<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Liverpool have made an increased offer of around £15m for Aston Villa captain Gareth Barry. BBC Sport understands the new bid does not include any potential extra payments that would take the deal nearer to Villa's £18m valuation. Liverpool are now waiting for Villa's response to their renewed bid. Villa boss Martin O'Neill has said Barry, 27, will be granted his wish to join Liverpool - but only when his asking price is met. Liverpool hope to finally resolve a protracted and increasingly acrimonious saga, but O'Neill is furious at how the Anfield club's interest in Barry became public. Barry is scheduled to return to pre-season training with Villa on Thursday and is expected to confirm his desire to move to Liverpool. O'Neill has been firm in his stance on the proposed move, saying: "If Liverpool meet our valuation, he will have his express wish to leave Villa Park granted." Barry, 27, criticised Villa for not trying hard enough to keep him but O'Neill insists they want him to stay. The player signalled his intention to move when he complained on Sunday about Villa's lack of urgency in speaking to him. "There's no going back, it's time for me to move on," he said. "I'm desperate to play Champions League football and that's why I have to leave Villa. "Villa kept saying they wanted me to stay but I have not heard from the manager for weeks. "It's seven weeks now since the season finished but while the gaffer's found time to be a pundit at Euro 2008, he hasn't found the time to speak to me. "Have Villa offered me anything to try to persuade me my future is at Villa Park, not Anfield? Not a thing." But O'Neill has hit back to vehemently deny Barry's claim. "The chairman and I were surprised at Gareth's comments," he said. "Contrary to what he said, we desperately wanted to keep him - and he knows that." Barry captained England for the first time and scored his first international goal during the recent friendly against Trinidad and Tobago. Liverpool are keen to partner Barry in midfield with his England colleague Steven Gerrard.</div> [Source]
Villa punish Barry over interview <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Gareth Barry has been disciplined and ordered not to report for pre-season training as Liverpool increased their offer for the Aston Villa captain. Barry, 27, has been punished for giving an unauthorised interview to a Sunday newspaper in which he criticised Villa manager Martin O'Neill. Villa report for pre-season on Thursday as the transfer row took another twist. Liverpool's new bid is around £15m, but BBC Sport understands there are no extra additional payments in the offer. Villa have turned down a succession of offers from Liverpool, and O'Neill has denied he had received a "take it or leave it" final bid on Wednesday, insisting: "The situation remains the same." O'Neill has said Barry will be granted his wish to join Liverpool - but only when his asking price is met. Liverpool hope to finally resolve a protracted and increasingly acrimonious saga, but O'Neill is furious at how the Anfield club's interest in Barry became public. O'Neill has been firm in his stance on the proposed move, saying: "If Liverpool meet our valuation, he will have his express wish to leave Villa Park granted." In the interview that led to his punishment, Barry criticised Villa for not trying hard enough to keep him - even though O'Neill insists they want him to stay. The player signalled his intention to move when he complained on Sunday about Villa's lack of urgency in speaking to him. "There's no going back, it's time for me to move on," he said. "I'm desperate to play Champions League football and that's why I have to leave Villa. "Villa kept saying they wanted me to stay but I have not heard from the manager for weeks. "It's seven weeks now since the season finished but while the gaffer's found time to be a pundit at Euro 2008, he hasn't found the time to speak to me. "Have Villa offered me anything to try to persuade me my future is at Villa Park, not Anfield? Not a thing." But O'Neill has hit back to vehemently deny Barry's claim. "The chairman and I were surprised at Gareth's comments," he said. "Contrary to what he said, we desperately wanted to keep him - and he knows that." Barry captained England for the first time and scored his first international goal during the recent friendly against Trinidad and Tobago. Liverpool are keen to partner Barry in midfield with his England colleague Steven Gerrard. Meanwhile, Argentinian left-back Emiliano Insua has signed a new three-year contract with Liverpool. The 19-year-old Argentina Under-20 international has made five first team appearances for the club - featuring in the final three Premier League matches of last season. Insua initially joined Liverpool on loan from Boca Juniors in January 2007 but signed a permanent contract last summer.</div> It's heating up just a bit. Not a good move by Villa though.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Aston Villa say that Gareth Barry will be staying at the club and not moving to Premier League rivals Liverpool. Villa claim the Reds failed to meet a deadline to sign the midfielder and now any move is off. "During talks in the past few days, a final deadline to conclude this episode was set that all parties were aware of and agreed to," said a Villa statement. "This deadline has now passed and so Gareth will remain with Villa." More to follow.</div> [Source] This is ridiculous. It's just back and forth, back and forth.
UPDATE: Aston Villa say that Gareth Barry will be staying at the club and not moving to Premier League rivals Liverpool. Villa claim the Reds failed to meet a deadline to sign the midfielder, who stated he wanted to move to Anfield, and now any switch is off. "During talks in the past few days, a final deadline to conclude this episode was set that all parties were aware of and agreed to," said a Villa statement. "This deadline has now passed and so Gareth will remain with Villa." Villa are believed to have slapped an £18m price tag on Barry and have rejected a number of bids from Liverpool which fall short of this figure. It has proved an acrimonious affair with Villa boss Martin O'Neill clearly angered by the conduct of Liverpool counterpart Rafael Benitez's attempts to lure his side's prize asset away from the Midlands club. Barry's desire to leave Villa for the Reds has been evident and he was ordered not to report for pre-season training by O'Neill after criticising him in a newspaper interview. But as the saga raged on this summer, the England international has played for the side in a recent friendly and came on as a substitute in their Intertoto Cup win over Odense. Villa's ire will have been increased by the fact that Liverpool have splashed out £19m for Tottenham striker Robbie Keane, with the fee possibly reaching £20.3m with add-ons. More to follow.
Barry can thank liverpool, now he has to deal with some very unhappy fans. He must be burning his fake liverpool shirt...lol
