With a season of sound rebuilding nearly completed at Anfield, manager Brendan Rodgers is looking to build on the foundations next season by bolstering his squad with a few new signings. The upcoming retirement of club stalwart Jamie Carragher, coupled with talk of Martin Skrtel being likely to decamp to a Russian club in the summer, reinforcements at centre back may be an area of prime concern, this all according to British daily tabloid The Mirror.
Ever keen to utilise players with sound footballing techniques, it seems likely that Rodgers will be looking to secure a player with the ability to blend with the elegant Daniel Agger. Rumours currently suggest that Rodgers has ear-marked Manchester City’s Micah Richards for this role. The season has been ravaged by injury for the young Richards, playing only a handful of times for City. It may be however that even had he been fit, opportunities to play may well have been curtailed anyway. With the estimable Kompany and the emerging Nastasic now apparently the established first choice partnership in the centre of City’s defence, and the outstanding Pablo Zabalta secure in Richards’ alternative position on the right of the defence, a move from Eastlands may be on the agenda.
Still only 24, Richards remains long on promise, if short on appearances this season. Capped by England across a number of age ranges, he already has more than a dozen full internationals to his credit. At City however, that may cut little ice in the white hot competition for starting places, and as what now seems the annual turnover of players nears, Richards’ place in the squad may be required for a new acquisition.
Should Rodgers approach City then, it may well be looked on favourably by both player and club. Over at St George’s Park, it may well be pleasing to England manager, Roy Hodgson. Where once international centre backs were seen to be in plentiful supply, injuries and various apparently nefarious activities have seen this rich seam run dry. The opportunity to have a young English centre back in regular play at a club such as Liverpool will therefore be an attractive proposition for the national manager. Who knows, a chance to resurrect his nascent international career may be just the bonus to persuade Richards to move to Anfield.
Source: DSG
