Joe Allen set to stay at Swansea City

Swansea Boss Michael Laudrup has today laid down the strongest hint that Joe Allen will remain at the Liberty Stadium for the approaching season rather than switch to Liverpool

Comparing the young Team GB star to Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson, Laudrup commented that "In my opinion, if one is worth £17m then Joe is worth more, perhaps over £20million. I'm talking as a football man not as a chairman but if the chairman asks my advice then I will tell him the same."

It must be noted that Laudrup ultimately has little final say in the decision, but with Swansea having pulled out all the stops to appoint the Danish legend, a consultation will at the very least be made before agreeing to any sale.

Allen has been a long term target over the summer for Liverpool following the unveiling of former Swans boss Brendan Rodgers not long after the end of the season. It is believed their pursuit of Allen has been constant but the two clubs have been at loggerheads over a fee.

Performances at the London Olympics have been solid and consistent for Team GB, much to the delight of Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins who will have relished being able to increase their asking price.

The afore mentioned Jordan Henderson has struggled to justify his price tag in his debut season for Liverpool whilst squad options are thin behind first team pairing Lucas and Steven Gerrard. Jay Spearing looks unlikely to progress at the club, Charlie Adam may struggle to fit Rodgers system and Alberto Aquilani has wanted to leave since the moment he arrived, so Liverpool are in the market for a ball playing central midfielder.

However last summer’s spending spree has hampered Rodgers transfer budget and the price tag placed upon the Welshman may now prove too much for Liverpool. Swansea fans are likely to be delighted at the news, whilst Liverpool fans will surely be ruing the previous transfer decisions of Damien Comolli and Kenny Dalglish.

What are your thoughts on the news Swansea and Liverpool fans?

Connor Jipps

@Cjipps more stories from Connor Jipps

I'm a young writer and strong supporter of Tottenham Hotspur. Alongside writing for HITC I currently have my own Spurs blog at www.tottenhamtodareistodo.blogspot.co.uk where I discuss all matters Spurs. My writing style is focused on engaging the reader in a debate as opposed to reporting, so I hope you'll find my articles to be of interest.