Soccer:Fenerbahce have announced the signing of Dirk Kuyt from Liverpool. The Holland striker has signed a three-year contract with the Turkish giants.
The 31-year-old, who moved to Anfield from Feyenoord in 2006, found first-team starts hard to come by under Kenny Dalglish last season, and it now emerges he is not in the plans of new manager Brendan Rodgers either.
Liverpool say the transfer is expected to be completed in the next few days but no financial details were given.
Kuyt, currently preparing with the Dutch squad for Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine, arrived at Anfield from Feyenoord in 2006 and soon showed a knack for scoring important goals in big games.
He made 285 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 71 goals, including a hat-trick against Manchester United as well as a late goal against winners AC Milan in the 2007 Champions League final.
The 31-year-old also scored in the League Cup final against Cardiff City at Wembley in February that Liverpool won on penalties. The announcement of his departure comes two days after Rodgers' appointment.
It emerged today, Rodgers is interested in bringing midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson to Anfield.
Sigurdsson is yet to sign a contract with Rodgers' former club Swansea, despite agreement on a club-record €8.5 million deal to sign him permanently from Hoffenheim following a successful loan spell.
Rodgers had pushed the Welsh club to sign Sigurdsson, who he also worked with at Reading, but the Northern Irishman's move to Anfield could prompt a rethink by the player.
Rodgers says he will do Swans and their yet-to-be-named new manager the courtesy of talking to Sigurdsson - after agreeing with chairman Huw Jenkins not to poach any of his former players for 12 months - but said he would make a move for the Iceland international should any talks break down.
"Gylfi came to Swansea because I was there as manager and his scoring record was fantastic," he told various Sunday newspapers. "I pushed the club to make an agreement [to sign Sigurdsson permanently] and they did that in terms of the fee - and agreed the salary. So I have said to Huw: 'I'm not going to do anything untoward. This is a guy you want, but it is down to Gylfi'.
"If he comes on the market I have to be interested. He knows that I rate his qualities and abilities. I said to Huw: 'If I speak to the kid I'll tell him to speak to the new manager, whoever that is'. But if he's not comfortable with that, he's in the market place then - and I have to look at him."
