The Beautiful Game

Far be it from me to suggest that new Liverpool signing Lucas Leiva’s claim that he turned down Everton and Man United is anything but truthful, but it seems a remarkable coincidence that the only other clubs to have tried to sign him just happen to be Liverpool’s two biggest rivals.

Mind you, when it comes to winning over the fans, the first press conference is fraught with danger. Who can forget Jonathan Woodgate addressing the Spanish media following his move to Real Madrid and stating how much of an honour it was to sign for a club which had been represented by such legendary players as “Hierro, Raul and… um, many others…”?

Given Steven Gerrard’s suspicious response to Craig Bellamy’s claim of life-long allegiance when he signed for Liverpool last summer, I suppose we should probably be congratulating Lucas for using his imagination.

And if all else fails, there’s always the Graeme Souness approach…