Liverpool Transfer News: Raul Meireles off to Italy!
Meireles: Shipped to Italy?
As widely expected, after having sealed Charlie Adam’s move from Blackpool, Liverpool are reportedly willing to listen to offers for Portuguese midfielder, Raul Meireles.
Italian powerhouses’ Juventus and Inter Milan are in the contention for acquiring the lanky midfielder’s signature, with a fee in the region of £12million enough to prize away Meireles from Anfield. Raul Meireles, signed by Roy Hodgson, proved to be a revelation for Liverpool in his debut season after initially taking some time to settle down to the pace of the league.
He was one of the star performers of team and an integral part of the Reds’ revival under King Kenny Dalglish. His stupendous volley against Wolves at Molineux and the cracker-of-a-goal in the Merseyside derby will be etched in the memory of Reds’ faithful for some time to come.
Meireles was one of the fittest players in the league, according to the statistics, running an average of 8.1 miles per game and bamboozled opposition defences with his well-timed runs in the box and opportunistic strikes. Raul is a quintessential box-to-box midfielder with an excellent work-rate and a positive attitude towards the game, but has reportedly grown disillusioned after Liverpool failed to offer him a better contract, as was promised at the start of the last season.
With Liverpool having a plethora of options in the midfield department, especially after the recent acquisitions of Henderson and Adam, Raul is believed to be surplus to demand and can be sold off to generate funds for Downing’s signing from Aston Villa. He was left off the travel squad heading to China for a pre-season tour and, in a smart move by Kenny Dalglish, is giving him the opportunity to talk with teams definitely looking for help while he still holds good value.
The 28-year old reportedly, does not fit the owners’ policy of young talent with high resale value and they are willing to sell him off when his market value is on the up after an impreesive debut season with the Reds. The Portuguese international netted five times for Liverpool, including the solitary goal in the famous win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, and has established himself as a fan favourite at Anfield.
It will come as a shocker to most Liverpudlians that Meireles is being used as a scapegoat to fund other targets, when the coy Portuguese midfielder wore his shoes off for the team. But with Kenny and Comolli working on a pre-planned transfer strategy, Meireles’ affair with the Reds’ may soon end.
Stay tuned. More to follow…