Liverpool FC verbally agree deal for Javier Mascherano

Feb 1 2008 by Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

JAVIER MASCHERANO’S permanent transfer moved a step nearer yesterday when Liverpool verbally agreed a deal to sign the Argentina international.

Club officials met with representatives of the player to thrash out the terms over a package for the 23-year-old midfielder.

The player’s agent Kia Joorabchian, whose Media Sports Investment company own the rights for Mascherano, was on Merseyside to negotiate an £18.6m transfer.

That valuation includes the £1.6m Liverpool have already paid to take Mascherano on an initial 18-month loan, which is due to expire at the end of the season.

The deal, which will see Mascherano commit his future to Anfield until 2012, did not have to be completed before last night’s transfer window closed and is expected to be signed next week.

The overall fee matches the £18.6m Manchester United splashed out to sign another defensive midfielder, Michael Carrick, from West Ham United in 2006.

Meanwhile, Jamie Carragher has called on the “big characters” in Liverpool’s dressing room to stand up and be counted

Rafael Benitez’s side have slipped out of the Champions League qualification places and down to seventh after a run of just four points from five games.

The Anfield outfit stand three points behind fourth-placed Everton, albeit with a game in hand on their neighbours.

However, Liverpool have found victories hard to come by in the top flight this calendar year with their last win coming at rock-bottom Derby County on Boxing Day.

And after their gloom deepened with an injury-time defeat at West Ham United on Wednesday night, centre-back Carragher believes the time has come for Liverpool’s senior players to accept

their responsibilities.

“The big characters in the dressing room have got to try to help everyone, but we just need a couple of results to get the confidence,” said the 30-year-old. “At the moment, the confidence isn’t quite there, we’re not quite at our best.

“Playing for a big club, you expect to get criticism. That’s part and parcel of the game, we’ve got no complaints about that.

“Our target now is fourth place, we have to be realistic about it. We’re out of the title race, we know that. We’re doing okay in the cups, but we’ve got to sort the league out.”

Carragher revealed Liverpool’s players were “devastated” at the nature of their Upton Park loss but were spared the wrath of Benitez afterwards.

“It’s not the manager’s style to b-----k people,” he said. “He’ll probably analyse the game and we’ll have a chat about it. But he was just very disappointed to lose the game with the last kick.

“Everybody was devastated at the end because to lose a goal that late is a sickening blow.”

Wednesday’s defeat means Liverpool now stand a massive 17 points adrift of leaders Manchester United and Arsenal.

And asked if the title could come to Anfield this season, Carragher said: “No, we’re going for fourth place. There’s no doubt about that.

“Everton are playing well now and there’s other teams there – Villa, Manchester City and Blackburn could be coming up. We’ve got to sort it out very quick, otherwise that’s going to be in danger as well.”

It was Carragher who conceded the penalty in the final seconds of injury time that allowed Mark Noble to fire West Ham to victory on Wednesday.

The Liverpool man felled Freddie Ljungberg in the box, and he said: “I would have to see it again, but I dived in. He had a good chance to get a shot in, but, with it being on his weak foot, maybe I shouldn’t have dived in quite so soon.

“Overall we didn’t play great, but I wouldn’t say it was a bad performance. It was one of them where it was pretty even-Steven and it could have gone either way. We needed the bit of luck West Ham got at the end.

“At the moment, obviously, the confidence isn’t great and we’re not playing as well as we can. We realise that, we’re not stupid. A draw wouldn’t have been that bad, but we’ve got to move on now.

“We should be doing a lot better, but we’ve just got to try to get through this period and come out the other side.”

Meanwhile, Liverpool have sold young defender Lee Peltier to Yeovil Town.

The 20-year-old, who played four times for the first team, has been on loan at the Coca-Cola League One outfit since the start of the season.