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Liverpool's owners, George Gillett and Tom Hicks, have
risked sparking another internal feud at Anfield by refusing to
back Rafael Benítez's judgment on the £18m transfer of Gareth
Barry. The farcical transfer saga was close to collapse last night,
with the England international considering re-committing his future
to Aston Villa and the Liverpool manager admitting the deal was in
doubt but claiming: "It is not a question of money."
The American co-owners have refused to sanction a short-term
loan for Benítez to complete the Barry deal despite previously
meeting the £18m asking price but missing a deadline set by the
Midlanders by minutes. Gillett's and Hicks' stance will raise
doubts over their ability to finance a new stadium for Liverpool
but it is reservations over Barry's transfer, not a lack of
resources, that has threatened the move and their relationship with
Benítez.
Benítez expected the Barry deal to go through earlier this week
after the player and his agent, Alex Black, demanded the move and
O'Neill gave Liverpool "all the time in the world" to return with
the £18m Hicks and Gillett pledged last month. Since then, however,
the Americans have expressed doubts over Barry's valuation, the low
resale value of a player who will be 31 at the end of his proposed
four-year contract and particularly the need to sign the central
midfielder with Xabi Alonso still at the club.
Those doubts were aired by Liverpool supporters during last
night's 1-0 friendly win over Lazio, as they chanted Alonso's name
throughout and barracked Barry's proposed arrival, but Benítez
refused to concede defeat in his summer-long pursuit after the
game. "We have not been able to bring in Barry but it is not a
question of money, I don't know what it is," the Liverpool manager
said.
"We need to improve if we can and I think we need another
player, because clearly we have problems on the left. I have sold
[John Arne] Riise, [Harry] Kewell has gone, [Fabio] Aurelio is
injured and [Sebastián] Leto didn't get a work permit, so we need
another left-sided player. I cannot say now who that will be but
Barry can fill that position and play in others, too. The rules
will say we need four English and four associated players and Barry
is English, who can play in three different positions, but I cannot
say any more. All I can say is I will try my best but I don't know
too much why we haven't signed Barry."
While Benítez could yet raise the money to sign Barry by selling
Alonso or off-loading both Jermaine Pennant and Andriy Voronin, the
Villa captain is losing patience and wants his future clarified
before the start of the new season. Having provoked the wrath of
O'Neill and Villa supporters by publicly pressing for the move,
Barry has since been left in limbo by Liverpool and is prepared to
stay put if the saga drags into next week.
