Liverpool Transfer News: 5 Reasons Craig Bellamy Will Be a Good Signing

At the 2011 English Premier League transfer deadline, Liverpool coach Kenny Dalglish has made a late move to sign Craig Bellamy. 

According to MirrorFootball, Bellamy chose Liverpool at the deadline over six other offers.

In the English Premier League, the transfer deadline is a genuine day in which deals come flying by, and some of the more exciting deals can pop up in front of you without even the slightest bit of preemptive speculation.

Dalglish signing another striker onto a roster already filled to the brim with capable goal scorers is going to stir up an English-sized storm.

When that striker also happens to be a 32-year-old player that has already had a completed stint with the football club and many fans feel him to be washed up, Internet message boards are bound to fill up with Liverpool supporters taking their side.

Perhaps just as important, when a Google search of that player yields suggested results such as “Craig Bellamy Controversy,” “Craig Bellamy Tattoo” and “Craig Bellamy Punch Video,” you know the fans are in for a real treat with the latest signing from Dalglish and the Liverpool front office.

The signing, however, isn’t entirely bad. In fact, if you look at it from these angles, the transfer deadline move of Craig Bellamy to Liverpool happens to be a very strong signing for the football club.

Look for the move to help Liverpool score more goals, add depth to an already deep roster and help generate interest in a club looking to make a serious run at the title.  

5. Competitive Advantage Over Other Clubs

This is going to be an underrated advantage that the football club received from signing Bellamy, but as Bellamy signs with Liverpool, that means he is unable to play anywhere else.

In the article that announced his signing in MirrorFootball, the writer says that Bellamy chose Liverpool over six other clubs.

The Welsh-born striker will leave Manchester City to help Kenny Dalglish and the Reds make a run at the title. Any time that an organization is able to win a sweepstakes of sorts to give them the upper-hand, it’s a serious help to the club. 

With Bellamy playing for Liverpool, he won’t be scoring goals for Manchester City against Liverpool. After a nasty split with his former coach, multiple clubs (including Stoke, Everton, Bolton and Celtic) made significant runs at the striker and coveted signing.

Yesterday's article in the Daily Mail announced that Tottenham had already agreed to a deal with Bellamy and went on to say that the club planned to play him this Sunday at White Hart Lane.

With this signing, Liverpool was able to take a prized possession off the market and secure his rights to Liverpool and Liverpool only. Besides the tension and impact that this adds to the games that Bellamy will play now, it’s also a good way to ignite the rest of the football clubs.

This is definitively a strong bonus to the signing. 

4. Generates Interest in Club Looking for Title Run

Say what you will about Craig Bellamy, but the man is an interesting player to follow if you’re a football fan.

Controversy seems to follow this man.

For those that don’t know the stories of Craig Bellamy, allow me to offer you a brief history lesson. His first real public relations issue came in 2000, when he requested a leave from Coventry City if the team went down a division.

They granted him a transfer to Newcastle United in July of 2001, where he garnered the reputation of being a “great player wrapped around an usual and volatile character.”

In his first season, his most important game came when he scored two big goals against Feyenoord, only to be suspended in the next game for kicking a defender.

In July of 2004, Bellamy made news by throwing a chair at first-team coach John Carver, and then got in a very public verbal altercation with the new Newcastle manager.

This led to an incident in which he was left out of the lineup against Arsenal “due to a hamstring injury” until he later admitted he was willing to fake an injury against Arsenal, as Newcastle Manager Souness said that Bellamy would never play for the club again.

That same season, he was on loan to Celtic when it was rumored that he had sent abusive text messages to Newcastle Captain Alan Shearer.

In 2006, he began his first stay in Liverpool. Early into his tenure, things had gone horribly awry off the field as he was accused of assaulting a woman in a bar, and in 2007, rumors began to swirl that he had attacked a teammate with a golf club in Portugal (which is why he is now called “The Nutter With The Putter”).

You can’t make this stuff up. Nor can you make up the fact that, after scoring a goal, he pretended to swing a golf club.

My favorite story comes from when he played with Manchester City. On Jan. 28th, 2009, only nine days after he joined the club, a fan rushed the field after a goal. While he was quickly handled by security, footage showed Bellamy literally slapping the fan as he was being escorted back into the stands.

The best part of the story? Manchester City supported his decision.

As recently as this year, Bellamy has been arrested for assault.

The man is entertaining, grabs headlines, and knows what to do when it comes to getting the interest of the fans. For a team that is looking to make a title run, some may fear that Bellamy could serve to be a distraction.

Others simply find themselves thrilled to have someone that will generate so much interest in the club.

3. Bellamy Is Proven, Experienced, Talented

If we were to live in a world in which Wikipedia could censor all of the controversial and “bad” stories about someone, one player that would be an interesting read would be Craig Bellamy.

While fans of Liverpool have to recognize that this is not that Bellamy that they’re going to get—he’s found a way to grab a different negative headline almost every year of his career, and it practically just feels like an inevitability at this point—they also need to recognize that they’re also getting a very talented scorer and football player.

Bellamy has eighteen international goals, has served as the captain of the Welsh team, is the fifth highest scorer in Wales’ history, scored in big games for Manchester City and has been known to famously nutmeg opposing goalkeepers as he had against Aston Villa so early on in his career.

Fans need to learn to take the good with the bad.

For Bellamy, there is certainly a lot of good.

He has won the Scottish Cup, the FA Community Shield, and runs his own Craig Bellamy Football Foundation for underprivileged kids in Sierra Leone. He’s experienced, has a successful international career for Wales and continues to be a prevalent name in the football community.

Bellamy would not just be a notable signing if he was only known for his demeanor off of the field. He’s a proven player with big game experience and could help Liverpool make a run at the title if he’s in synch with the rest of the organization come game time. 

2. Versatile Player That Could Help Andy Carroll, Luis Suarez

I really like Craig Bellamy’s ability to play the field.

He’s quick off of the ball, very fast, has good handling skills and could be a solid compliment to a front line already strong with the likes of Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez.

We forget that Bellamy was once marked as a prolific goal scorer and a prodigy, and Liverpool desperately needs a third striker to compliment Suarez and Carroll.

His speed, fast pace nature and proven experience are quality reasons to bring in the young player. He will fit the tempo of the game and play a key role in games later in the season, as other players tire out.

Depth is essential to winning any championship, and Bellamy is indeed a weapon.

Bellamy is someone that opposing defenses have to prepare for, as he can be a terror if he’s not handled correctly. This is, after all, the same player who once scored three hat tricks in one season. His temperament aside, this has the looks to be a very exciting signing.

Liverpool fans, does anything make you happier than imagining him play with Suarez right now?

1. Will Work Well With Kenny Dalglish

Let us not assume that just because Bellamy is a hothead, he will cause a storm in Liverpool.

Many of his past issues have come from his absolute inability to tolerate poor coaching, and he has been an open critic of past managers of whom he did not respect.

One man that many, including Bellamy, respect is Kenny Dalglish. He is keen on training and taming players like Bellamy and could do a fine job of turning a potential head case into a solidified striker.

Bellamy considers himself to be a family man now. In a recent ESPN article, he calls himself ashamed to be a footballer. “I don’t go to nightclubs,” he says, “I don’t go shopping. I spend a lot of time with my children at home. That is where I’m happy.”

Bellamy recognizes that his emotions can carry him away, but he feels that he uses that energy for productivity on the pitch.

From what I’ve seen of Dalglish and Bellamy, the two will get along just fine, as Bellamy actually admits to being a Liverpool fan himself. Who better for him to play under in his final years than Dalglish?

He may not play a leading role for the club, but he will be a serviceable role player that can score goals off of the bench if needed.

When Bellamy clicks, he is a fan favorite. That’s the kind of signing that helps the team, not hurts one.