Steven Gerrard could be out at Liverpool as contract talks stall

[Madferret]

Steven Gerrard could be out at Liverpool as contract talks stall

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) - Six weeks after leading Liverpool to the Champions League title, captain Steven Gerrard could be leaving the club.

Gerrard's agent, Struan Marshall, said Monday that talks with the club had "stalled and were unlikely to be reopened." Gerrard has two years remaining on his current deal and is widely reported to be angry that the club has not reopened contract negotiations.

The England midfielder is reported to be seeking a weekly pay hike from 80,000 pounds ($174,965 Cdn) to 100,000 pounds ($218,800 Cdn).Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez said Monday he wanted Gerrard with the club.

"I can assure our fans that we want Steve to stay with us," Benitez said. "After four more years, I would like Steve to be the next assistant coach, the next assistant manager, the next chief scout if he wants - or the next manager if I go. "We want Steve to stay with us all his life."

News reports said Gerrard, upset with the stalled talks, had an angry exchange with Benitez over the weekend. Benitez has said he needs at least four top-quality players to improve the club, and money to buy them could come from selling Gerrard.

Gerrard is valued at about 30 million pounds ($65.64 million Cdn) with Real Madrid and Chelsea the two most likely bidders. Gerrard is a Liverpool native, and the club has said it hopes to keep him.

"Our position is very clear: we want Gerrard to stay at the club," Liverpool spokesman Ian Cotton said. Liverpool plays July 13 in a Champions League qualifier, and Liverpool reportedly wants to decide on Gerrard's future before the competition starts. The Premier League season opens Aug. 13.

Fergie? The only Scouser I'd like to see at Old Trafford.

[Madferret]

Or not?

Liverpool says it will turn down Chelsea's $69.6 million bid for Steven Gerrard
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) - Champions League winner Liverpool says it will turn down Chelsea's bid for captain Steven Gerrard. "I can confirm we have had a bid from Chelsea and that it will be rejected by us," Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry said Tuesday.

Chelsea's bid is reported to be worth 32 million pounds ($69.6 million Cdn). Real Madrid has also said it will make a bid for the 25-year-old midfielder. The transfer could set a British record, topping the 29.1 million pounds ($63.3 million Cdn) that Manchester United paid Leeds in 2002 for England defender Rio Ferdinand.

Gerrard, 25, who has two years remaining on his contract, is reportedly angry that the club has not reopened negotiations. The England international is reportedly seeking a weekly pay boost from 80,000 pounds ($173,910 Cdn) to 100,000 pounds ($217,290 Cdn).

On Monday, manager Rafa Benitez issued a plea for Gerrard to stay with his hometown club. "I can assure our fans that we want Steve to stay with us," Benitez said. "After four more years, I would like Steve to be the next assistant coach, the next assistant manager, the next chief scout if he wants - or the next manager if I go.

"We want Steve to say with us all his life."

Liverpool, which won the Champions League six weeks ago against AC Milan, hopes to settle Gerrard's status before it faces Welsh club TNS in a Champions League first-round qualifier on July 13.

[Madferret]

Out of Anfield
It seems unlikely Liverpool can match any bid made for captain Steven Gerrard, despite the fact the Reds are defending champs in Europe.
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) -- Steven Gerrard has told Champions League winner Liverpool he wants to leave the club. Although it has received no official transfer request, the team said Tuesday in a statement that the captain will not stay with the team. Gerrard said he agonized over his choice.

"This has been the hardest decision I have ever had to make," Gerrard said in a statement to Sky Television. "I fully intended to sign a new contract after the Champions League final, but the events of the past five to six weeks have changed all that." Liverpool acknowledged Tuesday that Gerrard was leaving.

"The club has made it crystal clear we want to keep Steven at Anfield," Liverpool said. "Sadly, he has told us this afternoon that he will not accept our offer of an improved and extended contract because he wants to leave Liverpool.

"We very much regret the decision he has taken."

Come to Old Trafford Gerrard boy....

:D

[a4l]

Come to Arsenal or stay in Scouserland, they are the only two options that I would consider.

[Madferret]

Gerrard remaining a Red
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) -- Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has changed his mind and decided to stay with the Champions League winner, the club's chief executive said Wednesday.

A day after Liverpool turned down a 32-million-pound ($69.8 million Cdn) transfer bid from Chelsea and the England midfielder issued a statement saying he wanted to leave the club, Rick Parry said Gerrard had committed his future to Liverpool.

"I couldn't be more delighted. He has decided to stay with us because he realizes how much the club means to him," Parry said. "Even when he said he was going I don't think the language he used suggested he really wanted to go.

"He was talking about the last few days being difficult and not being able to come back, he never actually said he wanted to go. "Over the last 24 hours he has reflected on it, thought it through and he wants to stay."

Chelsea and nine-time Champions League winner Real Madrid had been keen to sign Gerrard, and both are Liverpool's rivals when Rafa Benitez' team begins its defence of the title against Welsh champion Total Network Solutions next Wednesday.

If Gerrard confirms he is staying and plays in that game at Anfield, the competition rules say that he will not be able to play for any of Liverpool's rivals in the competition even if he is transferred. Parry said he worked through the night talking to Gerrard and his agent.

"We've had some emotional moments and we've cleared all of that," he said. "There were a few late night phone calls and a few early morning ones.

"The last few days have been so difficult for him and I apologize to Stevie if I misread his emotions. But, in the last 24 hours he has reflected on it and thought it through. It's what we wanted all along."

Gerrard was probably the leading force behind Liverpool's amazing Champions League triumph in Istanbul May 25 when the team wiped out a 3-0 halftime deficit against AC Milan and won the title after a penalty shootout. The midfielder headed the first comeback goal and his all-round performance took the game away from the star-studded Italian team.

But Gerrard's future at Anfield was in doubt because talks on a new contract had stalled. Although he had two years left on his current contract, he asked for a new deal with a substantial salary rise from 80,000 to 100,000 pounds ($174,450 to $218,050 Cdn)

Oh the drama at Anfield...

[Madferret]

Gerrard inks deal with Liverpool
Canadian Press
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) - Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard finally ended speculation about his future Friday by signing a four-year contract with the Champions League winner.

Defender Jamie Carragher, another England international who played in the comeback win over AC Milan in Istanbul, also signed a four-year deal.

Gerrard appeared to be leaving Liverpool on Tuesday when he said that contract talks with the club had broken down. Premier League champion Chelsea made a 32-million-pound ($67.9 million Cdn) transfer bid for the England star but Liverpool turned it down.

A day later, after several phone conversations with chief executive Rick Parry, Gerrard changed his mind and said he was staying at Anfield. Reports said the new deal will pay the star midfielder 100,000 pounds ($212,200 Cdn) a week, up from 80,000 ($169,760 Cdn).

The news will come as a major relief to Liverpool fans, especially after Gerrard played a major role in the club's fifth European Cup success. With his team trailing 3-0 at halftime, Gerrard started the comeback with a headed goal and Liverpool went on to tie the score 3-3 before beating Milan 3-2 on penalties.

It's likely that Gerrard and Carragher will play some part in Saturday's first pre-season friendly at Wrexham as Liverpool prepares for the defence of its Champions League title at home to Welsh champion Total Network Solutions on Wednesday.

While news that he and Carragher had signed contracts until 2009 was released on the club's website, Gerrard admitted his relations with coach Rafa Benitez still weren't perfect.

"Our relationship is OK but I admit it could be better and that is something I am going to work on," he was quoted in the Liverpool Daily Post. "I am sure we will sit down in the next few days for a chat. I don't think he has seen the best of me. There were times last season when I wasn't happy with my performances. Things were on my mind."

But Gerrard dismissed reports that he and Benitez had a major fallout during a recent training session. "All the talk of bust-ups is nonsense," he said. "We have had a few heated discussions over the last five or six days but my respect for Rafa has not changed. "He is one of the best coaches in the world and I understand he rates me as a player."

And so ends another episode of As the Scouser Turns..