Bayern Munich Set For €20 Million Liverpool Raid

Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich are looking at the prospect of buying Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina as their answer to the retired Oliver Kahn. The Spanish keeper has impressed during numerous weeks at Anfield despite Liverpool sitting uncomfortably in 16th place in the Premiership.

The player is highly rated and reports from Germany and Holland suggest the South German team may look to Reina as the ideal summer signing with Munich already leaking goals at the back this season. The news will alarm Liverpool fans as they feel their team becoming somewhat of a footballing supermarket after news that Tom Hicks could not get backing to re-finance any deals.

Reina has been at Liverpool Football for sometime now and he may also feel it is time for a new challenge having missed out on Champions League football this season and possibly the next if he decides to stay at Anfield.

With talk during the summer of a possible move to Arsenal, Liverpool’s owners know they have a good quality asset on their hands and they could possibly encourage a bidding war that would lead to a transfer fee of around €20m.

With Liverpool being knocked out of the Carling Cup this week, it leaves the Merseysider’s only two real chances of silverware both in the FA Cup and Europa League although manager Roy Hodgson may feel that a Champions League spot is more important as he tries to keep his players for next season.

Liverpool Plan Ambitious £18m Raid For Tottenham Pair

Liverpool will attempt to pull of something of a coup this January by trying to nab two out of favour Tottenham players as the Anfield club looks to improve his under-performing squad. Boss Roy Hodgson is rumoured to be looking to reignite his interest in Roman Pavlyuchenko as well as lure Mexican international Giovani with the promise of the first team football neither regular enjoys at White Hart Lane.

The Merseyside club tried in a last ditch move to bring Pavlyuchenko to the club last month and will look to secure the Russian in January when it may well become abundantly clear that the former Spartak Moscow man is little more than a bit part player in the north London club’s plans. The 28 year old forward has managed just one start in the Premier League this season and even then he was hauled off after an hour, so he may well be keen on a move.

Former Barcelona man Giovani is in a similar position having managed just 30 minutes of Premier League action thus far and having failed to persuade Redknapp of his value the 21 year old adaptable attacker may well have had enough of bench warming.

Both players would offer Hodgson a vast improvement on what the club has to offer in their respective positions. Pavlyuchenko may well be an ideal foil for Fernando Torres and Giovani could offer Liverpool a number of attacking options to help provide ammunition for a club that has struggled badly to hit the back of the net, managing just two goals from open play in five matches.

The pair would cost the club around £18m to purchase and clearly such a move would become more realistic in funding terms if co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett had been ousted by the club by new owners. However it is worth noting that the club has netted around £30m through player sales over the summer and reinvested around £20m of that in new additions and Managing Director Christian Purslow has stated that money made from sales would be reinvested in improving the Anfield squad.

Holland Drop Liverpool FC's Ryan Babel Following Anfield Failure

Ryan Babel has admitted that he 'failed personally' during Liverpool's humiliating Carling Cup exit to Northampton Town after being dropped from Holland's Euro 2012 squad.

The trying attacker suffered a double heartache on Wednesday as Liverpool crashed out to the League Two outfit on penalties just hours after he found out that Bert van Marwijk omitted him from the Oranje's upcoming qualifiers against Moldova and Sweden.

Former Ajax prodigy Babel has struggled to justify his £11.5milllon price tag after arriving at Anfield in 2007 from his hometown club and reflected on the defeat on Twitter yesterday amidst fears that his future resurfaced following the muted performance.

"No excuses for Wednesday night," he wrote.

"We weren't good enough. And I failed personally.

"Haven't lost faith, so I keep working."

The 23-year-old was linked with moves to Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham, amongst others, before the summer transfer window closed and Liverpool are expected to listen to offers for his services if no significant improvement is not made before the New Year.

Roy Hodgson Seems Powerless To Arrest Liverpool's Decline

Roy Hodgson offered an eloquent expression of his powerlessness by sitting, almost motionless, in the Anfield dugout as Liverpool lurched further into crisis against Northampton on Wednesday.

Even as Liverpool rocked under the League Two side's onslaught in the second half, even as they found themselves outplayed and out-thought by a team some 69 places below them in the league pyramid, Hodgson did not stir from his seat.

He did not rise to exhort his young players as their nerves shredded, or upbraid the five internationals included in his second-string side as their abilities seemingly deserted them. Hodgson, impervious, impassive, has found himself impotent to stop Liverpool's continued fall from grace.

That should not be read as a criticism. Liverpool's defeat on penalties against Ian Sampson's determined side rounded off an annus horribilis which began with their excoriation in Florence on Sept 30 last year, took in an early exit from the Champions League, humiliation against Reading in the FA Cup and a seventh place finish in the Premier League.

Rafael Benítez could not retain his job as manager. His replacement was identified as the man to steady the ship, to steer Liverpool through the choppiest waters in their recent history.

His appeal was understandable. Off the field, he would not indulge in the Machiavellian politics so beloved of the Spaniard, while on it he could be relied upon at least to return a sense of style to a club whose substance was crumbling. He could work on limited resources and unite a fractured dressing room.

It seems now that Liverpool was simply rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic. Their troubles begin in the boardroom and infect every pore of the club.

The root cause of all of those defeats, from Fiorentina to Northampton, is Tom Hicks and George Gillett. Steven Gerrard might yesterday have insisted that the club's fans could trust the team "to get it right in the end," but while his faith is admirable, such a statement lays bare Liverpool's desperation.

The Americans must depart before any genuine recovery can begin.

When judging Hodgson, the circumstances in which he is working must be taken into consideration, though Benítez was scarcely afforded the same courtesy.

Unlike his predecessor, Hodgson, to his credit, has made it clear he does not wish to use his absentee employers as an excuse. "I will not go down the ownership route," he said in August. "If you do not think the team is doing as well as it should, then as a player you can do something about it." Presumably, the same must go for the manager. Yet by his own criteria, and those used by the club when appointing him, Hodgson's opening months at Anfield have hardly been a success.

Daniel Agger may have distanced himself from comments suggesting the 62 year-old favoured a long-ball style, but even if his original words were lost in translation, few observers disagreed with him. Liverpool are hardly winning points for artistic impression.

They are hardly winning points of any sort, in fact – just five in the Premier League, albeit with a solid start in the Europa League. It is not hard to explain why. Few teams struggle more to create chances. Instinctive striking from David Ngog and Fernando Torres gave them a point against Arsenal and a win against West Brom, two set-pieces from Gerrard averted embarrassment at Old Trafford.

That Hodgson's reserves required two slices of good fortune even to take Northampton to penalties, though, suggests the problem is not only chronic but is one of system, rather than personnel, despite the criticism directed at Torres, in particular.

However, that the Spaniard is not alone in appearing to be "fed up", to borrow a phrase from Jamie Redknapp, is telling. The rationale for Benítez's dismissal was that he had lost the dressing room. For all the public utterances of support from his new players, there is no on-pitch evidence Hodgson has found it.

Perhaps that is not his fault. Perhaps that is the fate of Liverpool's manager in an era when disaffection with the ownership, with the status quo, permeates even the dressing room. Perhaps Hodgson cannot be expected to steer a course to safety. Perhaps all he can do is go down with the ship.

Liverpool FC Fans Take Battle With Hicks And Gillett Across The Atlantic

Liverpool's disenchanted fans took their dissatisfaction with Tom Hicks and George Gillett across the Atlantic on Thursday, sending hundreds of emails to leading US media executives, news outlets and financial institutions pleading for increased coverage of the club's current state.

Appealing to the memory of the Beatles, the special relationship between the UK and the USA and the thought of a British businessman destroying the New York Yankees or Washington Redskins, Liverpool's fans called for the situation to be reported in an effort to persuade Wall Street that allowing Hicks and Gillett to refinance their ownership of the Anfield club would be a mistake.

The campaign came at the end of seven days of confusion at Anfield. Last Friday, widespread reports emerged that Hicks was seeking to refinance and continue his ownership of Liverpool. The reports came less than four months after Hicks told journalists of his desire to quit the sports industry for good. "It's never been my primary business," he told Dallas Morning News reporters Gary Jacobson and Brendan Case on May 26. "And it's a business I no longer want to pay the price to be in." Weeks later, at the start of August, Hicks completed the sale of the Texas Rangers MLB franchise to a group led by Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg and Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan.

Liverpool's owners put the club on the market before the start of the summer but, according to managing director Christian Purslow, no firm bids have been made. Perhaps Hicks' stance this week has been a bargaining tool. He certainly has no intention of selling Liverpool on the cheap, making clear in the same interview with Jacobson and Case that he intended to make back "a couple of hundred" million dollars that he had lost on the Texas Rangers with the Anfield club. Nor will he want the club to be taken out of his hands by RBS, as has been mooted.

From a business perspective, there is little doubt that Hicks and Gillett should be able to command a higher asking price than they paid. Their ownership may have been distressing for fans, but it has seen a rapid turnaround of the club's commercial fortunes. Two examples stand out.

Firstly, Liverpool's previous shirt sponsorship, with Carlsberg, was worth a few million pounds per season - less, for example, than Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa will collect from Autonomy and FxPro this year. The new deal with Standard Chartered, negotiated by a commercial team headed by Liverpool's commercial director, Ian Ayre, matches Manchester United's £20 million per season as a British record.

Secondly, Hicks and Gillett arrived in early 2007. Later that year, the Premier League began a new cycle of broadcast rights for 2007-10, in which Liverpool's income from television money rose by 65 per cent. Another cycle, 2010-13, is now underway, and the club's broadcast income has risen again. The television money may be none of Hicks' or Gillett's doing, but there is no arguing with the fact that, off the pitch, Liverpool are a far more attractive commercial proposition than in the winter of 2006.

Unfortunately, the club's decline on the field has been far more obvious. For many years, Liverpool's success on the pitch masked a poorly run business; now poor first team performances obscure improved commercial fortunes. And even the business side of things is unsatisfactory to many fans, coming as it does with heavy debt loaded onto the club.

Put simply, though, the satisfaction of fans with an owner comes down to success on the pitch - hence the ease with which the Glazers continue to ride out discontent at Old Trafford. You can secure as many sponsorships as you want, but losing to Northampton will test the patience of the fans of any Premier League club. Liverpool fans' patience has long since run out.

Match Report: Liverpool 2 - 2 Northampton (p)

Northampton plunged Merseyside into deeper misery as the League Two club stunned Liverpool with a memorable penalty shoot-out victory in the third round of the Carling Cup.

Ian Sampson's minnows produced a merited and major giant-killing, which equated to Brentford's spot-kick win over Everton on Tuesday night, and they came from behind to do so.

Goals from Billy McKay and Michael Jacobs seemed set to send Northampton through after extra-time at Anfield, having cancelled out Milan Jovanovic's early opener, but David Ngog took the match to penalties.

Ngog and youngster Nathan Eccleston both missed from the spot, allowing Abdul Osman to score the crucial winning penalty and send the noisy travelling supporters into dreamland.

For the first time in five years Liverpool have not got past the third round, denying them a chance in a competition they were thinking about winning.

Those chances were increased by the exits of the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham but an under-strength team failed to deliver.

It would have not been so bad had the Cobblers come to Anfield and given a particularly stirring performance but they were only really energized by McKay's goal, growing in confidence as their opponents' gradually receded.

Worryingly for manager Roy Hodgson, Northampton goalkeeper Chris Dunn was hardly tested.

The Liverpool boss, as he has done in the Europa League, handed the responsibility to a number of fringe players after opting to rest all those who started in the defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.

If he was looking for a reward he did not get one as the team laboured in failing to dispatch opponents 69 league places below them.

The signs were there before the start as the Cobblers had already beaten higher-placed opposition in League One Brighton and Championship side Reading.

Their league form, however, was worse than Liverpool's with only one win in their last eight games and that was indicative of the way they started as the home side dominated.

Prior to the match there had been much fuss about nothing when centre-back Daniel Agger had felt the need to publicly clarify comments he made on Sunday, which were misrepresented as him saying he would not play Hodgson's long-ball game.

Not that he needed to prove a point but he did with a perfectly-judged defence-splitting pass through the inside-left channel which Serbia international Jovanovic collected and fired past Chris Dunn and into the far corner of the net.

Despite dominating possession, Liverpool's rearranged defence gave their opponents too much time on the edge of the penalty area.

Twice Jacobs was allowed to turn and shoot but on both occasions he failed to hit the target, although his curling effort from the left angle of the box briefly had debutant Brad Jones worried as it arced towards the far corner.

Ryan Gilligan also blazed wide from 12 yards after Wilson failed to clear a free-kick.

The second half began similarly until McKay struck in the 56th minute. Kevin Thornton out-jumped Sotirios Kyrgiakos to head Liam Davis' hanging cross into the path of the striker and he blasted home from close range.

In an instant the match appeared to turn on its head as Northampton then became the team in the ascendancy as Liverpool toiled.

Only in the last five minutes of normal time did they push for the winner but the visitors' defence held out to force extra-time.

There was a feeling an upset was on the cards and a second Northampton goal duly came in the 98th minute.

Wilson, a central defender playing at left-back, was too easily beaten by substitute Courtney Herbert.

Jones parried the cross, Martin Kelly stopped Thornton's half-hit shot, but Liverpool could do nothing about Jacobs' follow-up.

Kyrgiakos headed wide and Kelly fired into the side-netting before Ngog hauled Liverpool level with a headed goal from substitute Jonjo Shelvey's corner.

Even then both sides could have snatched a win at the death but Kelly cleared off the line from Nathaniel Wedderburn's shot and Davis deflected over a header from Kyrgiakos.

Northampton's Steve Guinan and Liverpool's Ngog missed the first spot-kicks but when 19-year-old substitute Eccleston hit the crossbar with Liverpool's fourth effort Osman stepped up to send the Cobblers into the last 16.

The result will only increase the scrutiny on Hodgson, whose side have had a disappointing start to the Premier League and are currently 16th.

Roy Hodgson Apologizes To Fans For Liverpool FC’s Display In Defeat To Northampton In Carling Cup

Roy Hodgson last night apologized to fans for the club’s Carling Cup exit at the hands of npower League Two Northampton, admitting he and the players had to accept responsibility for the defeat.

Hodgson fielded an under-strength side which still included first-team regulars like Daniel Agger, David Ngog, Ryan Babel and Lucas Leiva and went ahead when Milan Jovanovic scored his first goal for the club in the ninth minute.

However, the Cobblers hit back 10 minutes into the second half through Billy McKay and Michael Jacobs’ goal in extra-time appeared to have done enough until Ngog spared Liverpool’s blushes four minutes from the end.

But it was only a temporary reprieve as Ngog and Nathan Eccleston missed their spot-kicks, allowing Abdul Osman to net the decisive penalty.

“I don’t think we came anywhere near what I hoped to see apart from in the last 15 minutes of extra-time when we made a superb effort after going 2-1 down,” he said.

“When it goes to penalties and you are at home and in front of the Kop your hope is that at least the players will have the composure and confidence to win the penalty shoot-out but we didn’t.

“All I can do is congratulate Northampton and apologize to everyone; the fans came expecting to see us win and I expected us to win but it wasn’t to be.

“These players have to accept responsibility. I accept responsibility for changing a lot of players in the team, I did it because I honestly thought the players I put on the field were good enough to win the game and they weren’t.

“The obvious conclusion to that was I shouldn’t have changed that many players but we should have been strong enough to get a result.

“We must all take our responsibility. I am just bitterly disappointed that the team I had so much faith in did not repay that faith this evening with the exception of one or two performances.”

Hodgson has endured a mixed start to his reign as Liverpool manager after taking over from Rafael Benitez in July.

He became the first Reds boss to win his first five European fixtures – albeit four were Europa League qualifiers – but his side has registered just one victory in five domestic games and are 16th in the Barclays Premier League table.

Hodgson accepted their Carling Cup exit was another setback.

“We wanted to do well in the Carling Cup and we haven’t done,” he added.

“We were given a kind draw against a team three leagues below us, were expected to win and when you don’t you can expect to be criticized from the top downwards.

“It is a major setback for the club.

The Carling Cup is a competition we are capable of doing well in and we were playing lower league opponents.

“Whatever happens, if it doesn’t result in a victory it is a very negative thing and a setback for the club, one of many we are facing at the moment.”

Northampton manager Ian Sampson rated the win as one of his top moments in football.

“It is certainly up there as one of the best nights of my career,” he said.

“I won a play-off final at Wembley as a player for Northampton and it ranks right up there with that occasion.

“To be a manger and win at Anfield after only one year in the job I’m absolutely delighted, it is a particular highlight.

“Full credit to the players, they are a young team, with the attitude and desire they showed I can’t praise them highly enough.”

Purslow - Reds Talks Ongoing

Liverpool managing director Christian Purslow has revealed there are 'a small number' of parties exploring a possible takeover of the club.

Current Reds owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have been trying to sell the Premier League club since April, but have yet to receive a suitable offer.

Hicks had reportedly been trying to arrange a deal to buy Gillett's stake in the club only for the Blackstone investment group to rule out financial support.

The owners must pay off £237million owed to the Royal Bank of Scotland in mid-October and Purslow is waiting to see if the current interest will lead to a formal takeover bid.

"The process remains underway and there are a small number of potentially interested parties working seriously and privately - doing what is called due diligence - looking at the business in detail from a financial and legal standpoint," Purslow told the club's official website.

"My hope is that one of those parties steps forward with a proposal to buy the club which is attractive to the board and which would be good for the club.

"I must say that the single most important aspect of the possible sale of the club - and I consider it the most important thing I will ever do in my business career - is to make sure that if we're going to sell the club we get the sale right. The only thing worse than no sale is the wrong sale.

"Do I know whether any of those parties are going to get over the finishing line? No. Can I make someone write a cheque? No.

"My job is to present the club to possible investors in the best possible light because I passionately believe it's a fantastic opportunity for investment and new ownership."

Purslow also played down fears that, if there is no sale in the near future, Liverpool could become the second Premier League club to go into administration.

He added: "Liverpool Football Club is a very healthy business. We have cash, we are solvent, we have banking facilities which last beyond the end of next season and we are heavily scrutinized by the Premier League.

"To achieve our Uefa license we went through that process and they were very happy with what they saw - so I cannot conceive of a situation where Liverpool Football Club could go into administration.

"Liverpool Football Club is not going bust. We have an extremely healthy business with record revenues and we are highly profitable."

Liverpool In €20m Strike For El Matador

Reports in Italy and Germany have suggested that Liverpool Football Club are preparing a transfer bid of around €20m for Uruguayan goal predator Edison Cavani, aptly nicknamed El Matador with a move that could happen as soon as January to add forward support to that of Fernando Torres.

Although Liverpool seem to have financial problems at the moment it seems that the Anfield manager, Roy Hodgson, has been given some cash to invest in more talent he feels would boost the Kop outfit, having already bought players such as Raul Meireles and Milan Jovanovic.

The sale of ex Liverpool player Javier Mascherano to Barcelona will also have provided Hodgson with a lump sum and it looks as though the Kop boss will use it to effect in providing some firepower up front.

Cavani is currently playing his football in Napoli, on loan from Palermo, and his recent performances for Napoli have raised eyebrows on Merseyside. He is a big six footer, strong, powerful and could compliment both Liverpool Skipper Steven Gerrard and Torres up front.

With Liverpool only having picked up five points from a possible fifteen, Roy Hodgson sees the need for more goals in the Premiership and El Matador, it seems, could be the answer.

Liverpool Have Not Reached Deal To Sign Napoli Striker Edinson Cavani

The agent of Napoli striker Edinson Cavani insists his client has not agreed a deal to join Liverpool in January.

Cavani, 23, only joined the Serie A side from Palermo this summer for a fee believed to be in the region of €17 million (£14.3m) but has already been linked with a move away from Italy.

Reports suggested that Liverpool were set to were set to offer €24m (£20.3m) to secure the striker’s services, but his agent, Claudio Anelucci, has dismissed the speculation.

“It’s just fantasies because Liverpool have not reached any deal,” he told tuttomercatoweb. “Edinson is fine in Naples, he is doing well at the club and is getting on very well with everyone.

“We are only in the third round of Serie A games, there are no problems and this is not the time for the transfer market."

“Is Napoli seen as a springboard for another move? No, Naples is a destination,” insisted Anellucci.

However, Cavani’s agent refused to rule out a future move for the Uruguay international.

“If Napoli get any bids then we will decide what to do. But I do not think the club should sell Edinson,” he said.

Christian Purslow Admits Liverpool Can Barely Service Loans

Liverpool’s managing director, Christian Purslow, admitted today that the club can barely service the debts and interest which were loaded on to the club by Tom Hicks and George Gillett when they took over Liverpool in February 2007.

"Can we afford to meet [our loans, interest costs and bank charges]?" Purslow said. "Just about. Do I wish that every penny spent on interest was available to spend on players? Passionately."

In a series of strikingly frank answers to emailed questions from anxious supporters published on Liverpool’s official website, Purslow acknowledged that the "leveraged buyout" employed by Hicks and Gillett, loading their own £185m loans onto the club to repay, is a severe financial problem.

That principle has been consistently denied at Manchester United, where the chief executive, David Gill, has argued the £716m debts and £400m interest, costs and bank charges imposed by the Glazer family’s takeover are not a burden on the club. "We are highly profitable," Purslow said. "The issue is that too much of that profit is being used to service loans put into place when the club was bought."

In the first public acknowledgement of the boardroom divide at Liverpool between Hicks and Gillett and the three directors who can outvote them, Purslow said he, the chairman, Martin Broughton, and commercial director, Ian Ayre, would reject any proposal from the owners to replace the club’s £237m bank debts with further borrowings from elsewhere.

"Can you, Ian Ayre or Martin Broughton oppose the refinancing of the debt by the current owners?" one supporter asked. Purslow replied: "Any incurrence of indebtedness by Liverpool Football Club needs full board approval. The non-owner directors have made it clear that’s not what we want to see happen."

Asked whether the owners could refinance the debts and secure new borrowings against the club’s assets – the players, stadium or training ground – Purslow stated: "That would require board approval and the other members of the Board have made it clear that’s not what we want to see happen."

Throughout, however, Purslow stressed Liverpool is not close to being insolvent, saying it made record income in the year to July 2010, and will not sell players, including Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, to pay off debt.

Purslow said all the directors, including Hicks and Gillett, are committed to selling Liverpool, and a "small number of potentially interested parties," whom he declined to name, are carrying out due diligence. Deutsche Bank, rumoured to be in refinancing talks after Hicks was apparently spotted outside their New York offices, are understood not to be involved.

Purslow hinted at the power wielded by Royal Bank of Scotland, to which Liverpool owes the bulk of the £237m, when he confirmed that the board’s reorganization into its current structure, in which Hicks and Gillett can be outvoted, followed the owners’ rejection of a proposal by Rhône Group at Easter to pay £100m for 40% of the club. RBS is said to have pushed after that for the club to be sold.

Danny Wilson Delighted To Have Jamie Carragher As His Liverpool Mentor

Liverpool defender Danny Wilson is relishing the opportunity to learn from veteran defender Jamie Carragher.

Wilson was named in Roy Hodgson's side for the League Cup tie with Northampton Town on Wednesday, a game which marked his competitive debut for the Reds.

The 19-year-old has already begun to pick up crucial tips from Carragher at the training ground.

"Jamie is great and you don't always need to speak to him about things because you can just look at him during training and in matches and learn," Wilson told the club's official website.

"I have been trying to do that and watching him closely.

"You can see the experience he has got and during the games he knows exactly where he should be and he tells the other players that as well.

"He is great in training. Every session he gives it 100 per cent and that's something as a young player you need to learn because he has been doing that at the top level all of his career.

"That is something I want to try and emulate and get to the level Carra has myself one day."

The former Rangers centre-back is also enjoying working with manager Roy Hodgson, himself a summer arrival at the club, and is settling well on Merseyside, a place he sees as similar to Glasgow.

"I've been here almost two months now and it has been great. I have settled in well, I'm enjoying the training and things are going really well," Wilson added.

"Liverpool is very similar to Glasgow because the people are very friendly and make you feel welcome.

"I was out shopping the other day on a street that looked very similar to Glasgow, so I felt at home. But I wasn't too bothered when I signed for Liverpool that it was similar because I'm just happy to be here at this great club.

"The manager has been great with me. He will talk to you and tell you what he thinks you are doing well and what you are doing wrong.

"It's good for a player because you need to be told when you are doing things right and wrong.

"All of the boys here really like him and we like the ideas he is trying to implement here."

Wilson has also enjoyed a touch of banter with Liverpool and Scotland legend Kenny Dalglish, still at the club in an off-field role.

"I've seen him a couple of times at the game in the main stand and he has been great with me," he revealed.

"Kenny gives me stick because he comes from Glasgow and I'm an Edinburgh boy. He has cracked some jokes with me about how Glasgow is so much better.

"I always point out to Kenny that even though I was raised in Edinburgh, I have lived in Livingston all of my life.

"He is a Scotland legend and it is great to be able to speak to him when I get a chance.

"He has always said to me if I need anything he is always there for a chat but I have settled in well so I haven't needed that, but I'm sure if I had any problems I could go to him. That is good for me."

Match Preview: Liverpool vs Northampton Town

Goalkeeper Brad Jones could make his Liverpool debut against Northampton in the third round of the Carling Cup at Anfield.

The Australia international has sat on the bench for four matches since his late-August move from Middlesbrough to become Jose Reina's deputy but he is set to be given an outing against the League Two side.

Manager Roy Hodgson will make numerous changes with many of his first team stars rested, giving fringe and reserve team players - some of whom featured in the Europa League victory against Steaua Bucharest last week - another chance.

Hodgson has every faith his second-string players will step up to the mark after being handed the responsibility of getting past the Cobblers.

But despite the rotation, which has already been effectively used in the Europa League, the manager insists he is taking the competition seriously.

"It's a strange game for us in a sense,'' he said. "It's one where we definitely need to rotate the squad having played so many games and having to play so many more before the international break.

"But on the other hand it's a competition I take very seriously and I want to have a good run in the competition. We are bothered.

"There's a responsibility on those who replace the big-name players like Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Pepe Reina and Jamie Carragher to name but four.

"And to be fair they've shown themselves capable of taking on that burden in a couple of European matches already.

"As we saw in the last game against Steaua Bucharest, Jay Spearing was arguably one of the best players on the field. If you never give him a chance, how do you know that?''

Northampton boss Ian Sampson is likely to hand centre-back Ben Tozer his debut against Liverpool in the Carling Cup following his arrival from Newcastle on loan.

The 20-year-old should start with Dean Beckwith sidelined due to a thigh strain suffered before the Shrewsbury defeat, while Abdul Osman had to be replaced during the second half with a knee problem.

Tadhg Purcell will be out for most of the season following an operation on his cruciate knee injury while Craig Hinton also remains sidelined with a knee problem.

Midfielder Ryan Gilligan still requires surgery on an ankle problem and despite having been playing through the pain barrier, may be rested with Michael Jacobs a possible replacement.

Marcus Hall will also miss out again with a hamstring injury.

Liverpool FC Out To Win Carling Cup, Says Roy Hodgson

Roy Hodgson has set Liverpool's second-string the challenge of a lengthy run in the Carling Cup – as he received a fitness boost from Dirk Kuyt.

The Anfield outfit embarks on the road to Wembley when they entertain npower League Two minnows Northampton Town in their third round tie.

As in the Europa League, Hodgson has once again decided to rest a clutch of key players with Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Pepe Reina, Jamie Carragher and Raul Meireles among those absent from the starting line-up.

And the Liverpool manager has urged their replacements to stake their first-team claims by ensuring their interest remains deep into the competition.

“It's a strange game for us in a sense,” said Hodgson. “It's one where we definitely need to rotate the squad having played so many games, and with us having to play so many more before the international break

“But on the other hand it's a competition I take very seriously and I want to have a good run in the competition.

“We are bothered.

“There's a responsibility on those who replace the big-name players like Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Pepe Reina and Jamie Carragher to name but four. And to be fair they've shown themselves capable of taking on that burden in a couple of European matches already.

“As we saw in the last game against Steaua Bucharest, Jay Spearing was arguably one of the best players on the field. If you never give him a chance, how do you know that?”

Hodgson has taken the strange step of publicly naming many of the players who will start tonight’s game.

Summer signings Danny Wilson and goalkeeper Brad Jones will both be handed their debuts while Dani Pacheco is poised for only his second start of the season.

“Soto Kyrgiakos and Daniel Agger will be the two centre-backs and Danny will play left-back,” said Hodgson. “He came here as a centre-back but is capable of playing at full-back in the same way we think Martin Kelly is capable of playing in this position.

“Pepe Reina is a fantastic character who wants to play every game, whether it's a seven-a-side in training or any game Liverpool Football Club plays, but it's important that Brad Jones gets his chance.”

Hodgson added: “I'm quite interested in Dani as well. He's a player who came back a little later after taking part in the U19 European Championships.

“He's impressed in training and looks like a very interesting prospect. His first-team chances have been limited because he wasn't in Switzerland in pre-season, where he would have played for sure.

“I'm really looking forward to seeing him play on Wednesday night, and it's another great chance for Ryan Babel and David Ngog to stake their claim for a place in the team.”

One player definitely absent is Kuyt, who continues to recover from the shoulder injury suffered while on international duty with Holland earlier this month.

Liverpool feared the 30-year-old would be out for a month, but the Dutchman has made a speedy recovery and is already back in training.

And Hodgson claims Kuyt may return for Thursday's Europa League trip to former club Utrecht and could even be back as early as Saturday's Premier League visit of Sunderland.

“Dirk has trained the last couple of days,” said Hodgson. “We're trying to protect him a little bit but he's made a remarkable recovery, so it'll be interesting to see how he progresses in relation to Saturday's game and the game next Thursday.

“We thought three to five weeks, so we're at the quick end of the scale.”

Tonight's opponents Northampton stand in 85th place in the Football League, only two points off bottom place having won only one league game all season.

However, they earned tonight's tie having won on penalties at Reading in the last round having earlier eliminated Brighton and Hove Albion.

This will be only the fourth occasion the teams have met and the first time since 1966, with Liverpool yet to be beaten.

Jay Spearing Ready To Take His Liverpool FC Chances

It has become Jamie Carragher's trademark. Whenever there is a lull in the action at Anfield, whenever Liverpool are in need of a short, sharp kick up the backside, the shriek of encouragement to pierce the silence inevitably belongs to the centre-back.

Yet with Roy Hodgson's side spluttering after being dragged back to 1-1 by Steaua Bucharest in last Thursday's Europa League group opener, Carragher was on the bench when a similar battle cry prompted an enthusiastic reaction from the home supporters.

Step forward Jay Spearing. The 21-year-old, handed his first-ever senior Anfield start, could see Liverpool were in need of a gee up and his call of “come on boys, we've got to pick it up” came through loud and clear, both to his team-mates and the appreciative fans.

Yet the homegrown talent is acutely aware that it is actions and not words that will force him further into Hodgson's first-team reckoning.

Spearing has pinpointed this season as make or break in his attempts to lay down firm foundations for a lengthy Anfield career.

So far, so good. Having featured extensively throughout pre-season – including a brief spell as captain during the friendly against Grasshopper in July – Spearing has been named by Hodgson in both the Premier League and Europa League squads for this season.

While still awaiting his league bow this campaign, the midfielder has appeared three times in the Europa League and is likely to be given another chance to impress in tonight's Carling Cup third round home tie against Northampton Town.

And Spearing says: “At the moment I am really happy with how the season has gone for me. I wouldn't change anything.

“I've been given my chances and hopefully I have proven to the manager that I am capable of playing whenever he needs me.

“But personally speaking, I can't think that I'm just going to be playing in the Europa League and Carling Cup. I want to be playing in the Premier League.

“Obviously, playing in the other competitions can give me a confidence boost but it's the Premier League that myself, and everyone else, is aiming to play in.”

Of his call to arms last week, Spearing says: “It wasn't for any attention but it's just something I've always done in every game and in training sessions.

“I just wanted to give the lads some encouragement. I thought at that point in the game we just needed to get the ball down and start playing again like we did at the start of it.”

Under Rafael Benitez, Spearing made his debut almost two years ago in a Champions League win at PSV Eindhoven before a cameo appearance in the 4-0 demolition of Real Madrid later in the competition.

The following season came a first Premier League start at Sunderland while he later spent a loan spell helping Leicester City reach the Championship play-offs.

But last week's outing against Steaua holds pride of place for Spearing, who says: “It was a massive moment for me to start my first game for Liverpool at Anfield and I will take a lot from the game.

“I got a lot of confidence when the manager told me I would be playing and I went out there and really enjoyed it.”

Hodgson is using the Carling Cup, as well as the Europa League, to assess his reserve and fringe players, and is expected to make sweeping changes this evening with Brad Jones replacing Pepe Reina in goal and both Dani Pacheco and David Amoo among several hoping to see action.

“It's going to be as massive competition for me and for the rest of the young lads as well,” admits Spearing.

“It's a place for us to show what we are all about. The manager is going to give us a chance in the Carling Cup and the Europa League, and we have to prove to him that we should be given an opportunity to show we can do it in the Premier League.

“Hopefully we've done that with our performances in the Europa League so far.”

Inter Set Sights On Liverpool Defender Daniel Agger

European champions Inter are reportedly interested in acquiring the services of Liverpool defender Daniel Agger during the winter transfer window.

Nerazzurri coach Rafael Benitez wants to use the 25-year-old as an alternative to current centre-back pairing Lucio and Walter Samuel, according to the Daily Mail.

Agger has a contract in place with the Reds, which ties him to the club until June 2014. Juventus were also reportedly interested in the Danish defender in the summer transfer window.

A figure of approximately €9 million could be enough to see Agger reunite with his former coach.

Dieumerci Mbokani Reveals Why He Chose To Move To Monaco Over Liverpool

Monaco striker Dieumerci Mbokani has revealed he had given his word to join the French side rather than make a move to the English Premier League and play for Liverpool.

The 24-year-old Congolese forward claims he was made an attractive offer, but was not prepared to go back on his promise.

"Liverpool gave me a good offer but I had already given the 'OK' to Monaco and I could not turn back on them," Mbokani told talkSPORT.

Mbokani moved from Belgian side Standard Liege over the summer for an undisclosed fee, but the figure was reportedly around the €7 million mark.

A host of English teams including Fulham and Birmingham City were also keeping an eye on the striker prior to his move to the Ligue 1 side.

Agger Puts The Record Straight

Liverpool defender Daniel Agger has dismissed quotes attributed to him in the Danish press saying that he was "very disappointed" to read quotes which suggested criticism of boss Roy Hodgson.

Agger appeared to question Hodgson's methods in stories published in Denmark on Tuesday morning, in which the defender was quoted as saying he was "here to play football and not to unload [the ball]."

But the Denmark stopper says his apparent rejection of Hodgson's philosophy was instead a response to a question put to him by a television reporter, and subsequently twisted by the Danish press.

"I am very disappointed with the papers in Denmark for the way they have done this story,'' Agger said.”I spoke to Danish TV after the game on Sunday and answered the questions that were put to me. I didn't speak to the papers.

"The problem was the questions never appeared on TV, only the answers did, and then the newspapers put their own questions in. What came out was 100% wrong and that is why I am very disappointed.

"The TV journalist asked me what I needed to do to get back into the team and suggested I should start hitting more long balls. I said I wouldn't do that because I'm not that kind of player. That's where that quote came from.

"I actually think we play good football and that we have showed that against Manchester United and against Arsenal. What I don't understand is that it was only a few days ago when I spoke to the media ahead of the Steaua Bucharest game and said everybody at the club was happier now with the new manager, the new players and the new methods.

"It's strange to read this just a few days later but that's the way the media works, especially in Denmark. I have been involved in every [Premier League] game this season. Of course I'm disappointed when I'm not in the team, but I have been here for five years and really like it here.

"I wouldn't have stayed for this long if I didn't like it or if I was unhappy. I am still happy and will keep fighting for my place."

Kevin Keegan Demands Supporters Have Patience With Roy Hodgson Due To Ownership Chaos

Liverpool legend Kevin Keegan has called on supporters to be "sensible" with their expectations of new manager Roy Hodgson due to the takeover crisis.

Hodgson, 63, arrived from Fulham just after owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks put the club up for sale in April due to their mounting debts.

With the prospect of falling into the Royal Bank of Scotland's hands in mid-October if a loan isn't repaid, the Anfield outfit was restrained in the summer transfer market despite the losses of Alberto Aquilani and Javier Mascherano.

Speaking to Sky Sports News, Keegan - who scored 68 goals in 230 First Division appearances in the 1970s - called for fans to give Hodgson extra time to settle.

He said: "They've got in Roy Hodgson a manager who is very experienced. I think when he went in there, he knew what the situation was.

"It's a club where there is rebuilding to be done and most of the sensible fans know that."

Hansen: Hodgson Is Beginning To Reap What Benitez Sowed

Liverpool legend Alan Hansen believes Roy Hodgson’s difficult beginnings at the Anfield helm are being undermined by the previous managerial regime of Rafa Benitez.

Much of the preseason optimism has evaporated at Liverpool according to the aforementioned Anfield hero, but Hansen believes Hodgson has already made inroads into a squad that was in desperate need of an overhaul, praising the additions of Raul Meireles and Joe Cole.

Hansen, who won eight league titles during his illustrious Liverpool career, believes Hodgson needs time for his team to gel but ultimately the former Fulham boss will be judged on results.

The former Liverpool captain told the Daily Telegraph: “Roy Hodgson is beginning to reap what Rafael Benítez sowed in his final 18 months.

“When he replaced Benítez as manager of Liverpool, Hodgson accepted an incredibly hard job because he was left with a team that, while not in total disarray, simply were not good enough.

“If you set out to challenge for a Champions League position and finish in seventh, then the team are clearly not up to requirements.

“Hodgson knew the task facing him at Liverpool when he left Fulham, and you have to say that he has already cleared out some of the dead wood and replaced those players with better personnel.

“But it is all about results, and when they are not going your way, people will begin to ask questions.

“After the defeat at Manchester United, it is clear that Liverpool are still suffering from the same problems away from home that they have had for a while.

“They were abysmal away from Anfield last season and have only managed one point from three away games so far in this campaign.

“The big concern, just five games into the season, is that Liverpool already find themselves 10 points behind Chelsea because, at the outset of the campaign, there was real optimism that they could put up a good show in the title race.

“After ending the last campaign in doom and gloom, there was a lot of hope at Anfield generated by the signing of Joe Cole and the announcements by both Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard that they were staying at the club.

“It was a lift for everybody and, with a couple of good signings in Raul Meireles and Christian Poulsen, the outlook appeared much brighter.

“I am not saying that I expected Liverpool to win the title, but I certainly believed they could put up a decent show.

“You have to say that the hope and optimism has diminished after just five games.

“Progress has been made by Hodgson, but despite the reality that his players will take time to gel into a team, results are everything.

“So despite the positives that Hodgson has already brought in his time as manager, the story so far is mixed and the emotions of the supporters are fluctuating between high and low.”