http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=665148&sec=transfers&cc=4716
Real and Liverpool agree fee for Alonso move
Liverpool's Xabi Alonso is poised to sign
for Real Madrid on Wednesday after the clubs agreed a fee believed to
be £30m for the Spain international.
GettyImages
Alonso: Real saga coming to an end
The end of a summer-long saga over the 28 year-old's future ended when
Liverpool issued a short statement effectively bringing to a close his spell on
Merseyside.
The statement read: "Liverpool Football Club this evening confirmed they had
reached agreement for the sale of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid, subject only to a
medical. The terms of the deal will remain confidential and undisclosed.''
But although Liverpool will not reveal the details of the deal, privately
sources were maintaining that manager Rafael Benitez had got his own way over
the fee.
It is believed that Madrid made another attempt to end the deadlock with
an offer of £30m that will rise to £34m depending on Alonso's success over the
first two years of what is believed to be a five-year contract.
Alonso had trained with his Liverpool colleagues on Tuesday afternoon at the club's
Melwood complex.
But as the Liverpool party headed for John Lennon airport and a charter flight
to Norway for Wednesday's friendly with Lyn Oslo, Alonso was heading back to
Spain.
Real Madrid issued a statement of their own, confirming he will have a medical on Wednesday.
Assuming all goes well, he will join his former Liverpool team-mates Alvaro
Arbeloa - who moved to Real last week for £3.5m - and goalkeeper Jerzy
Dudek at the Bernabeu.
Alonso and Dudek were part of the famous night in Istanbul when Liverpool
lifted the European Cup after a penalty shoot-out victory over AC Milan.
Now only Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher remain at the club from the 18
players on the team sheet in Istanbul that night.
Alonso's departure has been a long and painful experience for Liverpool fans,
who had taken the Basque midfielder to their hearts.
Benitez tried to sell him last summer in the complexities of his unsuccessful
fight to sign Gareth Barry from Aston Villa.
Alonso did not want to go then, and has always felt that he was being forced
out of the club to finance the Barry deal.
This summer it was Benitez who did not want to lose the player, who is believed
to have told his manager on the final day of last season that he wanted to
return to Spain.
From that point on, Madrid waged a persistent war to sign the player as they
assembled a new squad under president Florentino Perez.
With the Alonso deal, Perez will have spent around £220m in two months on
Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Raul Albiol, Esteban Granero, Arbeloa, Alvaro Negredo
and Karim Benzema.
That haul is Madrid's response to Barcelona's historic treble of Champions
League, La Liga and Spanish Cup.
But although Perez did not consider Alonso to be a player who 'will sell
shirts', the Spain international has been almost as difficult to prise away from
his club as Ronaldo.
Meanwhile, Michel Salgado has ended his spell at Real Madrid after 10 years with the
Primera Division club.
The 33-year-old defender, who moved to the Bernabeu from Celta Vigo in 1999,
has been released by mutual consent despite having one year remaining on his
current deal.
"Real Madrid would like to thank the until-now captain for his commitment and
behaviour during 10 consecutive years of exemplary service to the club,'' said a
statement on the club's official website.
Salgado enjoyed a great deal of success during his decade with Real, winning
four La Liga and two Champions League titles among other trophies.
