It is extremely busy behind the scenes at Anfield right now as Rafael Benitez and myself work hard on the club's summer plans.
This relates to buying and selling and putting the finishing touches to our pre-season schedule which is crucial to our Champions League preparations.
We are spending a lot of time together. It is always a little frustrating when deals take longer than you might have hoped because of the complexities of transfers these days. However, fans can rest assured that we are putting in the hours to make things happen.
We remain upbeat about the way things are going and will keep fans in touch as things progress.
Having announced six away friendlies as part of pre-season build-up, we are now close to finalising a prestigious home game against Lazio at Anfield on Friday, August 8. The visit of the Italians will be an attractive proposition for our supporters who will remember the Rome side coming here for a friendly in July 2002.
We had a spell a few years ago when we arranged a number of games of this calibre against teams like Parma and Inter. Ironically, Rafa's former club Valencia was probably the last of those.
Gerard Houllier used to quite like matches at this level as part of his preparation and Rafa sees the value in the build-up to our vital Champions League qualifier in August.
The away games already confirmed are against Tranmere Rovers, FC Lucerne, Wisla Krakow, Hertha Berlin, Villarreal, Glasgow Rangers and Valarenga. We will take a lot of fans to Ibrox where I know we will get a great welcome.
It will also be the first opportunity on UK soil to salute our Spanish players after their tremendous success in the European Championship, not least matchwinner Fernando Torres. His world-class qualities were there for all to see against Germany.
Fernando's winning goal in a well-deserved 1-0 victory was a classic piece of finishing. Liverpudlians know all about his pace, determination and skill. All of these qualities played a part in a superb strike that stunned his marker Lahm. The defender looked favourite to win the ball, but he was caught out by Fernando's explosive speed. We all remember Kenny Dalglish's famous dink over the keeper in the 1978 European Cup final against Bruges. Spaniards everywhere will never forget the Torres equivalent as he clipped the ball into the back of the net over the advancing Jens Lehmann.
Our striker had already warned the Germans with a great header that came back off the post. Congratulations must also go out to Xabi Alonso who came on as a substitute to play his part and also squad members Pepe Reina and Alvaro Arbeloa who picked up medals as members of a talented Spanish group.
* Most fans will be aware that "enabling" work has been started in Stanley Park regarding the New LFC Stadium. This is a very important step forward. We have obtained licence agreement from the council to start work on the park and it's a significant moment, being the first time any physical work has been undertaken. It's all about site preparation to ensure we are ready to commence building in the Autumn with completion planned for the summer of 2011.
This relates to buying and selling and putting the finishing touches to our pre-season schedule which is crucial to our Champions League preparations.
We are spending a lot of time together. It is always a little frustrating when deals take longer than you might have hoped because of the complexities of transfers these days. However, fans can rest assured that we are putting in the hours to make things happen.
We remain upbeat about the way things are going and will keep fans in touch as things progress.
Having announced six away friendlies as part of pre-season build-up, we are now close to finalising a prestigious home game against Lazio at Anfield on Friday, August 8. The visit of the Italians will be an attractive proposition for our supporters who will remember the Rome side coming here for a friendly in July 2002.
We had a spell a few years ago when we arranged a number of games of this calibre against teams like Parma and Inter. Ironically, Rafa's former club Valencia was probably the last of those.
Gerard Houllier used to quite like matches at this level as part of his preparation and Rafa sees the value in the build-up to our vital Champions League qualifier in August.
The away games already confirmed are against Tranmere Rovers, FC Lucerne, Wisla Krakow, Hertha Berlin, Villarreal, Glasgow Rangers and Valarenga. We will take a lot of fans to Ibrox where I know we will get a great welcome.
It will also be the first opportunity on UK soil to salute our Spanish players after their tremendous success in the European Championship, not least matchwinner Fernando Torres. His world-class qualities were there for all to see against Germany.
Fernando's winning goal in a well-deserved 1-0 victory was a classic piece of finishing. Liverpudlians know all about his pace, determination and skill. All of these qualities played a part in a superb strike that stunned his marker Lahm. The defender looked favourite to win the ball, but he was caught out by Fernando's explosive speed. We all remember Kenny Dalglish's famous dink over the keeper in the 1978 European Cup final against Bruges. Spaniards everywhere will never forget the Torres equivalent as he clipped the ball into the back of the net over the advancing Jens Lehmann.
Our striker had already warned the Germans with a great header that came back off the post. Congratulations must also go out to Xabi Alonso who came on as a substitute to play his part and also squad members Pepe Reina and Alvaro Arbeloa who picked up medals as members of a talented Spanish group.
* Most fans will be aware that "enabling" work has been started in Stanley Park regarding the New LFC Stadium. This is a very important step forward. We have obtained licence agreement from the council to start work on the park and it's a significant moment, being the first time any physical work has been undertaken. It's all about site preparation to ensure we are ready to commence building in the Autumn with completion planned for the summer of 2011.
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