Rafael Benitez will put his summer holidays temporarily on hold as he oversees Liverpool’s squad rebuilding plans.
With his team’s season having finished at the weekend, the Anfield manager is hopeful of securing at least two new signings during the next fortnight.
Swiss international right-back Philipp Degen is already set to join Liverpool on a free transfer from Borussia Dortmund when his contract expires in the close season.
And the move for Gareth Barry could come closer to fruition in the next day, with Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill and owner Randy Lerner set for discussions with the player.
Barry, who is desperate to play Champions League football, is expected to tell Villa that he cannot pass up the opportunity of a move to Anfield.
Villa would then be left with no option but to consider Liverpool’s offer of a cash-plus-player deal worth £10m, with the Midlanders given a choice of Jermaine Pennant, Scott Carson or John Arne Riise.
When Benitez finally drags himself away from his desk, he admits it will be rather more difficult to part him from his mobile phone.
However, the Spaniard reckons he could be left retrieving it from deep waters if his wife Montse finds him conducting deals while on holiday.
“I don’t tend to have too much time away from football, but I will try to switch off for a bit,” said Benitez. “I will have to try to hide my mobile phone, and if my wife can’t find out about it I’ll try and keep it on me.
“But if she finds it, I’m sure she will throw it in the swimming pool!
“I don’t like the beach too much, but I don’t mind being around a swimming pool or maybe going up in the mountains.”
Even when Benitez manages to find a quiet place to relax, it has previously proven impossible to totally escape the attention of Liverpool fans.
“When you are at such a big club as Liverpool, everybody knows who you are and it’s not easy to get away from people on holiday,” said the Spaniard.
“Last summer, I was by the swimming pool and a kid was playing football wearing a Liverpool cap. He passed the ball and it came to me, so I tried to dribble it past him, and we were playing for five minutes.
“After we’d finished, his father spoke to him and said ‘do you know who that is?’ The kid says ‘is it a Liverpool player?’ and his dad replies ‘no, it’s the manager!’.
“So after that he was with me playing football the whole week! He was the only one who hadn’t recognised me, and he was wearing a Liverpool cap!”
Meanwhile, Fernando Torres has paid tribute to the Liverpool fans at the end of his record-breaking debut season at Anfield.
The Spain international capped a brilliant first campaign at the club with his 24th league goal of the season at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday to make him the country’s most successful ever foreign debutant.
And Torres said: “The supporters back the players, regardless of who is out on the pitch. They enjoy watching their key players play, because Liverpool has great players, but Liverpool will always be a team.
“The fans get behind the side even when things are not working out, and they are always there until the death.
“That is the major difference with football back in Spain. If a team is not doing well, then it is because the players do not deserve to be wearing the club’s colours.
“At Liverpool, if a player is wearing their shirt, it is because he deserves it. The fans ask for effort and dedication, and their support is something special, something that stays with you.
“Luckily, everything has worked out well from day one, and my team-mates have helped out, and I owe them all an awful lot.”
With his team’s season having finished at the weekend, the Anfield manager is hopeful of securing at least two new signings during the next fortnight.
Swiss international right-back Philipp Degen is already set to join Liverpool on a free transfer from Borussia Dortmund when his contract expires in the close season.
And the move for Gareth Barry could come closer to fruition in the next day, with Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill and owner Randy Lerner set for discussions with the player.
Barry, who is desperate to play Champions League football, is expected to tell Villa that he cannot pass up the opportunity of a move to Anfield.
Villa would then be left with no option but to consider Liverpool’s offer of a cash-plus-player deal worth £10m, with the Midlanders given a choice of Jermaine Pennant, Scott Carson or John Arne Riise.
When Benitez finally drags himself away from his desk, he admits it will be rather more difficult to part him from his mobile phone.
However, the Spaniard reckons he could be left retrieving it from deep waters if his wife Montse finds him conducting deals while on holiday.
“I don’t tend to have too much time away from football, but I will try to switch off for a bit,” said Benitez. “I will have to try to hide my mobile phone, and if my wife can’t find out about it I’ll try and keep it on me.
“But if she finds it, I’m sure she will throw it in the swimming pool!
“I don’t like the beach too much, but I don’t mind being around a swimming pool or maybe going up in the mountains.”
Even when Benitez manages to find a quiet place to relax, it has previously proven impossible to totally escape the attention of Liverpool fans.
“When you are at such a big club as Liverpool, everybody knows who you are and it’s not easy to get away from people on holiday,” said the Spaniard.
“Last summer, I was by the swimming pool and a kid was playing football wearing a Liverpool cap. He passed the ball and it came to me, so I tried to dribble it past him, and we were playing for five minutes.
“After we’d finished, his father spoke to him and said ‘do you know who that is?’ The kid says ‘is it a Liverpool player?’ and his dad replies ‘no, it’s the manager!’.
“So after that he was with me playing football the whole week! He was the only one who hadn’t recognised me, and he was wearing a Liverpool cap!”
Meanwhile, Fernando Torres has paid tribute to the Liverpool fans at the end of his record-breaking debut season at Anfield.
The Spain international capped a brilliant first campaign at the club with his 24th league goal of the season at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday to make him the country’s most successful ever foreign debutant.
And Torres said: “The supporters back the players, regardless of who is out on the pitch. They enjoy watching their key players play, because Liverpool has great players, but Liverpool will always be a team.
“The fans get behind the side even when things are not working out, and they are always there until the death.
“That is the major difference with football back in Spain. If a team is not doing well, then it is because the players do not deserve to be wearing the club’s colours.
“At Liverpool, if a player is wearing their shirt, it is because he deserves it. The fans ask for effort and dedication, and their support is something special, something that stays with you.
“Luckily, everything has worked out well from day one, and my team-mates have helped out, and I owe them all an awful lot.”
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