Mascherano received a firm promise 12 months ago
that he would be allowed to leave this summer
The genial smile was never far away, but mention of
Javier Mascherano's future brought a sharp reminder that Roy
Hodgson is not to be trifled with in his role as
Liverpool manager.
Mascherano received a firm promise 12 months ago that he would
be allowed to leave this summer, provided he knuckled down last
season, and is now pressing Liverpool to keep their word. But if he
goes, says Hodgson, it will be on the club's terms, not the
player's.
If there remains uncertainty over the £25million-rated
midfielder's future - with Barcelona evidently cooling their
interest and Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti prepared to pay
no more than £15m - there could be no ambiguity over Hodgson's
assessment of the situation and insistence there would be no
cut-price deal to facilitate his departure.
While understanding Mascherano's reasons for wanting a move, the
former Fulham boss made it clear his sympathy stretched only so far
and that his conditions for any transfer were not up for
negotiation.
Revealing the steely side to his normally affable nature, he
stressed that a calf strain was the only reason for the player's
absence against Trabzonspor in tonight's Europa League play-off
first leg at Anfield.
Having a ball: Jamie Carrager and Steven Gerrard in
training
Doubtful: Torres may not start
Should he recover in time, he will be considered for
selection in Turkey next Thursday, even though it would cast a
further shadow over his hopes of a move by making him ineligible
for the Champions League until the knock-out stages next
year.
Brushing aside any fears that a brooding Mascherano may allow
his discontent to spill on to the pitch, Hodgson confirmed the
Argentina skipper had been offered a new four-year contract,
thought to be worth close on £100,000 a week, and added he would
make him see out the two years left on his current deal, rather
than let him go on the cheap.
'If an offer comes in that is commensurate with his
value, that is one thing, but Javier does not expect us simply to
allow him to walk out of here,' said Hodgson, who is considering
resting skipper Steven Gerrard tonight.
'In an ideal world, I would not even be entertaining the idea of
listening to any offers, regardless of the amount. It is only
because of the promise made to him, amid all the interest from
Barcelona a year ago, that we have been prepared to go this far.
The fact is, he lives alone in Liverpool, because his wife never
settled, so it would benefit him and his family if he moved to
another country.
'But he's the best in the world at what he does, so a club have
to make an offer that reflects his status. If that happened, and we
reneged on our promise, we would have an unhappy player on our
hands. But we won't have an unhappy player if there is no offer or
only one that is ludicrously below what he, I and the whole world
know he is worth. So far, there has been no offer whatsoever.
'That is how things stand, and I would have had no qualms about
playing him tomorrow, had he been fit. There has been no pressure
to avoid making him cup-tied. He has a new contract offer from us,
and I'll be delighted if he decides to sign it. If not, I'll be
quite happy to work with him for the next two years, and if he
walks away, then so be it.'
Inter's former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez is believed to be
back on the trail of Dirk Kuyt but was given short shrift by
Hodgson, who said bluntly: 'He is not for sale.'
Just 48 hours after Tottenham struggled in the Champions League
against Young Boys in Berne, Switzerland, Hodgson warned English
football's dominance in Europe was facing another stern test
against a Trabzonspor side with six Turkish titles and eight cups
to their name.
'The draw was particularly unkind to us in pairing us with the
strongest of the unseeded sides,' he said. 'They play in a very
competitive league in Turkey and have an excellent record in
Europe, so we know what we are up against.'
Hodgson confirmed his interest in PSV Eindhoven's Sweden striker
Ola Toivonen as he weighed up the claims of striker Fernando Torres
and new signing Christian Poulsen for starting places tonight.
'We have watched him (Toivonen) but I can't give you any further
indication,' he said. 'Torres is very keen to start, but I haven't
decided yet. I don't know if he is up to two games in four days, so
we have to be mindful of facing Manchester City on Monday.
'As for Poulsen, he had a pre-season with Juventus and is
physically fit. It's his match fitness that is the question.
