So Where's Bouzanis?

I'm positive the squad numbers announced last week had Dean Bouzanis at number 1, but he's disappeared from the list on the club website now.

I've been looking for cached versions of the club site's page, but can't find any. However, judging by what was posted on Red Passion on the day the squad numbers were announced, I think my recollection's accurate!

So what's going on? It did seem peculiar that three weeks after announcing he was on his way there was still no sign of the Liverpool keeper, especially as we seem to play our cards much closer to our chests these days.

Not so long ago the media was packed with stories from the club about players we were about to buy, and lots of them fell through. It's clear that Dean Saunders doesn't tell us of deals until they're sorted, which to my eyes is a much better way of going about business. It avoids the danger of a deal becoming public knowledge too soon and being gazumped, and ensures we don't get too carried away when a big name is rumoured to be on his way.

Of course there have been transfers mooted which haven't happened, but they haven't tended to be deals Saunders was behind as far as I can see-I don't think he was terribly desperate to get Robbie Savage or Kiki Musampa.

I don't know whether Bouzanis has got cold feet or if we've jumped the gun, but this latest development makes me suspect that he certainly won't be signing for us any time soon. On Tuesday night the notion that he couldn't play for us because he was needed for a Liverpool Reserves friendly seemed a lame excuse. It looks even more like one now. The question is, whose excuse was it.