Liverpool Ready to Offload Keane to Spurs
Rafael Benítez says his side had revived their title challenge but it seems they will do so without Robbie Keane
Rafael Benítez last night claimed Liverpool had revived their title challenge with a dramatic late 2-0 victory over Chelsea but it looks increasingly likely that Robbie Keane will play no part in the team's attempt to overhaul Manchester United after Tottenham revived their interest in the striker by lodging a £15m offer.
Tottenham's latest attempt to re-sign the Republic of Ireland international, whom they sold to Liverpool for £20.3m last summer, came after Keane was omitted from Liverpool's match-day squad for a second successive Sunday.
Keane has been loth to leave Anfield but has found himself increasingly ostracized and there is a growing feeling that Benítez will choose to cash in on the player at £15m today. The Liverpool manager said last night he expected Keane to remain his player after the transfer window closes at 5pm today but he left the door open for a sale and all the indications are that Spurs will capitalize on that after holding talks late into last night.
"I spoke to the player today and he was OK," Benítez said after the victory over Chelsea, which Keane watched from the directors' box. "We were just talking about the game and afterwards he was very happy that the team had won. I think he will be here and he will be in my Champions League squad." Within hours, however, that situation appeared to have changed after Tottenham formalized their interest with an improved bid.
Liverpool have until the cut-off today to find a replacement for Keane and may now turn to Real Madrid's out-of-favor Javier Saviola, who had been expected to join PSV Eindhoven.
Benítez's joy at yesterday's win was a far cry from the mood of the Chelsea manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, who admitted his prospects of bringing the Premier League trophy back to Stamford Bridge were vanishing into the distance.
Fernando Torres scored in the 88th and 94th minutes to spare Liverpool an eighth draw in 11 matches but only after Frank Lampard had been sent off on the hour by the referee, Mike Riley, for a studs-first challenge on Xabi Alonso. Television replays later confirmed the England international played the ball before the man and Chelsea intend to appeal against the resulting three-match ban.
Victory closed the gap between Manchester United and Liverpool to two points, albeit with the champions having played a game fewer, and came with Tom Hicks and George Gillett making their first joint appearance at Anfield since December 2007. Benítez refused to divulge whether the American owners' presence at Anfield would break the impasse over his contract dispute with the club. Instead he preferred to dwell on a result that lifted much of the recent frustrations at Anfield.
"You can't change your position every week in terms of how you approach the situation," he said. "It was a really long race before this game and we were in a good position and it is still a long race now but we are in a better position. We deserved to win. We were better than them with 11 against 11 but with 11 against 10 we had more control and more opportunities."
Benítez said he had not witnessed the controversial incident that saw Lampard receive a straight red card for the tackle on Alonso but in which the Chelsea midfielder played the ball first. "I had no intention of injuring the player," Lampard claimed. "I obviously touched the ball and there is no way that was a red card."
Both Lampard and Scolari were indignant, however, that Riley had committed an injustice that changed the course of the game, one in which Jose Bosingwa had escaped unpunished for an appalling foul into the back of Yossi Benayoun.
Scolari added: "I don't want to say anything about the referee. I only ask the referee and the people at the FA to look at it again on video. If they look at it and see that Lampard has not made a foul for a red card, then maybe they can change it. Bosingwa did not make a correct situation. I am sure he could have been sent off. Bosingwa made a mistake and, if he is punished by the FA, then they can also change Lampard's red card. It changed the game one million per cent.
"The game was 50–50 until Lampard was sent off."
Defeat means Chelsea have taken only one point from a possible 15 against their "big-four" rivals and the Brazilian admits their title hopes are seriously diminished. "Our chances are more distant now," Scolari said. "We need to play game by game and see what happens at the end. But it is not in our hands." The result increases the pressure on Scolari but he said: "Pressure for me? I have my job. I work hard every day. I do my best. It is not pressure. I am a football man; I lose and I win. It is not a problem in my life if I do my best."
Hicks and Gillett sat 12 seats apart in the directors' box but were accompanied by a group of Kuwaiti businessmen, including a member of the Al-Kharafi family, as their separate attempts to bring new investors to the club continue.
Tottenham's latest attempt to re-sign the Republic of Ireland international, whom they sold to Liverpool for £20.3m last summer, came after Keane was omitted from Liverpool's match-day squad for a second successive Sunday.
Keane has been loth to leave Anfield but has found himself increasingly ostracized and there is a growing feeling that Benítez will choose to cash in on the player at £15m today. The Liverpool manager said last night he expected Keane to remain his player after the transfer window closes at 5pm today but he left the door open for a sale and all the indications are that Spurs will capitalize on that after holding talks late into last night.
"I spoke to the player today and he was OK," Benítez said after the victory over Chelsea, which Keane watched from the directors' box. "We were just talking about the game and afterwards he was very happy that the team had won. I think he will be here and he will be in my Champions League squad." Within hours, however, that situation appeared to have changed after Tottenham formalized their interest with an improved bid.
Liverpool have until the cut-off today to find a replacement for Keane and may now turn to Real Madrid's out-of-favor Javier Saviola, who had been expected to join PSV Eindhoven.
Benítez's joy at yesterday's win was a far cry from the mood of the Chelsea manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, who admitted his prospects of bringing the Premier League trophy back to Stamford Bridge were vanishing into the distance.
Fernando Torres scored in the 88th and 94th minutes to spare Liverpool an eighth draw in 11 matches but only after Frank Lampard had been sent off on the hour by the referee, Mike Riley, for a studs-first challenge on Xabi Alonso. Television replays later confirmed the England international played the ball before the man and Chelsea intend to appeal against the resulting three-match ban.
Victory closed the gap between Manchester United and Liverpool to two points, albeit with the champions having played a game fewer, and came with Tom Hicks and George Gillett making their first joint appearance at Anfield since December 2007. Benítez refused to divulge whether the American owners' presence at Anfield would break the impasse over his contract dispute with the club. Instead he preferred to dwell on a result that lifted much of the recent frustrations at Anfield.
"You can't change your position every week in terms of how you approach the situation," he said. "It was a really long race before this game and we were in a good position and it is still a long race now but we are in a better position. We deserved to win. We were better than them with 11 against 11 but with 11 against 10 we had more control and more opportunities."
Benítez said he had not witnessed the controversial incident that saw Lampard receive a straight red card for the tackle on Alonso but in which the Chelsea midfielder played the ball first. "I had no intention of injuring the player," Lampard claimed. "I obviously touched the ball and there is no way that was a red card."
Both Lampard and Scolari were indignant, however, that Riley had committed an injustice that changed the course of the game, one in which Jose Bosingwa had escaped unpunished for an appalling foul into the back of Yossi Benayoun.
Scolari added: "I don't want to say anything about the referee. I only ask the referee and the people at the FA to look at it again on video. If they look at it and see that Lampard has not made a foul for a red card, then maybe they can change it. Bosingwa did not make a correct situation. I am sure he could have been sent off. Bosingwa made a mistake and, if he is punished by the FA, then they can also change Lampard's red card. It changed the game one million per cent.
"The game was 50–50 until Lampard was sent off."
Defeat means Chelsea have taken only one point from a possible 15 against their "big-four" rivals and the Brazilian admits their title hopes are seriously diminished. "Our chances are more distant now," Scolari said. "We need to play game by game and see what happens at the end. But it is not in our hands." The result increases the pressure on Scolari but he said: "Pressure for me? I have my job. I work hard every day. I do my best. It is not pressure. I am a football man; I lose and I win. It is not a problem in my life if I do my best."
Hicks and Gillett sat 12 seats apart in the directors' box but were accompanied by a group of Kuwaiti businessmen, including a member of the Al-Kharafi family, as their separate attempts to bring new investors to the club continue.
Use the feedback form below to submit your comments.
Use the form below to email this article to your friends.
- Liverpool Fire Blanks As Title Challenge Fades
- Torres Torment for a Sensitive Sol
- Ballack's Return Gives Grant Hope Amid Injury Worries
- Benítez and His Paymasters Have Plenty to Talk About After Hitting the United Wall
- Gerrard Leads Rampant Liverpool Through to Give Benítez a Boost
- Marseille v Liverpool - Live!
- Moyes Charged By Fa Over Derby Outburst
- Liverpool 8 - 0 Turkish Shower
- Torres and Alonso Deliver Double Blow to Liverpool
- Porto 1 - 1 Liverpool
- Uefa Blames Liverpool Fans for Violence
- Steven Gerrard is Negotiating a Lucrative New Four-year Contract With Liverpool
- Liverpool Are Still in Title Race, Says Jubilant Benítez
- Lampard's Red Card Gives Liverpool Green Light for Victory
- Liverpool Need More Forward Thinking
- Stubborn Benítez Has Become the Embodiment of Liverpool's Flaws
- Benayoun Confident of Getting Liverpool's Title Bid Back on Track
- Bookies Doubt Liverpool Will Last the Course As United Attract £40,000 Bet
- Debutant Mido Puts Benítez Back on the Spot
- Keane the Victim As Benítez Battles for Control of Transfer Policy at Liverpool
- Steven Gerrard Set for his 500th 'Shirt' for Liverpool FC
- Van Nistelrooy to Liverpool FC?