it might not be just supporters who were upset by the Premier League initiative. "Other national associations won't be happy about the Premier League coming into their game, taking sponsors, taking advertising, taking revenue from their game," he said. Nevertheless, there is likely to be a big scramble for the right to host the extra games. "It will be like cities bidding for the Olympic Games or the World Cup," explained Bose. The Premier League's proposal mirrors moves in other sports, notably American Football. Miami Dolphins and New York Giants met at Wembley in October, the first competitive NFL game outside the Americas

Like a physical 'denial of service' attack

Things look better now. However cackhanded it's been, it's not inconcevable that things could end up ok. IMO singing anti-hicks in the ground will bring negativity when we should be supporting the team. If left to settle things could be ok, and the only way to really bother him is £ not songs.