wtf is Benitez doing? Barry isnt a patch on Mascherano or Alonso, another Crouch, Pennant buy, he'll ship him out in a season or two.

Barry is a very good player and can play left back as well due to his versitality he would be a very astute siging.....

For someone like Spurs he might be but I thought Liverpool had ambition? Dont you as fans want win the league one day?

Well newsflash you aint gonna do it while Benitez keeps setting his sights this low.

So Liverpool make the first 'initial' bid (quite low in my opinion, money wise; but with players in exchange it levels out a bit). Arsenal will probably be in shortly as Wenger had previously contacted Villa asking them to keep him in the loop of any bids. But knowing how Arsenal operate, we probably won't know till a contract is signed for one or the other.

torres99: Flamini is off to Milan. There have been rumors that he has already told the team that he has chosen Milan. It's not 100% fact, but the fact that the deadline Arsenal and Wenger set forth for Flamini to put a signature on the contract has passed leads me to believe it's quite accurate.

I'd hope if we signed him he'd play left-back really, rather than replace Alonso (or even play on the left-wing). It's a position he's very capable in and one we have sorely lacked in for a long while.

He has enough ability, both defensively and creatively, with very good passing, as well as being a leader - something that appeals to me greatly. We need more strong characters like that. He also adds terrific cover and depth to the central midfield positions. Not to mention that he's a sound free-kick and corner-kick taker (something i feel we need, someone aside from Gerrard). The only qualm you could really summon is his lack of pace.

O'Neill sure looks p*ssed off about all this.

All this talk about Barry playing LB at Liverpool ... Yes it's correct that the man can play at LB as I stated in the first post, but I don't believe he'll be happy playing in that position day in and day out. Playing in that position for a game or two as cover due to injuries I could see, but every game, I doubt he'll be thrilled with it. He's worked too hard throughout his career to get to where he is now and solidify his preferred position which is obviously in the middle as a holding midfielder. I can't see him throwing all that away with a blink of an eye.

Also if he were to play LB at Liverpool, what would that do to his England career where he's solidified himself as a candidate to partner Gerrard in the middle for the next few years.

That he is. And I don't blame the man really. £10 and Crouch for Barry. Hardly a good deal for Villa who are stacked up front with bright young talent.

Well if you guys want him then good luck, no skin off my nose if you dont progress in the league next season infact id prefer it, will make you easier to catch

I just think you should be aiming higher and in different positions.



Now i dont follow Arsenal THAT closely, they bore me really but even I can see Wenger will not ever buy Gareth Barry unless there is a major u-turn in everything hes done at Arsenal up to this point.

He wants players that fit into his style, which is why he prefers not to buy established players. He wants kids or talented professionals that he can teach the push and run style too from day one so everyone in the squad can slot into the team seamlessly.

Barry is about as far from that kind of player as I can imagine.

Well translated into money, that's well over the odds for Barry. Crouch himself is worth easily over £10million (closer to £15million if you look at other English players' sales).

I agree that Wenger will have to change his philosophy in order to completely go for Barry. But it's not out of the question.

As of yesterday, there were a few players that you wouldn't expect that are on Arsenal's radar. GK Robert Green, MF Gareth Barry and MF Michael Johnson. 3 players you wouldn't really think Wenger would sign. (beyond the 'he wouldn't sign an English player' mubo jumbo crap) However; going another year without a trophy, Wenger realises he needs to venture out a bit to complete the squad. What helps Barry is that he's very versatile and able to play multiple positions when called upon which is exactly what Wenger likes. But of course, if a bidding war was to ensue with Liverpool and/or Chelsea, Wenger will definitely back away.

Translated into money, yes. But Villa are not in need of a striker. That's probably the last thing on their minds right now. They've scored 69 goals this season which puts them 3rd behind United and Arsenal.

hmmm no not convinced even by your evidence of these supposed players on Arsenals 'radar' of the complete change of direction by this very stubborn man.

Wenger will not sing Barry, or Green and i dont know enough about Johnson to say him too but im willing to wager all three wont get close to an Arsenal shirt next season.

Stubborn or not, he won't overpay for any player regardless if the player is English, French, Spanish or an alien from some far out galaxy.

It's not his fault that English players are severely overpriced, especially when one can find someone elsewhere with equal quality for half the price.

He's not going to make a complete 180 degree turn on his philosophies, that would be total suicide considering his success with what he does. But this doesn't mean he won't stray away from it to sign a player here or there to complete the squad. He's already stated he's going to sign 1 or 2 established players. That alone is him straying a little to the right or left of his philosophy.

Im not saying anything about Barry being English as a reason, thats your baggage in this discussion mate, all ive said is he is exactly the type of player Wenger will not sign IMO, but we'll see.

Wenger has asked Villa to keep him in the loop with any developments with Barry and a possible move. That to me tells me that he's got an eye on Barry. And will sign him if the opportunity and the right price is there. Obviously, whether it happens or not is still to be determined. And the key factor is still Flamini. If Flamini does happen to resign (as slight as it is currently), you can throw all this Barry talk into the trash bin.

As for your reasons as to why Wenger would never sign Barry. I don't really see the argument.

He wants players that fit into his style, which is why he prefers not to buy established players.
Your right, Wenger has a specific style he wants to play, and brings in players that can play that way. But why would Barry not fit into his style? Villa play a similar attacking style, granted not as smooth, but they play attacking football. As for the established players part, as previously stated, Wenger said he's going to buy 1 or 2 established players (who they will be, no one knows).

He wants kids or talented professionals that he can teach the push and run style too from day one so everyone in the squad can slot into the team seamlessly.
You're right, he likes to bring in kids so he can mold them into the player that he wants. For the talented professional part, do you not think that Barry is a talented professional? Barry still has room to grow in his game to become a better player, so there's still room for Wenger to teach him a thing or two to incorporate into the Arsenal squad.

In my opinion, Barry could fit in easily in the role that Flamini played. As a holding midfielder protecting Fabregas. Barry has the quality and vision in passing to succeed in Wenger's style (as he's already proved it with Villa this year).

How is gareth barry setting your sights low if signed he will be a great squad player and only make the team stronger

I think the point Jono is making is that if Liverpool want to realistically challenge for the EPL title next season then they need world class players to enable them to compete with the likes of Man Utd, Chelsea and Arsenal. Gareth Barry is definitely not in that category.

To be honest, thinking about it, i seriously doubt Crouch will have been offered to Villa. Rafa is still angling for him to sign a new contract, and i don't think he'd be let go so easily.

My thinking is that Riise (£4m) and Carson (£6m) could be the proposed players to head in Villa's direction.

Your missing my point Gareth Barry is a good player and signing him will only strengthen the squad will it not