Fake facebook page sparks Drenthe transfer talk
Disgruntled Liverpool fans got some unexpected good news recently in the form of a Facebook status update. The update in question belonged to Real Madrid full back Royston Drenthe, who reportedly wrote the following on his facebook page on July 15th, “I will soon be joining Liverpool Fc. Hope i will have a good season there.”
Despite the typos, and the fact that this post appeared only two days after the account had been created – it was one of numerous ‘Royston Drenthe’ accounts on Facebook - these two short sentences were enough to generate a series of news reports, with credible media outlets like The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Mail and ESPN all publishing stories claiming Drenthe was joining the Merseyside team.
The only problem was that none of this was actually true. Drenthe’s agent quickly rubbished the story, telling the BBC that the status update and facebook account were completely fake. "Royston does not have a Facebook page, a Twitter page or a MySpace page. We will be taking legal action against the person who set up this false Royston Drenthe account," he said, adding that Drenthe would not be moving to England this summer, regardless of any transfer rumours.
"Royston is definitely staying at Real Madrid. He is happy there, he has spoken to the club directors and is looking forward to the new season at the Bernabeu."
Despite this, Spanish paper Marca has reported that there is some truth to the story, and that not only are Liverpool really interested in the player, they have actually started talks with Real Madrid about his transfer. “Drenthe,” the paper wrote, “is attracted to the possibility of playing in the Premier League and makes no secret that Liverpool is a historic team who would fill his aspirations. The talks have begun.”
Following the departure of Andrea Dossena in January, Liverpool has offloaded both Fabio Aurelio and Emiliano Insua – who will complete his five million pound move to Fiorentina this week – and are left without a natural left-back in the squad. New Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson has thus made it a necessity to find a new player to fill that spot. “We are short and that is going to be one of the priorities. We need to find a replacement for Emiliano and Fabio. That is one job we will have to do,” he told the British press.
Drenthe, who can also play as a left-winger, first came to the attention of the football elite as a member of Dutch team Feyenoord. In three seasons at the Rotterdam-based club, Drenthe became an established starter and fan favorite, eventually earning a call-up to the Dutch under-21 team. As a member of the Oranje, he helped his country win the 2007 European Under-21 Football Championship, and picked up the player of the tournament award in the process. Chelsea and Real Madrid were soon on the Dutchman’s trail, with the Spanish giants eventually landing the promising fullback, who was then only 20 years old.
Since then, however, Drenthe has not managed to fulfill his promise, failing to secure a starting spot at the Bernabeu under three different coaches. In fact, Drenthe has made just 46 appearances in three years. Because of this lack of first team opportunities, he has been linked with numerous teams, including Juventus, Milan, Lazio, Sporting Lisbon and, of course, Liverpool. The Merseyside interest in Drenthe, in fact, is said to have begun even before the departure of coach Rafael Benitez, but nothing concrete has ever come of it.
So, these most recent rumours may be simply that, rumours. Fittingly, the Reds have pursued other options for the left-back spot. According to various reports, Liverpool are close to completing a six million pound transfer for Wigan fullback Maynor Figueroa. The player’s agent has said that “just a few details remain before we confirm the signing.” Whether or not this is true remains to be seen, but, Liverpool fans can be sure of one thing: the deal will not be announced on Figueroa’s Facebook page.
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