Benitez urges Alonso to remain with Liverpool
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Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has urged Xabi Alonso to stay with the club as he continues to be linked with a move to Real Madrid.
Alonso is interested in joining Real Madrid
The Spain international has already suggested that he is flattered by the interest from the Bernabeu and would consider a move back to La Liga. But Benitez is desperate for the 27-year-old to remain at Anfield.
Just 12 months ago Alonso was very much available for transfer as Benitez looked to bring in Gareth Barry. But with the former Aston Villa midfielder now at Manchester City, there is no suggestion Liverpool are ready to entertain any bids.
However, Real show no sign of abandoning their pursuit and with the player clearly suggesting he would be willing to start talks it will be difficult for the Reds to hold off the Spanish side and their new-found wealth.
"I talked to Xabi yesterday [Friday] and told him, as he can see here, that the fans love him and I said to him, 'maybe you have to stay," Benitez said.
"You can see he is a really good player and I'll be really pleased if he stays. All the players and his team-mates want him to stay. If we keep Xabi I will be very pleased."
Benitez has also said he believes Javier Mascherano will still be at the club.
"More or less it's the same situation. He knows our ideas, he worked hard in Thailand and he had the armband, so he knows he is important to the club," Benitez said to ESPN.
And he had a little dig at the media too.
"You have to know that nowadays, there are too many media people who have to complete their work every day. So sometimes you read news that is 15 days ago," he explained. -
Weekend deadline for Xabi
LIVERPOOL - Rafael Benitez has told Xabi Alonso that he wants the midfielder's future to be resolved before the weekend. The Liverpool boss says Madrid must now make an acceptable offer close to his £30-million ($71-mil-lion) valuation or back off.
Alonso flew into Madrid last night en route to San Sebastian in northern Spain after Benitez gave the squad three days off following their Asian tour which included a stop Singapore.
Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa, meanwhile, told Spanish daily Marca his move to Real was "close to being completed" in the next few days. Reports suggest the 26-year-old has already agreed personal terms with his former club and that Liverpool have accepted a bid of around £3.5 million.THE GUARDIAN
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Torres: Xabi would be a ''serious loss'' to Liverpool
Striker Fernando Torres has insisted it would be ''a serious loss to Liverpool'' if Xabi Alonso completed a move to Real Madrid.
The Spanish giants' pursuit of the Liverpool midfielder is set to come to a head with Reds manager Rafael Benitez keen for the Spain international's future to be cleared up before his squad reassemble following a three-day break.
It is believed Benitez has threatened to pull the plug on negotiations if Madrid do not meet his £30m valuation of the player before the weekend - and Torres is hoping his compatriot stays with the club.
The striker said: ''It would be a bad piece of work if Xabi left - he plays his cards close to his chest so I don't know what is going to happen.
''I'd put Xabi's own wishes ahead of everything else, of course, but he's got three years left on his contract with us and I'd love it if he stays.
''It would be a serious loss for Liverpool if he left this summer.''
Torres' views are in stark contrast to former Reds goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, who claimed a move to Real Madrid would represent a ''dream come true'' for Alonso.
Dudek, now the back-up goalkeeper to Iker Casillas at the Bernabeu, said: ''He is Spanish and all the Spanish guys want to play for Real Madrid.
''This is a dream come true for them and Xabi knows that he's not the only one.'' -
Alonso hands in Liverpool transfer request - report
Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso has handed in a transfer request at Anfield to try and force the pace of his move to Real Madrid.
Alonso: Which way to the Bernabeu?
The former Real Socieded star flew back from Spain on Thursday after a short break, determined to secure his move to La Liga.
A club source has confirmed Alonso handed in a written transfer request, having only previously told Rafa Benitez verbally that he wanted out of Anfield.
Liverpool have refused to budge from an asking price for Alonso in the region of £30m, which has stalled any potential move to the Bernabeu, but his transfer request, coupled with an upped offer from Madrid, may secure the deal.
Benitez spent Liverpool's tour of the Far East trying to convinve Alonso to stay but it appears to have failed.
Since Real's first bid of around £24m, both parties have been engaged in a war of words over the deal, with Real president Florentino Perez maintaining that Liverpool's valuation was much too high.
Alonso was unsettled last summer as Benitez tried to sell him on to raise funds to make a bid for Gareth Barry.
Now it seems he has his heart set on a move to the Bernabeu and is ready to end his five-year stay at Anfield. -
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