Roy Hodgson anxious about, and happy with, Liverpool’s performance
The new Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has exclaimed that he will not let the change in ownership get to him. He stated that the club’s change in ownership was an inevitable process but he will not let it disturb him. He however has admitted that the longer the club takes to make the transfer the more problems he will have to face.
He urged the Liverpool board and the head of QSL, Kenny Huang, to make the deal as soon as possible and ideally before the predicted date of 31st August. He stated that the reason for that was if the two parties sign into an early contract then he will have funds to sign in more players and get them ready in time. Also he will be able to finalize his team much more early and therefore there will be less hassle before the season starts.
The 62 year old manager is so far proving his worth with straight forward wins. His first match at home in Anfield saw his confidence grow especially when the fans of the Reds rang the stadium with memories of before. They have qualified over Macedonians Rabotnicki with a 2-0 victory in the Europa League. It was the third qualifying Round’s second match which Liverpool won again 2-0. The first goal was scored with a header from David N’Gog and Steven Gerrard scored the second off a penalty. In the end Liverpool won easily on an aggregate of 4-0.
The club’s on field performance seems to be at hand now but off-field they are still in the same dilemma. The American owners that came in 2007 are at last set to leave with a Chinese group stepping in. Owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have constantly been criticized over their decisions and their reasoning. The club is in a severe financial crisis and that is the reason why they have been unable to buy in new players.
Speculation is rife that the Chinese government is behind the funding of QSL, the club is constantly trying to verify this but so far they have been unsuccessful. Huang has failed to comment on the issue while the Syrian businessman Yahya Kirdi has claimed that if the deal strikes he will be one of the owners of Liverpool.
The former Fulham manger Hodgson has confirmed that he does not have influence in the business matters of the club but it will be great if his opinion was taken. He, however, did say that for now he will just focus on the team and try to improve its performance. He expressed that he trusted the board and they will inform him of the proceedings when the club gets close to the sale.
On the issue of signings he instigated that the club is hoping to bring in some more players. He commented on his current players saying they had already made some signings that will prove to be essential for the future.
Hodgson also admitted that he was anxious because of the signing, “I think the danger would be in a late takeover that money would be made available but we wouldn't have had a chance to research the players in this transfer window. We are doing our research in this window and targeting players that the club is capable and able to buy. If one day an enormous amount of money is made available like it was for Manchester City and Chelsea so be it, it would be nice”.
He instigated that if the club gets a handsome offer for their coveted striker Fernando Torres then there is the possibility of selling him. This statement comes after Torres committed himself to the club and expressed he is looking forward to play for the Reds again.
He also praised the former Chelsea player Joe Cole who has a pivotal role to play for the Merseyside this season. On Cole he informed that Cole is desperate to play for the club. He also relayed the thoughts of Cole saying that he came to Liverpool to showcase his talent in a better way. Hodgson also praised his performance saying that he expected a lot from him in the season.
Hodgson told that he was happy with the team’s performance, "”I am perfectly satisfied; we played some very attractive football and created lots of chances, more than the score line suggests”.
He added, “We kept our discipline and that was important too because it is so easy in these games to lose your way and for people to start doing things you don't want them doing”.
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