Roy Hodgson critical of Rafael Benitez' transfer policy at Liverpool
Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has hit out at the signings made by former manager Rafael Benitez, saying that he intends to get value for money when he looks to strengthen his team in the January transfer window.
In the summer of 2009, Liverpool spent around £17million each on Portsmouth right-back Glen Johnson and AS Roma midfielder Alberto Aquilani.
Aquilani, who is now on loan to Juventus, failed to make an impact during his first season while Johnson made 25 appearances in the league during his first season, although he has been a regular contributor this season.
"I think you can pay an awful lot of money for poor players and you can pay not very much money for very good ones — it is all to do with how good your scouting and your eye is," Hodgson told the club's official website. "There are a lot of things here that
the club has got to get right. We have got a lot more expensive failures on our list than good players that we have brought in for next to nothing."
Hodgson, whose side have crashed out of the Carling Cup and have only nine points from as many games in the league, said Liverpool's new owners, American businessmen John Henry and Tim Werner, understand the costs of attracting the best players in Europe
to Anfield.
"If we want the right quality, we have got to be prepared to pay the right price," the ex-Fulham boss said. The owners know that perfectly well. We have got to make certain that if we go out and spend £20m, we are getting a £20m player. We want to be attracting
the players that Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter are chasing. It would be nice to think that we can shop at a high level."
Will make additions in January
The 63-year-old brought in several players, including Juventus' Christian Poulsen and and Chelsea's Joe Cole, ahead of the current season, and said that he will be wary of making superfluous signings in January.
"I'm like all managers in that I'm wary of the January transfer window. I think it can be dangerous as clubs try to correct mistakes. But, having said that, we are going to be very interested in trying to improve our squad in January. There is no question
about that. I am sure we will sign players."
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