Babel staying & Rafa rules out Ruud

Speaking after the disappointing performance against Reading last night, Reds boss Rafa Benitez indicated Liverpool will not be selling Dutch winger Ryan Babel this January transfer window.

He also denied reports he is interested in bringing former Man United forward Ruud van Nistelrooy to Anfield.

“I don’t want to talk about individual players or names, but we are not trying for Ruud van Nistelrooy, so that will be very difficult to bring him in,” said Benitez.

Babel, an unused sub against Reading, has been linked with a move away from Anfield and back to his native Netherlands with a World Cup place in his thoughts. “He [Babel] will have a chance to play,” Benitez told the BBC.

“He has to work hard. He’s our player and he will have his chances. At this moment we are not trying to sell him.”

It is widely believed Benitez is seeking to offload Andriy Voronin, Philipp Degen and Andrea Dossena in order to bring in new players such as Atletico Madrid’s Maxi Rodriguez.