Mascherano signs Reds deal

Argentine agrees four-year contract at Anfield

Last updated: 29th February 2008

Mascherano signs Reds deal

Mascherano: Biggest day of career

I said all along that I wanted to stay at Liverpool and now that I have signed I can say this is the best and the biggest moment in my career so far.

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Javier Mascherano has signed a four-year contract to stay with Liverpool on a permanent basis.

The Argentine midfielder originally moved to Anfield over 12 months ago on loan following a brief stint at West Ham United.

Liverpool have been involved in protracted negotiations to secure Mascherano on a permanent deal, with the likes of Juventus and Barcelona rumoured to be waiting in the wings.

An agreement has now been finalised and the 23-year-old expressed his delight at committing his future to Rafa Benitez's side.

Biggest moment

"I am very, very happy and now I can concentrate just on playing football," Mascherano told the club's official website.

"I said all along that I wanted to stay at Liverpool and now that I have signed I can say this is the best and the biggest moment in my career so far.

"From the first day I arrived at Liverpool the feeling was good and I knew this was where I wanted to play my football. It's good news for me and my family that everything is sorted and I know where my future is going to be. I just want to do my best for the fans and the people of the club.

"I am at a top side and I know I can win titles here. That's the big thing for me. I want to be at a club where we can win trophies and have success."

Liverpool boss Benitez was equally pleased to have concluded a deal for the holding midfielder, who has made 40 appearances for the club.

Key player

Benitez said: "We must be really pleased with the situation now. He has been a key player for us since he has been here and now we know he can be a key player in our future.

"From the start we knew Javier was a player with quality and a fantastic mentality. We knew the player when he was in the reserves at River Plate, but was playing for the senior national team and we had been monitoring his career since then.

"He is young, but he has great experience having played for his country. We knew he would be a good signing for us.

"It's clear that he is one of the best midfielders in the world, but he can get better with us. We now have a lot of good options in the centre of midfield and that's good news for the club."

Comments (13)

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Anil Bhambhani (Liverpool fan) says...

¿17million, probably a bit on the high side, but a 23 year old, these days, I suppose a good deal. I also think we need to get rid/sell Veronin/Crouch, and get another striker-proven goalscorer to team up with Torres.

Posted 16:56 3rd March 2008

Peter Allison (Liverpool fan) says...

Great signing ....17 million for one of, if not the, best defensive midfielder in the world is peanuts. Had my reservations at the start but they did not last long !!!!

Posted 16:37 1st March 2008

Jeff Green (Liverpool fan) says...

Excellent defensive midfielder. Im glad we kept him but he still isnt as good as hamann was and 17 million is way too much.

Posted 15:05 1st March 2008

Steven Wallington (Liverpool fan) says...

I personally prefered Sissoko but thats life. Hope we can mount a better challenge for league next season. A few results against the other top 4 would go a long way.

Posted 15:05 1st March 2008

Nik Stylianou (Liverpool fan) says...

Along with Gattusso, probably the best Defensive Midfielder in the world. We have to be pleased.

Posted 14:31 1st March 2008

Ben Evans (Liverpool fan) says...

I'm amazed some people are criticising this signing. I can't remember a bad game that Masch has ever had, he is a monster and is only going to get better. This guy will captain Argentina and be the best holding midfielder in the world. I'd rather pay £17 for Masch than £18 for Carrick or Hargreaves. To compete with the top clubs we need quality throughout the team one big signing isn't enough and hopefully more will follow soon. I imagine this purchase has mainly been funded by the sale of Momo. Great signing Rafa

Posted 13:05 1st March 2008

Steve Mann (Liverpool fan) says...

Quality signing! Mascherano is just as important as Gerrard and Torres, he gets about the pitch and breaks up the oppositions play and allows Stevie to a more free role... In the days of Chelsea winning the title they had Makelele in that position and Lampard was a different class, Mascherano is better than Makalele though, he is much more technical and can actually play a forward pass. Great signing, its another big name in the club!!

Posted 12:44 1st March 2008

Joel Henderson (Liverpool fan) says...

Good signing but does anyone else feel like we are paying a too big a fee. 17 million pounds for a defensive midfielder, considering we bought Torres for 20 million, seems an awfully large fee. Does this mean we will have no other big signings in te summer now as he has spent most of it here, or will the owners give him even more to spend?

Posted 21:55 29th February 2008

Farai Chiwandire (Liverpool fan) says...

A disappointing signing to say the least. At a time when we should be looking for attacking players to compliment Gerro and El Nino and replace the rest of the deadwood, we sign a DEFENSIVE mid. Where are the wingers and the attacking fullbacks we need?

Posted 19:58 29th February 2008

Tunde Adewalure (Manchester United fan) says...

Mascherano is a player that has been showing his promise from the first day i saw him play! i think he is a wonderful player who typifies what a defensive midfielder should be; intelligent, quick and tough tackling. Mascherano is quite simply world class.

Posted 17:18 29th February 2008

Sophie Raddick (Liverpool fan) says...

I couldn't be happier, his role is less flashy than Gerrard and Torres, but he is just as important to our team. He has been immense for us and I'm delighted that we have finally signed our world class monster! One of the best HM around.

Posted 17:08 29th February 2008

Jason King (Liverpool fan) says...

This is a great signing for Liverpool. Mascherano is a world class player who gives his all for Liverpool Football Club. I am delighted his move has been made permanent!!!

Posted 16:38 29th February 2008

Adrian Moore (Liverpool fan) says...

excellent news! best defensive midfielder ive seen in years, may he be with us for many years!

Posted 16:23 29th February 2008
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