Maxi Rodríguez
Tuesday, 05 January 10, 05:10 AM · Comments (3)
Given that I am feeling particularly uninspired by our first performance of 2010, I have decided to kick off the new year with an article about someone who has absolutely nothing to do with our club at all. Yet.
Maxi Rodríguez is the name on everyone's lips at the moment and with some credible sources making noises of a transfer being imminent I feel It is my duty to find out everything I can about this player and regurgitate it for your reading pleasure. So let's get right to it.
Full Name: Maximiliano Rubén Rodríguez
Birth Date: January 2nd 1981
Birth Place: Argentina
Height: 5' 11" (1.80m)
Weight: 12.4 st (79 kg)
Age: 29
Position: Winger (Right) / Attacking Midfield
Dominant Foot: Right
At a glance then, what we have here is an Argentinian winger of considerable experience who has just about the right physique to go shoulder to shoulder with the Premier Leagues finest. However, all this is just numbers and figures. So let's learn a little more about exactly how Maxi Rodríguez came to find himself occupying our thoughts.
Making it:
Rodríguez is a product of the youth set-up at Argentinian club Newell's Old Boys and he spent three seasons at the club before moving to Spain. Prior to this move he had enjoyed a 6 month loan spell at then second division club Real Oviedo.
Arriving at Espanyol in 2002, Rodríguez established himself in the first team within his first season. He got a dream début against Spanish giants Real Madrid and despite being unable to prevent a 0-2 loss, Rodríguez had arrived in La Liga and went on to appear in almost all of their games that season.
Stats:
As we can see from the table below, his first season was hardly prolific but still quite an impressive input from a player in his first season at a new club.
Maxi Rodriguez continued to post consistent figures in the following 2 seasons at Espanyol and began providing more chances for his team mates as well as getting his own name on the score sheet.
After enjoying three successful seasons at Espanyol, Rodríguez attracted the attention of Atlético Madrid and in 2005 he left for the Vicente Calderón for a fee of €7 million. In his debut season for Atlético Rodríguez continued to show the form that had earned him the move in the first place.
Rodríguez's form at Atlético saw him drafted into the Argentinian nation side, having previously won the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship with the Argentina under-20's and being part of the full squad in a friendly match against Japan in 2003.
After a dream début season though, Rodríguez's career was about to stall as he encountered injury during his second term with Atlético.
Limited to just ten club appearances by an anterior cruciate knee ligament injury, Rodríguez was forced to sit on the sidelines for much of the season. When he did play, though, he more than made up for lost time and was again included in the international set-up.
2007/08 saw Maxi Rodríguez return to regular first team football as well as retaining his international place. By now he was an established first team player and with time on his side he still had time to improve.
2008/09 gave Rodríguez the chance to shine on the biggest stage of them all. He performed brilliantly in the UEFA Champions League, albeit in a shortened campaign.
This season Maxi Rodríguez has fallen out of favour at the Vicente Calderón and has reportedly been told he will be allowed to move on. If he can replicate the kind of form he's shown in Spain then we could be onto quite a player here.
Possible:
It is all to easy to accept Sky Sports' word as gospel in transfer matters but there are a few crucial things that need to be considered before we start counting our chickens. Chiefly we must
understand that nothing has been agreed yet and that there are other clubs in the race.
Spurs, Juventus, Boca Juniors and River Plate have all declared interest in the player and with the World Cup edging ever closer Rodríguez will be looking for regular first team football to
secure his place. There is also the issue of money,
Reports suggest that Rafa Benitez was unwilling or perhaps unable to match the €2.5 million annual salary the player currently earns in Madrid.
Of course, these hurdles are ones that can be overcome but at the end of the day nothing is guaranteed. With other clubs in the running the player could chose to ply his trade elsewhere and if
he does then that's fair enough. However, I am sure we'll all be hoping that Benitez can lure his man to Liverpool with the prospect of turning out at such a prestigious stadium. Oh and perhaps
his international captain could have a word - just a thought.
What it means for us:
We have grown accustomed to having Dirk Kuyt operate on the right side of midfield and while his work rate is admirable, he just doesn't provide enough of an attacking threat which is what you
want from the modern winger. With Glen Johnson showing a penchant for forward movement, though, it will be important for whoever is playing in front of him to offer some kind of support. While
Rodríguez is far from being lazy, he will not be able to match Kuyt's work rate and so we may have to slightly adapt the right side to accommodate a more attack-minded winger. This would mean
Rodríguez and Johnson would need to develop a good understanding if they were to get forward without jeopardising the defence. With a little work on the training ground though, I can see no
problems in achieving this.
With regards to money, the Yanks wont be keen to part with much cash in this transfer window so a loan deal is most likely. However, with his contract set to run out in 2010 we could be able to
land him on a permanent basis afterwards either on a free or for a reduced fee while the loan is still in effect.
Style:
With all the numbers and figures out of the way, then, it's time to take the anorak off and take a look at Maxi Rodriguez's style of play. Of course as with anything on youtube this video only shows the good bits, but damn, are they good!
So while there is nothing set in stone yet it is very possible that this player could soon be strutting his stuff at Anfield. I for one would welcome the addition of an exciting player who can
make things happen, rather than just talking about making things happen in interviews. His work rate is good, he is competent with either foot, he makes goals and he scores them too. All in all
this looks like a player we really can't afford to miss out on right now.
I am all for this transfer going ahead, mostly because I think he is a talented and exciting player who could really help our cause, but also because I just spent the best part of my day
researching and profiling him and I'd hate for that to be wasted!
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3 Comments · Add yours
Great review and great video- seems to have a great engine, always getting in great positions on the shoulder of defenders so I can see him linking well with Torres, Gerrard and creating goal opportunities and scoring a few. I think if Liverpool do land him for what would effectively be a free transfer it would be a tremendous piece of business, at 29 he is reaching his peak with his best years before him. It might take him time to bed in so we would have to be patient but overall with his willingness to get in goal scoring positions, eye for goal and for a pass-I think he would give Liverpool the 'creative' cutting edge upfront that's been missing this season-fingers crossed lets hope the media speculation is for once true....
Yeah great article. Maxi will be a key link in a failing Liverpool lineup. I am licking my lips at the prospect of him, Torres and Gerrard linking up!
I'm also trying not to get too excited, as anything can still happen. But, everytime I've seen Maxi play (club and country), he's made an impact. That's what we need, too many players won't step up and make something happen. There is a lot of waiting and plotting, but nobody makin moves. Maxi is a move maker, I only hope his confidence hasn't been dented this season on the bench. Here's to a prosporous new year!
PS: I bet Rafa signs one more player this winter, one nobody expects, totally out of the blue.
Great review and great video- seems to have a great engine, always getting in great positions on the shoulder of defenders so I can see him linking well with Torres, Gerrard and creating goal opportunities and scoring a few. I think if Liverpool do land him for what would effectively be a free transfer it would be a tremendous piece of business, at 29 he is reaching his peak with his best years before him. It might take him time to bed in so we would have to be patient but overall with his willingness to get in goal scoring positions, eye for goal and for a pass-I think he would give Liverpool the 'creative' cutting edge upfront that's been missing this season-fingers crossed lets hope the media speculation is for once true....
Yeah great article. Maxi will be a key link in a failing Liverpool lineup. I am licking my lips at the prospect of him, Torres and Gerrard linking up!
I'm also trying not to get too excited, as anything can still happen. But, everytime I've seen Maxi play (club and country), he's made an impact. That's what we need, too many players won't step up and make something happen. There is a lot of waiting and plotting, but nobody makin moves. Maxi is a move maker, I only hope his confidence hasn't been dented this season on the bench. Here's to a prosporous new year!
PS: I bet Rafa signs one more player this winter, one nobody expects, totally out of the blue.