Liverpool have officially announced on their website the capture of 17-year old Netherlands forward Vincent Lucas Weijl.

Rafa Benitez has added to the full back acquisitions of Degen and Dossena, the imminent arrival of young Dutchman Lucas Weijl.

Lucas Weijl was trained and promoted through the ranks at Alkmaar-based Dutch side AZ. He is expected to carry on with his footballing education with the reserve team under the tutelage of Gery Ablett after he penned a three-year deal to stay in Merseyside.

Rafa Benitez has often expressed his admiration for the way Arsene Wenger buys young and develops talent for the future. This purchase reaffirms Benitez’s ideology. 

Other youthful players to arrive on Merseyside this summer include Nikola Saric from Herfølge and Zsolt Pölöske of MTK.

Spain-based journalist Graham Hunter told Sky Sports News of the dire financial reality that faces Valencia, and explained why Liverpool signing David Villa would not necessarily be all that great for Fernando Torres...

After David Villa's impressive performances for Spain at Euro 2008, many expect him to leave cash-strapped Valencia, despite his willingness to stay. Would Anfield be a suitable destination?

18 League titles, five European Cups, and seven FA and League Cup trophies make pretty impressive reading for a club regarded as the most successful in the history of English football.

Sadly, you would have to be a 'Liverfool', to think that such great accolades can carry a club through a barren spell that shows an astonishing 18-year gap since their last league trophy triumph back in 1990.

The introduction of Rafa Benitez in 2004 promised major change and looked an astute appointment, given that the Spaniard had tasted domestic success with Valencia in 2002, guiding them to their first La Liga title in thirty-one-years.

Benitez dispelled any claims of being a one-hit-wonder when he achieved an historic La Liga and UEFA Cup double in 2004, before resigning as coach over transfer rumblings of discontent with the Valencia board - where he once famously proclaimed 'I asked for a table and they bought me a lampshade.'

It would be mighty interesting if Liverpool were to table a bid for the Spanish sensation that is David Villa.

A 'lampshade' in return would hardly suffice, as Liverpool already have the luckless Andriy Voronin and the underwhelming Dirk Kuyt – who many fans are sure is not 'Kuyt' up to the job of scoring the goals that will take Liverpool to the top of the Premiership.

Bring on the superstar that is Villa; undoubtedly the scene-stealer at Euro 2008, before having to bow out through injury. The hat-trick against Russia was merely a warm-up act for the supreme cool he showed to slot in the winner against Sweden in the last minute of injury time.

The 26-year-old Valencia striker's greatest quality is his composure in the box; where other strikers feel the heat and shoot with the heart – David Villa has all the time in the world, to navigate through the flurry of desperate lunges and reckless elbows before slotting the ball home.

Just picture this salivating scenario; David Villa and Fernando Torres playing up-front in a title decider against Manchester United in a packed Anfield with the Kop at full tilt.

A sea of collective jaws drop at the intensity of Liverpool's attacking football and neat inter-play, Liverpool's midfield is full of gusto and fluid passing movements, that leave the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand wandering aimlessly, much like Titus Bramble did during his days at Newcastle United.

An alternative scenario could involve Villa and Torres struggling for 90 minutes, as they receive little or no service from an overly defensive midfield, that prefers to play neat passing triangles in their own half, before venturing forward incrementally while the Kop derides them for their lack of guile and adventure.

Given the lack of quality on the wings, the latter scenario is more of a likelihood. That is unless you wish to classify Jermaine Pennant as a 'quality' winger.

The ex-Arsenal child prodigy has failed to produce the technically sound crossing ability he consistently showed at Birmingham City under the tutelage of Steve Bruce.

If Pennant is wide-of the-mark, where does that leave the incredibly right-footed left-wing wonder that is Ryan Babel?

The 21-year-old Dutchman arrived at Anfield with a strong pedigree having learned his trade at Ajax. A transfer fee of £11.5 million left supporters with little doubt of the quality he was likely to produce – not another Mark Gonzalez? Surely not...

If you thought Chelsea's Joe Cole was predictable when cutting in from the left hand side,to switch to his right, before shipping in a cross, think again.

Ryan Babel never seems to touch the ball with his left foot, for fear of it falling off. The flying Dutchman avoids the left by-line as if it was paved with burning embers. As a result, the lack of left-sided crosses is a key weakness in Liverpool's attack last season.

Such technical flaws are a key reason for Liverpool's attacking imbalance on the pitch. Steven Gerrard's dubious form of the last two seasons is surely a consequence of him covering too much of the pitch and trying to be a winger, striker and midfielder. No-one at Manchester United would dare steal Ronaldo's thunder when in possession of the ball.

Sadly such goings-on, happen with increasing regularity at Liverpool, as high calibre players such as Gerrard, Mascherano and Torres, have to mingle with less proven talents such as Lucas, Voronin, Crouch and Babel.

To think that the dream ticket of Torres and Villa, would lead to more goals is also a claim full of hot air.

It was no clearly no coincidence that Spain's Euro 2008 campaign underwent a rebirth when David Villa's exit paved the way for Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

Despite the quality on offer from Xavi and Iniesta, Villa and Torres hardly laid claim to being the next Romario and Bebeto. If anything Torres seemed more subdued in his performances while Villa stole the spotlight on more than one occasion.

Such lack of chemistry could be down to the complexities of playing a quarterly knock-out tournament, or a basic unfamiliarity of playing side by side on a regular basis like they would have had they played domestically.

Another more compelling reason is that Villa like all good strikers likes to lead the line – playing further up the pitch and harassing defenders, and thus reducing 'El Nino' to nothing more than a gust of wind.

If anything Benitez could be leading his very own Spanish Armada at Anfield.

Spending consistently on a mixture of the very good; read Javier Mascherano, Fernando Torres and the downright turgid; read Yossi Benayoun, Dirk Kuyt, perhaps it would be wise to advise Rafa that his prospective fleet is not fit to take the title challenge to the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea or for that matter Arsenal.

History tells us that the Spanish Armada set sail with grand ambitions to invade and conquer, but fell afoul due to coming up against some real fire power which exposed a weak underbelly, that resulted in defeat and humiliation.

David Villa should take note and decide whether the right man is at the helm of Liverpool FC. If he ever did put pen to paper, he may even find himself warming the bench, faster than you can say Peter Crouch.

http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=768001

According to reports in Italy, Juventus are set to drop their interest in Xabi Alonso after growing frustrated at the lack of progress during negotiations with Liverpool.                                

The Bianconeri are well known to be in the market for a top class centre midfielder, and they have been heavily linked over the past several weeks with Roma’s Alberto Aquilani, Napoli’s Marek Hamisk, Inter’s Dejan Stankovic, as well as Sevilla midfielder Christian Poulsen.

With deals for Aquilani and Hamsik impossible, and Stankovic also unlikely due to fan protests, Alonso had emerged as Juve’s new first choice signing.

The Old Lady have been attempting to negotiate a transfer fee with Liverpool for the player, but have grown increasingly frustrated at the failure to reach a compromise, with the Merseysiders said to be demanding €20m and Juve only prepared to pay €15m.

Over the weekend Ranieri stated that Alonso was not the only centre midfielder that Juve were interested in, and according to latest reports in Italy, the club have become so fed up with proceedings that they are ready to end their chase for Alonso.

Alonso signed for Liverpool in 2004 from Basque Country-based Spanish side Real Sociedad.
 

Liverpool have made an official announcement confirming they have accepted a bid from Portsmouth for Peter Crouch...

The striker has been hopeful of securing a move for some time as he regrettably could not gain a starting place in Rafael Benitez's Liverpool side.

Portsmouth have long been the favourites to sign the 6'7 forward, with manager Peter Crouch an admirer of the former Southampton, Aston Villa and indeed Portsmouth player.

Harry Redknapp has twice sold the player - when in charge of Southampton, and as director of football at Portsmouth in a previous spell - but has beaten the likes of Tottenham Hotspur to the England international.

It was at first thought that the seaside club would not be able to afford their man, with the Reds proving fairly stiff in negotiations and eager to keep as many of their squad together as possible.

However, the will of the player to secure a move may well have proved crucial as the two clubs have agreed on a fee, as of yet unconfirmed by either party.

Liverpool's official website released a statement from a representative confirming the acceptance of the bid.

"We have reached a verbal agreement with Portsmouth and have given them permission to speak with Peter," read the statement.

Personal terms are unlikely to stall finalisation of the deal for much longer and an official presentation could come as early as tomorrow, and almost certainly within the week.

Crouch made 135 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 34 goals.
 

                                                   

While diving, for the most part, had just a singular purpose as recent as the EURO 2008, it has increasingly become a tool to kill the opposition’s counter-attacks...

Gotta say that PORTUGAL takes the cake on diving this year, with Ronaldog leading the way by a landslide.
Ronaldog is the biggest diver ever, and yes it does ruin the beautiful game cause no one wants to see him on the floor supposedly in pain, then suddenly back up again like nothing ever happened.

Any best diver anyone??
 

The factors taken into acocunt are

(a) form over the last 12 months,
(b) potential, and
(c) transfer fee involved.

There are three new entries this week, and the ones who drop out of the list are:

(a) Aaron Ramsey,
(b) Mirko Vucinic, and
(c) Martin Caceres.

10. Tomas Ujfalusi (Fiorentina to Atletico Madrid)
Last Week: 7

At long last, Atleti have made a good defensive signing. They were in denial last summer when they failed to take concrete steps, but have landed just the man to lead their defence upon their return to the Champions League after over a decade. That he comes for free makes it even better.

9. Hatem Ben Arfa (Lyon to Marseille)
New Entry

Marseille will lose Samir Nasri to Arsenal in the coming days, but have managed to land the perfect replacement in the man Arsene Wenger had his sights on to start with. What is more, they can keep him for a year or two, and make a cool 8-10 million profit.

8. Alberto Gilardino (Milan to Fiorentina)
Last Week: 6

On the face of it, it looks like the Viola have signed an unhappy, out of form striker. However, that was just what Adrian Mutu's move from Juventus looked like not so long ago. The fans will help him forget Milan in a hurry, and rediscover the striker that wowed Calcio when at Parma. The partnership with Mutu can be backed to produce some special moments in the Champions League.

7. Seydou Keita (Sevilla to Barcelona)
Last Week: 5

The best signing Barcelona have made this season, particularly in light of the way their soft underbelly was exposed on the road last season. With him partnering Yaya Toure in the middle, it will ensure that the likes of Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi do not get bullied, and also get the full license to thrill. 15 million euros worth their value.

6. Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander to Real Madrid)
Last Week: 4

What a capture! Barcelona seemed to have him in the bag, but hesitated a little too much as they waited for Frank Rijkaard to leave and a new coach to take charge. Madrid managed to snatch Sergio Ramos a few years ago, and what a signing that has turned out to be. This one may be no different.

5. Deco (Barcelona to Chelsea)
New Entry

On the wrong side of 30, a first look suggests that he is past it, but nothing could be further from the truth. There is a fire that burns in him as we saw during Euro 2008, and he has a lot more to give to football. He is not what Frank Lampard is, as he will never score as many goals. But then, he is also everything Lampard is not. Superb creativity, a great eye for the game, and an ability to run the show that has seen him win the Champions League with two different clubs. Finally, Chelsea have a player who can orchestrate the pleasing football their owner wants. With Ballack and Essien set to play around him, it will be an ominous midfield.

4. Amauri (Palermo to Juventus)
Last Week: 3

The Brazilian-Italian striker made it to number three after earning himself a long overdue move to a top four club, but now slips down to four. He has already shown his potential with Palermo, and the prospect of him getting some top quality service from the Juve midfield is simply mouth-watering. Champions League, here he comes.

3. Daniel Alves (Sevilla to Barcelona)
New Entry

Chelsea, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Manchester United – these are just some of the clubs that have queued up for him over the last 18 months or so. However, it is Barcelona who land him after some difficult negotiations with Sevilla. Perhaps a touch overpriced at 30 million euros (he would have been number one on this list at 20m), but then again, he is the best attacking full-back this world has seen since Roberto Carlos.

2. Luka Modric (Dinamo Zagreb to Tottenham)
Last Week: 2

The hottest young Croatian was snapped up by Spurs despite the interest of clubs such as Barcelona and Chelsea, and what a signing it has already turned out to be. Looks set to become the jewel in Juande Ramos' midfield next season. He remains number two on our list.

1. Mathieu Flamini (Arsenal to Milan)
Last Week: 1

The underrated Frenchman was one of Arsenal's best players last season, and Milan's signing of him is most definitely the biggest coup of the summer thus far. That it was a free transfer makes it even better.

Liverpool have completed the signing of Italian full-back Andrea Dossena from Udinese.

Like Degen, Dossena has signed a four-year deal.

Dossena replaces Norwegian John Arne Riise who left for Roma earlier this summer and joins for an undisclosed fee thought to be around £7 million.

Speaking at the beginning of June when Dossena successfully completed a medical examination at Liverpool, his agent Federico Pastorello revealed Dossena's delight at the move.

"I understand he is the first Italian international to play for Liverpool - a great opportunity for him and he is really happy," Pastorello revealed.

"There were many teams interested in him.

"He was the best left-back in Italy last year, arguably along with the boy [Juan] Vargas at Catania.

"So it was natural that there will be interest in the best left-back in Serie A, but to have the chance to work with a coach like Rafa Benitez was something he could not turn down.

"That was an important aspect of his decision and he cannot wait to get started."