LIVERPOOL confirmed this week that Manchester City centre-back Kolo Toure will join the club on a free transfer when his current contract runs out on July 1st.
The news, despite being common knowledge for the best part of a week now, has been met with an assorted reaction.
Some have suggested that his experience and lack of fee means it is a shrewd piece of business by Brendan Rodgers. However, on the other hand, some fans have expressed their disappointment that Liverpool have turned to a player that they consider to be ‘over the hill’.
With a reported wage of £75,000 a-week, a number of supporters have baulked at this figure and have suggested that somebody who they believe to be considered as back-up should not be rewarded with such a substantial salary.
To these people I would just like to ask for their patience and question their realistic expectations of the club in its current situation.
Sometimes I get the impression that a surprisingly high percentage of the club’s followers believe that we are in a position where we can throw money about in a similar fashion as the likes of Manchester City and PSG have done in recent years.
The sooner they come to terms with the tight-fisted approach of the owners, the better. Their initial approach of backing the manager with over-priced transfers clearly didn’t work and the change of attitude is one we unfortunately will have to deal with, until a) they change their minds (they won’t), or b) they leave.
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It is clear that Liverpool Football Club is in the midst of a defensive overhaul and with one of our greatest ever defenders leaving for nothing (retirement). It meant that it would not have been possible to replace Jamie Carragher with a big money signing and therefore it will be Martin Skrtel, who looks likely to leave, making way for, hopefully, one of Europe’s better defenders.
After a season of recruiting younger, promising players many fans spoke of the need for experienced heads to balance the equation. However, with our first summer signing being confirmed as a player that has captained two huge Premier League clubs (Manchester City and Arsenal) as well as an international team (Ivory Coast), those same supporters have now turned their attentions to complaining about the desire to get somebody in who is ‘a bit younger’. In other words, Rodgers can’t win.
As for his age, Kolo Toure is 32. The club has just come to the end of a season where a 35 year old has marshalled the defence superbly. This isn’t a suggestion that Kolo Toure is in the same league as Jamie Carragher, nevertheless, it is in indication that it is possible to get three full seasons out of a player that will cost us no transfer fee whatsoever and with the club no longer paying Carragher a wage, fans should not be concerned about how many 0’s are on his cheque.
Life would be so much easier for all those connected to Liverpool Football Club if 99% of its supporters concentrated on supporting the club and put to one side the constant agenda against Brendan Rodgers, the owners and those that run the club.
However, as we know, life isn’t easy. For those fans who love a good whinge, I have two words for you in connection with Kolo Toure – Craig Bellamy. Now he wasn’t bad was he? Believe. Support. Enjoy.
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he is a sicknote like william gallas. benchwarmer defenders are not going to excite fans who want the club to buy quality defenders for £15m upwards.
Stupid stupid article
It got nothing to do with whether people like Rodgers or not
Some fans may feel he is over the hill . So what ? Are we supposed to lovingly swoon over every player we bring in
Toure has been a bench warmer for 2 seasons …people are right to question his value
Me personally. I don’t think Liverpool should sign a person who has cheated with drugs EVER
Toure is not the sort of person I want to be a role model for my kids
There are plenty of reasons to question this signing. Stop writing nonsense
Hello ‘scouse ed’, nice to see you have used your real name before dishing out abuse. So cheers for that.
First off, for me, people use any of Rodgers’ signings as an excuse to berate him because they simply don’t like that he’s manager. That is my OPINION and funnily enough this is an OPINION piece.
Toure may well be a ‘bench warmer’ but he’s made enough appearances in a squad as strong as City’s to suggest that he would be adequate cover for a team that do not have anywhere near the strength in depth that City possess.
As for being a role model, each to their own with that one. I personally think it was an honest mistake but if you think he is a drugs cheat then that is your issue.
Sadly, it’s evident that you fall into the category of fan that believes Liverpool can afford to splash out tens of millions of pounds on every player they buy. Well, wake up call, they can’t. A free transfer in a position that we sorely need to cover should be praised. After all, many fans kicked off about the potential signing of Alex Pearce, so they should be pleased we went for Toure.
Anyway, enough of that. You have a lot to say for yourself so why don’t you try your hand at writing for the site? Since you know a lot, I’m sure our editor Jimmy would love to have you contribute.
Take care ‘scouse ed’, if that is your real name 😉
Of course it’s not my real name . What has that got to do with anything ? And why make such a drama out of it ?
You make presumptions about my opinions , as in your 5th paragraph. Making presumptions about someone you dont know is childish and stupid
I stand by what I said. If you knew the facts of the Toure case . You would not be so ignorant as to call it a ‘honest mistake’
I don’t know why you think it’s acceptable to pay someone you consider a squad player £75,000 a week. I’m not against the signing of Toure far from it, I believe he will be a valued member of our squad and bring in some much needed experience however I’m still baulking at £75,000 a week how often have these high wage demand free transfers worked out for us? Joe Cole, Voronin, jovanovic, Doni, Aurelio to name just a few!
It’s his obesity that concerns me. Suggests he no longer has the same ethic and will be skinned by any striker with half a yard.
I’ll even go a step further and say that if you welcome and embrace this signing then shame on you
If you welcome a drugs cheat into our club then you obviously are not aware , or are a believer in the values and traditions our club ‘should’ uphold
Do you work at Man City or Anfield? A backroom staff maybe? CIA? No? You seem pretty sure of the details of your so called ‘drug cheat’.
Read the articles on it. . You haven’t a clue
Lets not forget that even Sturridge did a fair bit of bench-warming before he came over.the fact. I am persuaded by the fact that there will be no transfer fee and I heard he’s taking a knock on his wages anyway. If there’s one place where experience counts, it’s at the back.
I’m a Liverpool supporter through and through and I honestly don’t mind someone like Toure coming into defense.
Liverpool FC are trying to build and mould the club back to its former glory and its evident that Brendan Rodgers is trying, with signings such as Sturridge and Coutinho (both of them not having much game time at their previous clubs at all). Toure will be wanting to play 1st team football as his career will soon draw to an end and Rodgers won’t allow him in a game if he doesn’t showcase the quality that he can truly provide, such an example would be Skrtel.
So as a Liverpool fan, I’m backing this deal as it brings an experienced PL defender with no transfer fee and as we all hope, will be a part of the the progress of Liverpool FC. YNWA.
Progress ? There ain’t no progress
some people will never be happy. slag lucas slag stevie toure has not kicked a ball yet. suppose we should sell suarez for being a racist or a cannibal . no one is perfect give the team support not shit . half the people on here have never seen the sky over anfield.get to the match and support the reds .let rogers pick the team and get behind them rogers will sink or swim by his selections .all the moaning wont change *.come on you mighty reds .ynwa.
Before i’lld say anyfin, i’lld so much lyk 2 say “Nice article Elliot”..its quite ridiculos that peeps dat dont think find it easy 2 air their oafish opinion so quickly… I tink som1 wit a functionin brain would see dat Kolo
* would be 1 to offer much due to his vast experience
* does his job from d heart & is always harry-ing & puffing coz he has a winnin spirit unlike our beloved Agger & Skrtel
* is a product of 2 previos epl team wich speaks well 4 a suspicios l’pul defence
* is a gamble worth takin since no fee is involved..@list we as supporters neva killed ourselves wen konchesky was signed& he flopped
* is 32 & Carra retired @ 35, displacin a much younga, error-prone skrtel…wich mins defenders tend 2 pafom well @ dis stage…i tink its all about commitment..Maldini, Ferdinand,etc..
And as regads d role-model stuff bin comented about by Ed Scouse, i personally tink u cant judge any 1 based on their personal lyf & subsequently attach their short-comins 2 kids learnin frm dem or not..if we talk role-models, den who’s fit to be ?? Roony, Giggs, Bale ?? C’mon man…grow up…u’re not d only 1 feelin d pain of l’pul nt competin @ d highest level…but we as fans all nid 2 go thru dis slow painful process of rebuilding… Toure is a shrewd signin dat our defence is bound 2 learn from even if its only bin positionally alert…YNWA
Oh like we r expected to be excited bout a 32 yr old city reserve. Get real u cabbage
Then don’t!!!!! WE WILL!
Child
Scouse ed,
Your comment of allowing a drug cheat is very stupid and juvenile as firstly his wife drugged his drink not him and secondly our team contains a man who used racist words (aka a racist) and who bits other players?? Great role model for your kids but we all love Suarez.
Also toure was a spearhead in the invincible arsenal team and is just an average player that we are getting for free………. No problem
Therefore your comment are very funny so keep writing comments
How can you write such an ignorant comment . You have internet access.
Surely you can look up the information before posting your childish ignorant comments
“his wife drugged him ” ha ha ha ha . Kop on kid
Toure knowingly took his wifes non prescribed slimming tablets . He even admitted that.
Look it you plank . All I can say is ha ha ha ha . You are so silly
ha ha . You just made a t*t out of yourself
“Wife drugged his drink” lmfao…..How gullible are you?….lol..that’s a laughable excuse, And the fact you call Suarez a “Racist” proves what an idiot you really are, sod off bk to Chelsea…fanboy.
Some fans are really stupid. U neva support anytin, wel shame on u. I jst tnk god dat u aint d manager. He has done wat he felt dat was right u can go ahead and hug d transformer.
You ungreatful Liverpool fans are never happy, just like Arsenal and United fans you have let your success go to your heads and think your above others. Kolo Toure has just come off a season where he deputised for a far better defender than Carragher ala Vincent Kompany and it wasn’t Liverpool second in the league to my knowledge, Kolo may have lost a bit of pace due to age but he is still better than a past it Carragher.
You ungreatful Pool fans don’t deserve Kolo Toure, he had a great season for us and still has a lot to give and lets face facts, your club can’t afford a young defender who would bench Kolo Toure.
Wake up, your club are no longer a Champions League club, that is until you break back into the top 4. Don’t get me wrong because I want you back there if only to win one more title and stick it to the rags, then you’re free to get relegated if you like.
BTW I’m talking to the ones complaining, not the ones with intelligence.
Ha ha . Some Liverpool fan pretending to be city fan . Funny
So the ones who agree with you are the intelligent ones?….lol..muppet, Goebbels would be proud.
IF HE IS DAT GOOD WHY DID YOU GUYZ LET HIM GO …..FOR FREEE? DONT BLAME THOUGH NO THANKS TO RODGERS FOR GIVING YOU THE MOUTH TO INSULT US…I CAN STILL REMEMBER LAMPARD, GERRARD, CARRAGER GETTING CONTRACTS AT SAME AGE AT THEIR RESPECTIVE CLUBS. AND IF WE DONT HAVE THE PLAYERS WHY DID YOU GUYZ TRY TO SIGN AGGER THE PAST SUMMER?
NOW I HAVE TWO WORDS FOR YOU IN CONNECTION WITH KOLO TOURE- CRAIG BELLAMY………… what part of your brain did such comparison emanate from? …….. ITS your type that aids in plunging this great club into castastrophe and after that speak with both sides of their mouth nd elope to other clubs.
I think what he means is that even at the age of 32 (speaking slowly) good….players……can….still……kick…..ASS!!!
You….are …..a …..idiot (speaking even slower)
IF HE IS DAT GOOD WHY DID YOU GUYZ LET HIM GO …..FOR FREEE? DONT BLAME THOUGH NO THANKS TO RODGERS FOR GIVING YOU THE MOUTH TO INSULT US…I CAN STILL REMEMBER LAMPARD, GERRARD, CARRAGER GETTING CONTRACTS AT SAME AGE AT THEIR RESPECTIVE CLUBS. AND IF WE DONT HAVE THE PLAYERS WHY DID YOU GUYZ TRY TO SIGN AGGER THE PAST SUMMER?
Can’t you make your own assessment about a player and not what other clubs think? That’s a start for you! Think Sturridge think Coutinho…… undervalued at their previous clubs ? Yes sir!
THINK CARROL, DOWNING, ALLEN, CHARLIE ADAM OVER RATED AT THEIR PREVIOUS CLUBS
Dawnga. Are you really this stupid ? I’ve asked before ,, but – are you 12 ? I’ve never seen such a poor understanding of football
Typical plastic Liverpool fan. Toure is a better player than Carragher. Get used to being a mid table team because thats all your club is now. Have a nice day y’all!
as for belamy nd kolo-hmmm- i aony be surprised if you compare alonso to carrol or allen to fowler
WONT = aony
Just because some fans don’t get excited bout a 30 plus city reject , doesn’t mean there is agenda
Danny Wilson is better dan dat scrap Kolo, even sama is better, d owner only spent big in only 1 summer transfer nd dy seems to complain, do they think u just make profit afta each input into an investment? Spend big unless u ll be in d same league as everton, swans, fulham nd westbrom wich come next season…. FSG tu gready.
Wilson isn’t close to Toure. The boy is a good passer and comfortable on the ball but awful one on one, repeatedly loses his headers and gets caught out of position. I like Sama too but he needs to continue to develop. Kelly is the one who we need to give more game time at centre back.
You lost me at Danny Wilson….
sumtime there is
I’m not overjoyed by toure transfer , does that make me a bad fan ? This is a pointless self-righteous piece
No it just makes you a typical plastic.
Lol. What a childish fool u are
Your name shows that you are a clueless idiot.
Kolo toure has expire lfc nid young experience defender