(Photo by Jasper Juinen/Getty Images)
And so the inevitable happened: Real Madrid eventually got their man.
After months, indeed years of on-off specualtion about a return from Anfield to Spain, Florentino Perez finally ended his pursuit of Alonso whilst blowing all the other fish out of the water with a massive bid; something Juventus had failed to achieve last summer.
The tremors leading up to the transfer were clear. Benitez had before proved willing to sell Alonso, but only at the right price, and Alonso was desperate to go. And so, the £30m figure reached after weeks of intense negotiation proved to be that magical number everybody wanted to hear.
Of course, the majorityof Liverpool fans won't be happy to see the back of a player who has become a firm fan favourite during his time in Anfield. His consistent performancs last season arguably, in hindsight, justified Benitez's decision to keep Alonso at the prospective loss of Gareth Barry.
As for Real Madrid his new club, well if I'm honest Alonso, a regista in the Pirlo mould, is not the type of player I believe Madrid absolutely need if they're going to be successful in Europe.
On the other hand for Liverpool, Alonso was a player they probably absolutely needed to be successful. (And I mean top of the table after 38 games successful, not the Roy of the Rovers cup runs that Liverpool have become adept at accomplishing).
Why is the loss of Alonso so detrimental you ask?
Firstly, there are no ready-made replacements for Alonso in the Liverpool squad.
Granted Gerrard can do everything Alonso can do, it would be a sacrifice for Liverpool at this stage pushing Gerrard back in front of the big four, especially considering the scoring prowess he's displayed in recent seasons.
Lucas Leiva?—Complete donkey, scratch that, complete joke I'm afraid: perhaps the only hilarious thing about Leiva for Liverpool fans is maybe that he himself doesn't know it yet. Once in a blue moon performances against shambolic teams like Newcastle United don't do it for me: They shouldn't be enough to convince Benitez either.
Secondly, Alonso's boot is the pivot on which Liverpool base their attacking game. Tactically positioned alongside Javier Mascherano, Alonso provided great balance to the midfield.
Like Pirlo who had a similar 'bulldog' partner in Genarro Gattusso for Milan, Alonso was free to playmake to his hearts content and one thing we all know Alonso possesses is an extraordinary long range passing ability.
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