‘Put up or shut up’ on Adam, Pool told

IAN HOLLOWAY has told Liverpool to “put up or shut up” in their pursuit of Charlie Adam.

The Blackpool skipper requested a transfer yesterday morning after it was confirmed Liverpool had received a firm no to their £4 million (€4.7m) offer.

Whilst Adam’s demand has not been turned down, neither has it been accepted on the basis that Liverpool’s offer comes nowhere close to Blackpool’s valuation of a player Holloway feels could be the difference between the Seasiders confounding the odds to remain in the Premier League or dropping straight back into the Championship.

Holloway has been bombarded with questions about Adam’s future over the last few days and, ahead of his side’s eagerly-anticipated tussle with Manchester United tonight, the only conclusion he can draw is that Liverpool do not rate him highly enough.

“If the player is good enough they should sign him. Either put up or shut up,” said Holloway.

“They are mad not to want to buy him off us. He could replace Xabi Alonso, which is something they have still not done.

“They don’t have that passer. Charlie is their man and I don’t want to stand in his way. But Liverpool’s offer is totally unacceptable.”

Holloway, however, has no intention of asking Adam to sidestep a meeting with the leaders.

“There is no chance of me leaving him out,” said Holloway.

“If I tried to stop him playing against Manchester United, he would probably kill me.

“He loves this club. Just because he has put a transfer request in, that doesn’t change. And it doesn’t mean he is greedy either.”

It appears surprising that Manchester United’s first top flight visit to Bloomfield Road for four decades should be overshadowed.

Yet that is exactly what has happened, so much so that Alex Ferguson can only expect wine from either Tesco’s or Sainsbury’s tonight rather than the vintage reds he prefers.

“I am bursting with pride because Manchester United are coming to Blackpool,” said Holloway.

“They have just won 5-0. When we were supposed to play them originally it was 7-1, so it is a bit better.

“If we are not a couple down in the first 10 minutes I would be delighted.”

United are ready to welcome Rafael back into the fold at Blackpool with Ryan Giggs hailing the youngster’s new-found maturity.

Although the Brazilian full-back was forced to apologise for his behaviour after being sent off at Tottenham last week, an £8,000 (€9,300) fine suggested the Football Association did not view his exchange with referee Mike Dean to be the most heinous of crimes.

The punishment cleared Rafael to face Blackpool at Bloomfield Road tonight and prove once again the class Giggs sees on a regular basis.

“Rafael has come on in leaps and bounds over the last few months,” said the veteran Welshman.

“I have seen a massive improvement, not only in the way he plays but within him as a person.

“I come up against him in a lot of training sessions because we play in opposite positions and I have seen the maturity develop over the last three or four months.”

Two points ahead of Arsenal and three in front of Manchester City, a third away win of the season tonight would ease United into a clear lead at the top of the Premier League table and turn the screw on their title rivals.

In addition to making a choice between Rafael and John O’Shea at right-back, Ferguson will also need to take a fitness check on Rio Ferdinand’s groin injury and the knock to an already sore ankle that Michael Carrick suffered in Saturday’s five-goal hammering of Birmingham before finalising his line-up.

Alex Ferguson has already stated Giggs will start, and then be rested for Saturday’s FA Cup tie at Southampton, and he is likely to be joined by fellow veteran Paul Scholes.