Rafa: No loan deal for Cisse
Cisse has scored just 13 goals in 48 appearances at Anfield
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Sunday, 24, Jun 2007 08:57
Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez says Djibril Cisse will only be allowed to leave the club on a permanent deal.
Cisse spent last season on loan at Marseille where he scored eight goals in 21 appearances.
The striker has two years left on his contract at Anfield and looks set to leave after reportedly falling out with Benitez over a lack of first-team chances.
Benitez said the France international is no longer available on loan.
"If another club wants him, they must buy him. We don't want another loan," Benitez told Liverpool's official website.
The news is a hammer blow for Marseille who wanted to have Cisse for another year despite the Reds giving the French club the option to make the deal permanent.
Cisse was linked with a £5 million move to Bolton earlier this week with his agent Ranko Stojic revealing the Trotters had contacted him.
The 25-year-old has also attracted interest from Atletico Madrid with Benitez keen to use Cisse as bait to lure Fernando Torres, according to newspaper reports.
Cisse was signed by former manager Gerard Houllier for a club record £14 million from Auxerre in 2004.
His career has been blighted by breaking his leg twice, most recently on the eve of last year's World Cup.