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Fernando Torres is not one of the most popular former players among Liverpool fans due to his deadline day transfer to Chelsea for £50m in January 2011, but former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez has revealed how he played a huge part in the signing of Raheem Sterling.

The 19-year-old Englishman is widely considered to be one of the most promising young players in Europe at the moment, but current Napoli boss Benitez has revealed that he is part of the squad thanks to a recommendation from Torres, both of whom were at Liverpool at the time.

“We invited Raheem to Melwood and had a meeting with him and his mother,” Benitez said.

“I walked around the complex with them and was showing them the facilities and we got as far as the physio’s room.

“Fernando was there – and I think Steven Gerrard, too. But definitely Fernando. I explained what Raheem and his mum were doing and I told Fernando what we thought of the young player we had brought in. He had a quick chat with him, asking how he was getting on. He was interested in him.

“Raheem was really pleased – and you could see his mum was, too – really impressed that the club’s biggest players had made a fuss of him,.”

Sterling went on to sign for Liverpool from QPR for a price of £600,000 that could rise to £5m depending on how many first team appearances he makes.

Since that day, the Englishman has gone on to already become a fan favourite at Anfield, making 65 Premier League appearances, scoring 14 goals and providing 14 assists. This isn’t close to matching what Torres did during his time at the club, (he scored 65 goals from 102 Premier League appearances) but it’s a start.

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With three goals already from five Premier League appearances this season, I think it’s safe to say Liverpool has a future great on their hands – the problem is, they may have to thank one player who they love to hate for it.

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Liverpool have made an approach for Chelsea’s Daniel Sturridge but the player reportedly wants certain guarantees from the club before he is willing to move, according the Mirror.

The Chelsea forward is demanding £80,000 a week from Liverpool if he is to join in January while also insisting that he must play as a striker through the middle.

The Reds have been interested in signing him since the summer and after checking the strikers availability following Chelsea’s appointment of new manager Rafa Benitez, they looked set to follow up their interest.

However there is a feeling at Anfield that Sturridge hasn’t done enough over the last year to justify his demands, scoring just five times for the European Champions since last December.

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Liverpool have spent big on young English talent in recent years without seeing the results they had hoped for. Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson, and Stewart Downing who Anfield legend Kenny Dalglish brought to the club in his most recent time in charge are examples of such players who have failed to deliver.

The Red’s have also been linked with moves for the likes of Arsenal’s Theo Walcott and Blackpool’s Thomas Ince in the January transfer window in a bid for manager Brendan Rodgers to bolster his squad.

Leeds fans are all saying the same thing after Luke Ayling tweeted about their brutal opening fixtures, begging the defender to bring Kyle Bartley to the club.

Bartley was a hugely popular figure during his loan spell at Elland Road, and the Swansea defender has been heavily linked with a permanent move.

The Leeds defence is a completely different prospect with both Ayling and Bartley, as the Swansea man’s departure coincided with an injury to Ayling.

New manager Marcelo Bielsa usually opts for three at the back, so having both players back there with Pontus Jansson could be a formidable force.

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Of course, this all implies Bartley actually joins, and fans are begging Ayling to make it happen.

The 26 year-old fan favourite tweeted his excitement about the club’s brutal opening fixtures, as Bielsa will open his Championship account with games against Stoke and Derby County.

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“Juicy start to the season,” said the defender, and fans are hoping Bartley is right there alongside him for it.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Manchester United stunned the Premier League when they swooped under Manchester City’s nose to snatch Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal.

The Chile international had been heavily tipped to join Pep Guardiola’s side, but in the end, he left the Gunners to sign for Jose Mourinho’s team.

The 29-year-old was one of Arsenal’s key players during a three-and-a-half-year spell at the Emirates.

During his time at the club, Sanchez netted 60 Premier League goals, and even though the attacker has only been at United for a few weeks, questions have been raised about his form.

The former Barcelona star has made eight appearances in all competitions, and in that process has netted once.

The main issue at the moment is positioning, with many fans questioning why the attacker has been placed on the left of a midfield three.

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Sanchez was one of the under-performers in Wednesday night’s goalless draw with Sevilla in the first leg of their last-16 tie in the Champions League.

Now, United fans have been discussing the predicament surrounding the Chilean.

Morgan Schneiderlin has confessed that he could well be playing for Tottenham or Arsenal now if Southampton hadn’t blocked his wishes for a move.

The France international was expected to be one of the Saints’ high profile evacuees over the summer, with the north London duo having pushed hard to lure him away from the South Coast in what was a busy summer for the Saints.

Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Rickie Lambert, Luke Shaw and Calum Chambers all left St Mary’s Stadium, which led to talk that Schneiderlin would follow them deep into the transfer window.

WANT MORE? >> Arsenal transfer news | Tottenham transfer news

But Southampton held firm to keep their midfield ace by slapping a £27m valuation on him, and despite reported bids from Spurs the 24-year-old is still plying his trade in Hampshire.

Schneiderlin admits that he was disappointed to not have been granted his wish for a move, but that he is fully committed to repaying the faith the club have shown in him since bringing him to England from Strasbourg as a youngster:

“My situation was simple: at the end of the season my goal was to take the next step and join a club playing in the Champions League or the Europa League.” He is quoted by Goal.

“There were offers on the table but Southampton made a clear choice, which was to keep me after the departure of certain players. They look to me for the future.

“I was ‘blocked’ but I must accept that because I have three years remaining on my contract. I could not afford to make a fuss and not play. I owe a lot to Southampton, who enabled me to make the France national team.

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“I could not afford to go and clash with supporters who have always been cool with me. It would not have cool for me to end up in an endless showdown.”

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It’s kind to no-one. It can ruin careers. It can make you a laughing stock. Welcome to the cut throat world of the Premier League.

The toughest competition in the world. When men from foreign lands seek to try their luck in the English game, an immediate impact must be made in order to survive.For these unfortunate 15, the Premier League chewed up their careers and were spat back out into a world that they were no longer wanted in, thanks to their inability to adapt to the fast pace and physicality of football in England.

It must be hard to establish yourself in the league, especially given the demands of English fans, the brutality of the English press and the impatience of owners whose hard earned money was spent on you.

These are the exceptions. No excuses should be made for how awful these 15 players were. Some lasted a couple of years, some last 53 minutes. Regardless, most are players who came with expectancy on their shoulder and wholly failed to deliver.

Click on Andriy Shevchenko to reveal the full list of dodgy foreign players in all its glory

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Adama Traore is being widely tipped to leave Middlesbrough this summer, and a number of clubs are said to be closely monitoring developments.

Traore can leave Boro for £18m – as covered by Arab News – and Paris Saint-Germain are said to be considering an approach for the former Barcelona youngster.

Newcastle United are also believed to be in the hunt, and the Premier League club’s supporters have been reacting to the transfer speculation.

Rafael Benitez’s side are believed to be keen to add a new winger to their squad this summer, but it would be fair to say that the Newcastle fans do not want Traore to arrive.

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The 22-year-old scored five times and registered 10 assists in 34 Championship appearances for Boro last term, but there remain question marks over his end product.

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There is no doubting that Traore has talent, although the Newcastle fans are not interested in a deal at £18m.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

West Ham United goalkeeper Adrian has told the club’s official website that Manuel Lanzini is ready to return to the team.

What’s the latest?

The Hammers have been without the influential Argentine since January 20 when he suffered a hamstring injury in a 1-1 draw with Bournemouth.

It was arguably the worst time for the club to lose Lanzini given that he had started to link up well with Marko Arnautovic.

The Austrian returned with a bang at the weekend following his own injury spell as he scored in West Ham’s 2-0 win over Watford at the London Stadium.

While speaking to West Ham TV, Adrian revealed that Arnautovic and Lanzini could be linking up again soon.

“Marko is a great player, everyone knows that, and you absolutely miss this kind of player [when he is out injured] and you have to adapt and work in a different way, but now we have Marko back and Manu is ready to come to the team.”

The East London outfit will have a break this weekend while FA Cup games are played, but it seems that the creative star could be available for the following Saturday’s clash against Liverpool.

Will his return make a difference?

Since Lanzini has been on the sidelines, West Ham have drawn one, lost one and won one in the Premier League.

David Moyes’s side were also knocked out of the FA Cup by Wigan Athletic during the midfielder’s absence.

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Arnautovic’s return last weekend gave the team a massive boost, and Lanzini is sure to provide the same reaction.

Having the Argentine back for any game would be welcomed by West Ham fans, but if the 24-year-old is available for the Liverpool clash, then it would be even better.

Name: Ivan Perisic

Country: Croatia

Club: Wolfsburg

Age: 25

International Caps: 31

Position: Attacking Midfielder

After a surprising fifth-placed finish to their Premier League season, Everton are looking to add recruits to a squad which could suffer from the departure of three key loanees from last season. According to newspaper reports, Croatia’s attacking midfielder Ivan Perisic is to be the subject of an £8 million bid from the Toffees.

The Croatian has arguably been his country’s stand-out performer at the World Cup so far, and his eye-catching performances have further alerted Roberto Martinez to his qualities. Perisic only made his move to Wolfsburg last summer, but with the German club preparing to spend in order to boost other areas of the squad, Perisic could make way in order for them to do so.

Perisic netted his first goal of the tournament in Croatia’s 4-0 drubbing of Cameroon in their second game, but it wasn’t just his goal that caught the eye. He assisted Ivica Olic’s opener with a crafty through ball, perfectly weighted to put the ball on a plate for his teammate.

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With the departure of Gerard Deulofeu back to his parent club Barcelona, Everton are in need of players who can fill wider attacking positions. Perisic is the type of player willing to take the ball down and beat his opposite full-back, and he has the end product to make something in promising positions. He scored 10 league goals and contributed a further five assists last season at Wolfsburg, demonstrating his effectiveness in front of goal.

His goals tally is far more impressive than any of Everton’s current options. At £8 million he would cost a significant portion of their £20 million. But there is little doubt he would be a welcome addition to their roster. His goalscoring record and threat from the wing would help make up for the loss of Deulofeu, and add quality to a squad that is looking to progress even further from the success of last season.

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Arsenal are set to expand their scouting network in Germany in an attempt to lure the next crop of talented youngsters to the Emirates.

With the country having produced some of the most skillful and coveted players of recent years not to mention Wenger’s reputation for developing players the club and chief scout Steve Rowley have been spending an increasing amount of time and money in order to further expand the scouting network.

The Daily Mail claim that the plans will be implemented soon, noting that “the Gunners have already found the country a valuable breeding ground for talent,” with Podolski, Mertesacker and youngsters Thomas Eisfeld and Serge Gnabry also at the club. Wenger is a known fan of other German internationals having monitored many of the current German crop including Ozil and Sahin extensively before missing out on their signatures.

With Podolski already making waves in the Premier League, Serge Gnabry is hot on his fellow countryman’s heels with the 17 year old set to make an appearance during the Capitol One Cup match on Tuesday night, with the player himself looking to build on his growing reputation, confiding “I hope I can create some chances of score goals and that will give them more to talk about.”

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The Gunners will however be without Gervinho, who is set to miss the weekend showdown with Manchester United after being ruled out with an ankle injury sustained in the previous game against QPR with the Mirror reporting that a second string will be fielded in the Capital One Cup with “Oxlade-Chamberlain unlikely to be risked even if he is fit.”