There is no doubt we need to get rid of some "Dead Wood" this summer and with (hopefully) more arrivals to follow Jordan Henderson through the Shankly Gates, there may be a few surprise names who are surplus to requirements, but how much can we realistically expect to get? And who wants to take them off our hands?
There's no doubt we need to get rid of Paul Konchesky, he only made 18 appearances before being loaned to Nottingham Forest and, no offense to the lad, but he shouldn't have been signed in the first place, he's simply not good enough and his mother didn't help his cause with the silly comments on Facebook either. Wolves are apparently showing an interest but I doubt we'll get anywhere near the money we paid for him. A very poor Roy Hodgson signing. (£2 million).
Christian Poulsen was another poor Hodgson signing. He may have done quite well in Italy in his younger days but at 31 years old it's clear his best days are behind him. He's too slow of mind and body for the pace of the Premier League and with more midfield additions likely, there's no place for him at Anfield. Who will take him though? (Free).
With only 2 appearances last season and Liverpool in the market for an experienced back-up goalkeeper, Brad Jones must be on his way out. Again, we'll struggle to get half the reported £2.3 million back for him that we paid Middlesbrough a year ago. (£750,000).
Emiliano Insua (yes he's still with us) was loaned to Galatasaray last season and has disappeared off the radar. Even though we desperately need a left-back, he has not shown the quality needed to play for a club like ours. I could never see why Rafa played him, he is too slow, can't cross a ball and was constantly being exposed defensively. Yes he had a few good games, showed some promise in the reserves and scored that cracker against Arsenal, but needs to be moved on asap. There seems to be no takers for Ensua either though. Could he be kept and given another chance? It's possible. (£2 million).
Philipp Degen, free transfer or not, is another player who isn't of the required quality. We'll get very little, if nothing for him but it's clear that he needs to go. With Flanagan, Johnson, Kelly and Carragher all options at right-back, he has no sniff of a chance of getting anywhere near the first team. Any takers? (Free).
Alberto Aquilani has to be the biggest transfer mistake in Liverpool's history. A huge fee was paid to bring him (injured) from Roma in 2009 and now no one wants him. Big Problem. He's only made 28 appearances and scored 2 goals. The injury prone midfielder never settled into life in England and in my opinion, is too lightweight and soft to cope with the physical demands here. Juventus don't think he's worth the £15 million Liverpool want for him and neither do any other clubs. If we can get £10 million then we'll be lucky. (£10 million).
Nabil El Zhar, (yes he's still here as well), was another youngster who showed some promise but hasn't matured and developed enough as a player to push for a first team spot. El Zhar was loaned out to the Greek side PAOK last season. It's yet to be seen if there are any forthcoming offers for the attacker. (£500,000).
Milan Jovanovic is another player who is obviously surplus to requirements. The experience Serbian was a free transfer in 2010, so at least we didn't pay for him, but he has found himself frozen out firstly by Hodgson and then Dalglish. The problem is that once again no one seems to want the player and we'll have to try to offload him for next to nothing (or nothing) just to get him off the books. (£500,000).
David N'Gog may be (or may not be) on his way to Sunderland for £5 million. I'm a little undecided on this one. He has shown on occasion that he has quality, but is still far too inconsistent. Kenny gave him very little playing time last season which may well indicate how The King views the striker. I think £5 million is a good price for a player who has scored just 19 goals in 94 games, but he is still only 24 and may prove to be a good back-up for Carroll if we can't get anyone else in. It would certainly be a mistake to let him go and not replace him. (£5 million).
Joe Cole has been a massive disappointment so far in a red shirt. His signing was a huge coup for the Reds a year ago and his signing did a lot to lift the spirits of LFC supporters everywhere. Unfortunately he made an awful start with the red card on the opening day and a lack of form and injury problems contributed to a very poor season. He still may have something to offer, but if we get the likes of Adam, Downing and/or others he won't get a game so needs to be sold now for the most we can get. How much will that be? (£4 million).
Two other possible names that may be surprise exits are Raul Meireles and Maxi RodrÃguez. Meireles will find his place under threat next season with new boy Henderson arriving. At £16 million, Henderson must be in Kenny's thoughts for a first team spot and Meireles will be the one under threat. Gerrard is the first name on the team sheet, Lucas has proven his worth and youngsters Spearing and Shelvey coming through he mind find himself surplus to requirements. Meireles had a run where he couldn't stop scoring and I'll always thank him for the Chelski goal that shut Torres up but he is the type of player who has no outstanding qualities. He is another player who is too weak for central midfield and definitely doesn't like the physical side of the game, he pulls out of too many challenges, he is ineffective on the wing and not creative enough to play behind the striker(s). Is his time up? (£10-13 million).
Maxi RodrÃguez runs down the wing for me, (quality song), but will he be playing for me next season? Maix has recently been linked with a return to Argentina but I can't see that happening at this stage. Before his hat-tricks against Birmingham and Fulham I would have said he was another on the way out. He proved his worth towards the end of the season however and may well have one more good season in him. He's a good squad player but not good enough to play every game. If we get a good offer, which is unlikely, and depending on incoming transfers I could see Maxi leaving. (£3 million).
If all these players leave for the fees stated here, an these are hopeful estimates, we'll get around £38-40 million which would allow us to buy 2-3 quality players on top of the others we can afford with what we already have available. We'd be far better off with 2 quality players in areas we need than the players in this list, most of whom would not even warm the bench. If Maxi and Raul stay, which is likely at this stage, we should still get around £20 million for the rest and cut the wage bill. As long as the money we get is invested carefully, even if it's in only 1 player, we'll have a better squad with more competition for places. The question is, who wants these players?
