Villa have sent a letter to Liverpool outlining their final demands for Barry - 17m to be paid in 12 months (half now, half next year) and Liverpool right-back Steve Finnan.
I know Barry is good but contrary to what the press is saying he's behind Hargreaves and Lampard in the pecking order for England (which makes him 4th choice and not 2nd choice). I guess the 14m (going to 18m) for Carrick deal is what's driving O'Neill's valuation, and I think in that context it's a fair price.
But to Liverpool - a club blessed with central midfielders (Alonso recently said that he had no problems with staying), why bring in a 17m valued central midfielder who'll do half the job on the left wing that a 11m winger from the continent could have done? Looks to me like Rafa is making the same mistake that he made with pushing Gerrard to the right wing a couple of years ago.
