PENNANT SIGNS FOUR YEAR ANFIELD DEAL Paul Eaton 26 July 2006 Liverpool have today completed the signing of Jermaine Pennant from Birmingham on a four year contract. The 23 year old right sided midfielder officially put pen to paper on his Anfield deal this afternoon after completing a medical. He will fly out to Switzerland to join up with his new team-mates at their week long training camp. Pennant's arrival marks the end of manager Rafael Benitez's long search to bring in a right winger and he could make his Reds' debut against Kaiserslautern this weekend. Pennant started his career with Notts County before moving to Arsenal for £2 million in 1999. He was unable to hold down a regular place in Arsene Wenger's first team and had loan spells with Watford, Leeds United and Birmingham before completing a permanent move to St Andrews last summer. He becomes Rafael Benitez's fifth signing of the summer following the arrivals of Craig Bellamy, Mark Gonzalez, Fabio Aurelio and Gabriel Paletta. Pennant will wear the number 16 shirt at Anfield. http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N152996060726-1727.htm
Finally! a real right winger...i rate this guy pretty highly, great ball delivery and can really get up and down the field. Now to see if him and bellamy can stay out of trouble.
Pennant and Bellamy should give the team a bit of an edge. Looking forward to seeing how it works out.
JERMAINE PENNANT TALKS TO LIVERPOOLFC.TV Paul Eaton 26 July 2006 Before flying out to join up with his new team-mates at their training camp in Switzerland, Jermaine Pennant spoke to Liverpoolfc.tv about his dream move to Anfield. Liverpoolfc.tv: Welcome to Liverpool, Jermaine, how happy are you to be here? Jermaine Pennant: I'm over the moon. I've dreamt about this since I was a little boy so to actually be here and to be able to wear a Liverpool shirt and play at Anfield is a dream come true. So you're a Liverpool fan.... Yes. My family have always supported Liverpool and I grew up watching videos of them on the television. My grandad and grandma came here in the seventies and I think Liverpool must have caught their eyes. The love of the club has spread through the family ever since. I actually got my first Liverpool kit when I was about four years of age. John Barnes was my idol when I first started watching Liverpool but then as I got older I loved Robbie Fowler. How did you feel when you first got told Rafa wanted to sign you? It was a great confidence boost for me but to actually be here today and see it happening is even more thrilling. I've heard all the speculation over the last few weeks and it has been frustrating to have to wait so long. I had to remain professional because I still had a job to do at Birmingham but as soon as I found out a fee had been agreed it was the best moment of my life. I always wanted to come to Liverpool. This is the only club I would have wanted to sign for. There's always a doubt in your mind as to whether or not it will happen because you don't know if the clubs will agree a transfer fee but I just stayed positive and believed it would happen for me. It was only yesterday when I found out the deal was on and that it was going to happen. I don't think it has sunk in yet and it probably won't until I'm out in Switzerland with the lads training in a Liverpool jersey. It's been well documented that the manager has been looking for a right sided player for a long time. You are now that man so what can the Liverpool fans expect from you? I want to do what I'm good at which is getting past players down the line and getting plenty of quality crosses into the box. The stats say you put 497 crosses into the box last season - more than any other Premiership player. With Peter Crouch and others to aim for, the right side could be productive for Liverpool this season... Crouchie is a great target man and of course I'll be looking to make the service into the box as good as possible. I'm sure he's looking forward to it as well. I just want to work hard and improve as much as I can to play an important role for the team. Pennant on Anfield move I always wanted to come to Liverpool. This is the only club I would have wanted to sign for. There's always a doubt in your mind as to whether or not it will happen because you don't know if the clubs will agree a transfer fee but I just stayed positive and believed it would happen for me. It was only yesterday when I found out the deal was on and that it was going to happen. This is obviously a step up for you from Birmingham, how confident are you that you can be a success here? I'm more than confident. My best will come at this club because I am playing alongside top quality players who will only help me develop my game. What are your thoughts on the current Liverpool team? Over the last couple of years they've done magnificently well and there have been more signings this summer who all look really good. Obviously the captain is there as the central point of the team and there are quality players all around him. I'm looking forward to making the most of this opportunity. Have you spoken with your new manager yet? I've only had a quick conversation with him on the telephone but I'll be meeting up with him in Switzerland later and I'm sure we'll talk a lot more. Things didn't work out for you at Arsenal but you're now back at a top club. Is this the level where you feel you belong? Yes, this is the best club in the country and the best club to be at so if I can't do it here then I won't be able to do it anywhere. I've still got a long career ahead of me because I'm still young, but hopefully I'll enjoy all my good times here. How do you reflect on your time at Arsenal when you look back now? I enjoyed it there and learnt a lot at Highbury. I'm grateful for what I got out of my time there, but I didn't feel I was getting a chance and so I moved on. I'm here now so I think everything happens for a reason. I've certainly got no regrets about leaving Arsenal. I'm ready for this new challenge at another top club now. I've played a lot of games in the Premiership and am definitely equipped to perform at this level. What's your fitness like at the moment? I feel great. We came back about a month ago at Birmingham and have been away on a pre-season tour. I'm probably about a week ahead of the other Liverpool players in terms of fitness. So you could make your debut against Kaiserslautern this weekend.. Yes, if I'm needed. I'm fit to play. The club have won major trophies in the last two seasons - did you watch the finals as a fan and cheer on the lads against AC Milan and West Ham? I was away in Mauritius with my girlfriend when the Champions League final was on and I watched it along with a load of other Liverpool fans on the big screen in my hotel. When we went 3-0 down I just went back to my room feeling really disappointed. A bit later I put the match on again and saw it was 3-3. I couldn't believe it and started jumping all over the bed. How big a dream is it of yours now to win medals as a Liverpool player? I've come here to be successful and it'd be a great feeling if I can win trophies as a Liverpool player. Are you hoping this move can enhance your international ambitions with England as well? Yes, definitely, and moving to Liverpool will only help me. Playing with players of the quality at this club can only be good for my career. I couldn't be more excited. http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N152998060726-1737.htm
Well, if him and Bellamy don't work out, at least we know the local pubs should see a nice increase in business.
this is true. i believe we will see some added effort from them for this reason. and i love the fact that they are both proven commodities in the premiership. I think that this further shows Rafa's priority this year.
That makes the lot of us. I wonder if there is a spot in the team for anyone off the board? Any heavy drinkers who have followed LFC since childhood looking for work?...
Hmmmm....it almost seems too perfect...him liking Liverpool ever since he was young ..... Well I sure hope Pennant and Bellamy work out. Surely he isn't starting is he?
it seems too perfect. pennant is unarguably the best cross maker in england. the statistic of succesful crosses is very high in yahoo! fantasy football last season and also maybe the previous season. his pace is significant or the reds. he's also provide freekicks and numbers of corner kicks. well, he's a complete right winger. he's so rarely try on target so i guess he never get the opportunity to score on the deadball, which we already have SG, XA and JAR. i hope if rafa still using crouch, he'll match the crosses pennant would deliver. i dont blame 199% on crouch, but if he can manage at least 1goal per 3chances, thats good enuff. use ur tall, when u're a tall guy... make sense, huh?
I'm excited about this signing. He perfectly fits the profile of what we needed from a right winger. Someone with enough ability to beat the fullback and who can also deliver a good cross. He is young, Premiership proven, and relatively inexpensive. If things work out, Pennant will be competing with Lennon for the right side of England's midfield. I don't know if he will be part of our regular first eleven, but he gives us the option of playing someone wide on the right. We haven't had that for a while now. He gives Rafa more "possibilities" and he will be an important player for us.
Stig's taste for aquavit never went over well with the lads. This looks a promising acquisition. Stig
I liked him a lot at Arsenal...but he was never going to get much playing time there. At Birmingham he was quite inconsistent but did show signs of his potential. I just hope Rafa can get the best out of him.
Best aquisition since Alonso, IMO. Totally what this team needed for both its width problems, adds pace and flair, and creates a legitimate crossing threat from midfield. Pennant led the PL in crosses. That's music to my ears. Walk on. I cant wait for this season to start.
Good signing I liked him when he was at birmingam he had what I liketo call light feet and he likes running into fullbacks. At liverpool we have had a hot head in cisse(something with wife) and pennant if I recall was driving without a lisence in an uninsured car DRUNK!!! I am pleased with rafa his signings are really good and we can challenge second spot if not first this time around.
yep he will work well with what we already have rafa has already stated he will be using a rotation system so i expect to see gerrard, garcia and pennant playing alot of games on the right hand side. Gerrard, alonso, sissoko and zenden to play a rotation system in the cm. Aslo kewell and gonzalez will play every other game. I thik that is rafas idea if you see he has 2 good players for each position. Making a class squad and players wont have to play every game.
how will u play now tho? 442? gerrard and sissoko in middle? what about alonso? whose on the left, rise again? what about that gonazalez dude who got a work permit?
He'd been banned for drink driving already when in the early hours he was soo out of it, he didn't spot his car was towing a lamp post that he'd just run into. Unfortunately for him, the police did. Oh, I say 'his car', he'd borrowed it from a friend, ( I think a spurs player, but I'm not sure). Concerned that he might get into trouble (bright bloke that he is), he pretended to be...Ashley Cole!
Benitez is smart. There are "many possibilities for sure"; 4-4-2, 3-1-3-1-2, 3-5-2, 4-3-3 are some. What is without doubt is that there will be squad rotation, although I expect Gerrard and Alonso will be almost permanent fixtures.
he does have alot of options, will be interesting with what happens to garcia and kewell playing time. you guys reckon crouch may find himself on the bench and they'll play bellamy all alone up top?
Pennants a good signing and i do think he will get his act together . The lad is a boyhood liverpool fan so thats a great start because he will play with some heart wearing the liverbird on his shirt. I do believe we have a championship team this year.
Ouch. I would prefer that he run at them, but if this is what he does at least it will provide some comic relief
I just hope they have all their nonsense put behind them, adn don't end up being replications of Stan Collymore...