LFC to sign Xabi Alonso?

Let’s start with the raw facts. Real Madrid are in some degree of turmoil with infighting and unhappiness in the camp. Xabi is 31 and facing stiff competition for places from Modric, Khedira and Ozil. There are just 18 months left on Alonso’s current contract and varied reports place his earnings between £60,000 and £80,000 per week. Alonso has stated openly that he will consider a return to England. Alonso has often mentioned his continued love for Liverpool and follows the club closely.

The facts at Anfield are obvious. We have off loaded a Joe Cole who was earning more than Alonso. We have been making enquiries around the likes of David Villa and Wesley Sneijder, whose wage demands would be considerably more. Despite the £12 million paid for Sturridge there are continued funds from Chelsea for the Torres deal. With a dramatic restructuring of the squad with high earners such as Kuyt, Maxi, Adam and Carrol leaving in the summer one can only assume there are some pennies in the pot.

FSG are committed to a so called “money ball” strategy where players are investments for the future, developing talent becoming a central means of fiscal growth as well as on field success. However in the pursuit of Villa, Sneijder and earlier in the season Clint Dempsey the club have shown some willingness to consider experienced older players.

So could Alonso’s love for the club, the fans passion for Alonso and the potential budget surplus combine with the opportunity posed by the uncertainty in Madrid to produce an emotional return for Alonso?

On the face of it this would seem a Liverpool fans dream come true. So symbolic of Liverpool’s decline was the departure of the talismanic midfield general that his return could produce be taken as a herald of our resurgence.

But would the deeper positions Alonso thrives on be available to him at Liverpool? In Allen and Lucas we already have two adept players who have proved their worth in the Rodgers system.

However the sight of Allen playing much higher up the field in recent fixtures may suggest a greater versatility to a player initially thought to be better suited to a deeper position.

In the end Xabi offers you one thing, passing. Play him anywhere on the field and he will create for those around him. He and Gerrard could spend a very productive couple of seasons pulling the strings, marshalling the play and nurturing the young money ball signings alongside Rodgers and Carragher.

Xabi is more than a player to Liverpool he is an icon of what we once were and what we would like to become again. Surely then if we can consider Snejider and Villa, Alonso must be worth a quick call?