Hamburg Star Elia In Liverpool Sights

Liverpool are reportedly keen
on a January move for Dutch
international Eljero Elia.
The 23-year-old winger has been
linked with an Anfield switch on
several occasions in the past,
with former Liverpool boss
Rafael Benitez a known admirer
of the speedster.
Elia, who can also play as a
striker, played for several clubs as
a junior before joining the
famous Ajax academy in 2000.
ADO Den Haag took the player on
in 2002 and he made his senior
debut for the club in 2004.
The arrival of new coach Lex
Schoenmaker saw Elia make his
exit from the Kyocera Stadion,
with FC Twente beating old club
Ajax to the signature. He thrived
after making the Eredivisie move,
scoring 15 goals in his two
seasons with the club and
setting up countless more at De
Grolsch Veste.
Hamburg would pay the Reds
€ 8.9 million to take Elia to the
Bundesliga, and the Dutch
international has impressed on
both the domestic and European
stage.
At international level, Elia has
made 15 appearances for
Holland after making his debut
against Japan. Part of the World
Cup squad that made it to the
final in South Africa, Elia showed
his potential with a string of
impressive cameo appearances
off the bench for his nation.
Former Fulham boss Roy
Hodgson is now reportedly keen
to bring the player to Merseyside,
with talkSport claiming Liverpool
are keeping tabs on the player as
they look to strengthen their
attacking options.
After failing to land another
striker on transfer deadline day,
Hodgson has earmarked the
player as a potential replacement
for Ryan Babel, should his
compatriot leave for pastures
new in the winter window. A fee
in the region of €10 million could
be needed to complete a deal.