As Inter Milan prepare their first bid for unsettled Liverpool
midfielder Javier Mascherano, manager Roy Hodgson has stepped up
the search for his replacement.
The Liverpool boss was due to watch Standard Liege midfielder
Steven Defour in Belgium last night and is considering a £10million
bid for a player who is also a target for Manchester United.
Old acquaintances: Defour (L) tussles with Gerrard
during Champions League clash in 2008
So keen are United on the 22-year-old Belgium international that
manager Sir Alex Ferguson wrote him a letter of encouragement when
he broke his foot last year and has since kept an eye on his
year-long recovery.
With Mascherano expressing his desire to leave Anfield, Hodgson
and the Liverpool board will not stand in his way but they are
determined not to sell him on the cheap to former boss Rafael
Benitez.
Injury boost: Sir Alex sent this letter to Defour
last year
The Spaniard and his new employers are prepare for a long fight
for the Argentina captain, valued at £25m by Liverpool, and are
ready to offer former Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari as part
of their first offer this week.
But the Ghana international, a virtual ever-present at Inter
under Jose Mourinho, is unlikely to want to quit the San Siro,
while Hodgson has his eyes on other options in any case.
Aston Villa’s Stiliyan Petrov is on his radar, along with
Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen.
Another option for Hodgson is to redeploy Brazil midfielder
Lucas Leiva, who was recalled for his country this week by new
coach Mano Menezes.
Head and shoulders above: Leiva has impressed
during Liverpool's pre-season
He has been captain in Steven Gerrard’s absence for all three
games of Hodgson’s tenure, including Thursday’s Europa League
triumph in Macedonia.
While Hodgson looks at alternatives to Mascherano, Lucas says he
is ready to step into his shoes and fight for the right to keep the
position over the coming season.
Lucas said: ‘Of course we all hope Javier stays because he is
such a good player but we’ll just have to wait and see over
that.
‘I’m not the same player as Javier, we have different styles,
but I am ready to play and to impress and do whatever job the
manager needs from me.
‘I think I did well last season but I think in this one I can do
even better wherever I play. I know I am able to play the role
Javier does because last season I played a few games when he was at
right back.
‘I’ve got no problem with doing that job - I know I can do it if
that is what the manager wants.’
Lucas will hand over the armband when Gerrard returns to the
side. England’s World Cup skipper is expected to play at least 45
minutes in a friendly against Borussia Moenchengladbach in Germany
tomorrow, along with Joe Cole, Jamie Carragher and Glen
Johnson.
It has taken Lucas some time to be accepted at Anfield but his
solid start to preseason has not gone unnoticed by Hodgson, who has
only worked with a threadbare squad so far.
Lucas added: ‘I know there are a lot of senior players in front
of me but I hope I did a good job and that I can stay in the team
as well.
‘If everyone’s back for the second leg I’m sure we will be even
better. There is a lot of competition for places, but that can only
be good for Liverpool and what we want to do this season.
‘We are expecting positive things this season. We’ve got good
players who have come, others who are to come back, and hopefully
this year will be a lot better than last.’
Meanwhile, UEFA have confirmed they are to investigate claims of
racist chants against Liverpool players in Thursday’s 2-0 win over
FK Rabotnicki.
