Djibril Cisse says he has no desire to leave European Champions Liverpool, despite approaches made through the media by Marseille.
Cisse has been reported on numerous occasions as being unhappy with life at Anfield, and earlier this month Marseille’s president Pape Diouf claimed talks about a loan deal were underway. Diouf said: "Cisse would be the ideal player for us to strengthen the team. Contacts exist and we are looking into a six-month loan deal with an option to extend if it works out well. Djibril is not happy with the amount he is playing at Liverpool. Marseille is in his heart and he has clearly expressed a desire to join us."
This was news that Rafael Benitez soon denied, asking why they would be willing to lose a striker that was eligible for the Champions League when they are still in the competition. Then earlier this week it was the turn of Marseille’s sports director Jose Anigo, who said they were still working on a deal: "Between Cisse and Marseille there is Liverpool and maybe they don’t want to let him go. At the moment we’re not getting anywhere but sometimes situations that look completely blocked change very quickly."
In fact it seems that Marseille are struggling to take no for an answer from Anfield, which is understandable given what Rafa has already said, but now the player has spoken out. He doesn’t want to move away from Anfield, he’s happy with his life in England, and feels the same about the Reds as most fans do: "I love Liverpool," he said yesterday. Even if he’s not getting as much time on the pitch as he’d like, he’s enjoying the overall experience at the club: "The mentality in the dressing room is different to France. It’s just friendly and happy. They all make jokes and make each other laugh."
Cisse is big friends with Florent Sinama-Pongolle, but it’s not just his compatriates that he gets on with. He says: "I have great friends and great team-mates and I’ve bought a great house. I just got married, so why would I want to leave?"
Now maybe it’s time Liverpool had a word with UEFA about Marseille’s repeated comments that seem aimed at unsettling Cisse.