BENAYOUN EXCITES BENITEZ

Rafael Benitez believes Yossi Benayoun will be an ideal replacement for Luis Garcia as he is desperate to play for Liverpool.

The Israel midfielder is set to secure a deal at Anfield after a fee, believed to be £5million, was agreed with West Ham.

He could be joined by £10million-rated Ryan Babel in a remarkable double swoop after Ajax gave Liverpool permission to talk to the player.

Holland Under-21 winger Babel is reportedly on his way to Merseyside for a medical.

Benayoun comes with the right credentials, according to Benitez, who sees similarities with Garcia now at Atletico Madrid.

"Maybe Luis is a player who scores more goals and Benayoun tends to make more assists," Benitez told the Liverpool Echo.

"Like Luis, he is a very technical, clever player with a lot of game intelligence.

"He can also play in many positions, giving us a different option for the team.

"He was offered a big new contract at West Ham and received offers from a lot of other clubs offering him more money.

"But Yossi's message was always the same. He said he was desperate to only join Liverpool because this was his dream.

"When you have quality players with his ability showing so much passion to play for your club, it's really good for the team."

Liverpool have already stated their ambition this summer by signing former Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen strikers Fernando Torres and Andriy Voronin.

The club's co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett are delighted at the way the squad is being improved.

Hicks, owner of Major League Baseball franchise Texas Rangers and Dallas Stars National Hockey League side, told Sky Sports News: "Rafa has done a great job.

"We talked to him about a plan and it has gone pretty much how we agreed it would go.

"The first was to get existing core players on our team to sign extensions, it was critical to get those guys locked up.

"Then we started with process of getting new players in. I wouldn't rule Rafa out for one more [transfer]. I know the team is going to be a better team.

"Part of the plan Rafa explained was that we needed to have more depth as it is a long season, particularly in the Premier League.

"He explained to George and me that we were able to compete better in the Champions League because of the format than we were in the nine to 10 months of the Premier League.

"We tried to add to that depth and I think we have."

Benayoun and Babel will increase manager Benitez's creative options in midfield.

Benayoun moved to England from Spanish side Racing Santander for £2.5million in 2005 and scored eight goals in 72 games for the club.

Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry said: "We've agreed the fee with West Ham for Yossi Benayoun.

"We're not quite there with Ryan Babel yet but we've now been given permission by Ajax to talk to the player.

"We hope to reach an agreement with Ajax very shortly."

Taken From =footBall365=