Rumours continue over the future of Liverpool defender Daniel Agger, with Manchester City, Real Madrid and Barcelona reportedly trying to sign him. With figures of £20m+ being bandied about, is now the right time to sell a player who has spent 43% of his time at Anfield on injury list? What do fans think...?
Agger will be 28 in December, and Liverpool may never get another chance to command such a big fee for his services. Additionally, if Agger gets another long-term injury next season, his value will decrease, and the club will lose out on several fronts.
I conducted a survey on the site a few days ago asking if now was the right time to sell Agger:
* 5600 people (approx) took part.
* 48% of participants voted for Liverpool to sell Agger.
Given the Dane's massive popularity amongst the fanbase, this is a bit of a surprising result. I expected the majority of fans to vote NO, but almost 50% of voting fans believe it's the right time to sell.
To me, the result shows that fans are waking up the very real implications of Agger's injury history, the harsh realities of which I illustrated on Monday:
Given the figures revealed in the table above - figures of which FSG and Brendan Rodgers will undoubtedly be aware - I can't see a supportable argument for turning down £20m and keeping Agger at Anfield.
Jaimie Kanwar
Agger will be 28 in December, and Liverpool may never get another chance to command such a big fee for his services. Additionally, if Agger gets another long-term injury next season, his value will decrease, and the club will lose out on several fronts.
I conducted a survey on the site a few days ago asking if now was the right time to sell Agger:
* 5600 people (approx) took part.
* 48% of participants voted for Liverpool to sell Agger.
Given the Dane's massive popularity amongst the fanbase, this is a bit of a surprising result. I expected the majority of fans to vote NO, but almost 50% of voting fans believe it's the right time to sell.
To me, the result shows that fans are waking up the very real implications of Agger's injury history, the harsh realities of which I illustrated on Monday:
Given the figures revealed in the table above - figures of which FSG and Brendan Rodgers will undoubtedly be aware - I can't see a supportable argument for turning down £20m and keeping Agger at Anfield.
Jaimie Kanwar
52% is the majority
ReplyDeletedont sell .. because he is a principle player at liverpool ..without him the defense is so poor..this is bad news that 48% are with selling agger ...why?
ReplyDeleteI know that. What's your point?
ReplyDeleteWe need a top class ball-playing centre-half to play the way Rodgers wants us to play. If Agger goes, we will have a HUGE headache replacing him. Although his injury history is appalling, so you can understand why £20m would be difficult to turn down.
ReplyDeleteif we're talking £22m plus Adam Johnson - then i think we'd hae to look at it. Agger i injusry prone so proably a good idea to cash in now
ReplyDelete... although would not like to see him go either!
Perhaps you had a few City fans joining in the responses? The support from the fans at the ground last night was pretty comprehensive (assuming you ever get ther, you would have seen it for yourself!).
ReplyDeleteAgger is always going to miss a chunk of the season through injury. However we can't just sell him unless we have somebody of equal quality lined up. I would be very surprised if another club were willing to spend big on him given his injury record.
ReplyDeleteSend him to Barca in exchange for Tello and Affelay. Job done. He's a great player but he misses to many important games through injury.
ReplyDeleteWould you take £23 million plus Adam johnson, for Agger?
ReplyDeleteBecause after reading this article, i would... no question!
ReplyDeletekijkfkjdf
ReplyDeleteAdam Johnson is a poor man's Stewart Downing. Completely overrated. I'd rather keep Downing.
ReplyDeleteAh, yes, because support from the 0.00001% of the fanbase in the ground is representative of the entire fanbase. I bet you were there, right? Being the superfan that you are, I bet you have 'I go to Anfield!' tattooed on your forehead just to show everyone how cool you are.
ReplyDeleteI am not certain why you find it surprising. Agger is a class act the star defender at the recent euros and only 27. yes he has had his injury problems but they seem to be behind him. Considering the age Hyppia played to at Liverpool I wouldnt hesitate to give Agger a 5 year deal. WE should be keeping hold of our best players as over 43000 match going supporters indicated last night.
ReplyDeleteExactly what i thought Adrian ...then the thought that the 48% were citeh fans
ReplyDeleteThe reason the defense was rubbish was Dalglish
ReplyDeleteinsisted on replacing him with probably the worst
C/B in the prem.
Opta stat believers are not quite as dumb as kids playing CM with fake money while the Liverpool board actually have to have the money to buy players. But Opta stats say nothing about team influence as a players effect on the team, his composure on the pitch etc. As passing percentage in the stats do not reflect if the player passes forward or makes "negative" passes without risk.
ReplyDeleteYes, whatever conspiracy theory fits, eh?
ReplyDeleteHonestly? I would feel a whole lot more confident with Johnson in our starting XI as appose to Downing, also keeping in mind Johnson is still only 25 years of age, full of pace and skill with his best years undoubtedly still ahead of him. I find that with the right amount of minutes/opportunities under his belt, Johnson will become a powerhouse in the Premier league. This is all in addition to the 23 million of which a replacement of Agger can be bought.. It seems like a very good deal to me. Although we all love Agger, a deal must be struck IF it benefits the club.
ReplyDeleteWhen people do these stats just take the last 4 years do seasons i don't think 5-7 years ago really count in todays game.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm not mistaken in the survey the question asked was....not simply should we sell Agger ...but if we were offered over £22 million should we sell .... obviously the price makes all the difference ... I am a huge Suarez fan ...and delighted he is staying ....BUT....how would I feel if we were offered £50 million for him ...now that would be a hard choice ...we could buy at least two top players for that ...hence I do understand how the survey panned out ....had there been no price attached to the survey in my opinion it would more likely be at least 90% for him NOT to be sold .
ReplyDeletejust cant see any club paying any where near what liverpool are asking. i like what rogers is doing he,s basically telling the squad you all have your price. cant see aggar wanting the move he would be really happy playing i rogers style he will only be a back up at city and if hes left at home for europa away days it gives him the best chance to remain fit. would be interesting if city offered 25mil but i just cant see it happening.
ReplyDeleteits strange that not one comment is endorsing the sale of Agger when apparently nearly half wanted him sold?! Agger is a great defender, replaceable? yes....but i cannot see us being able to get someone in of his quality, understanding with Skrtel and passion for the club. He is also perfect for BR's type of football. A defender who prefers to play the ball out and is comfertable on it
ReplyDeleteLetting agger go will make no sense what so ever. Our most talented defender and here we keep banging on about needing more world class players to get us in top 4 of the premier league. Yes he's had his injuries, but last season he was not injury prone. The fans survey is not a true reflection and can be tampered with, plus majority still want him to stay if we are really pushing on the figures Jamie.
ReplyDeleteAll you need is to listen to the response at anfield last night to get an idea of how many want agger to stay. Ex-players, gerrard etc said it is important for Agger to stay. Now if it was a torres situation and the player wanted to go, we should sell and get as much as we can. The player wants to stay and again we always criticise people who have no passion for the club. Too many pros and not enough cons.....enough said really!!
Johnson , just like Downing only has a left foot. Very inconsistent, predictable and one dimensional . Not sure why people cream over him.
ReplyDeleteI can understand the reasons for selling him but what if it takes two years for the club to find a half fit replacement? That would be a huge set back.
ReplyDeleteThe main thing is Agger was out for 24 months. That means he was injured for about 3 out of the 7 seasons he was with us. Now that he is getting older, he may not heal as well etc. I would not want him to go, but I do want him to play at least 80% of the time. Playing 43% of the time really can't be good enough, can it?
ReplyDeleteJamie i think the proof is in the fact that every comment on both of your articles is in favour of keeping Agger. The 48% must come from "the others" (who know nothing...)
ReplyDeleteYou have a plausible point Jamie but,i think the real question is, why are these big name clubs looking to him to bolster their defenses? Can we say they are trying to help out Liverpool in some way seeing that he has aged and we need the money sort of thing? Are they blind or oblivious to the fact that he's injury prone and that he's been on the side-lines more than on the field? Obviously not, these clubs that want him know what he can do and are even prepared to for-go his injury record. Every one in the league is prone to nicks and injuries, if we are to focus on that as the main reason we should off load Agger, are we going to do the same lets say if it unfortunately happens to Lucas(Touch wood) during the first half of the season?Looking at him(Agger), he seems to be quite content with his presence at Anfield. We've heard Godin and some other guy from Swansea being linked as replacements. How long will it take for whoever comes in to gel with team as Agger does approaching the berth of the new season as is and you can bet your bottom dollar we wont see any other signing coming from swansea until the 12 month agreement between the club and BR phases.
ReplyDelete£20 million for Agger or £40m for fourth spot? I believe we need him to get back in the Champions league, so unless we get the £40m that we stand to lose by missing out on the top 4 again, then i say we keep him.
ReplyDeleteHowcome you want Agger to be the captain then?
ReplyDeletereplacing possibly the best centre back of the euros, a cult figure amongst the HARDCORE fans(as opposed to the internet warriors), and someone who displays such commitment to the club(YNWA) would be very difficult. Agger suits Rodgers playing style to a T and scores some goals here and there.
ReplyDeleteiMO it would be an extra headache trying to replace him at this stage, therefore, unless, as BR said, the offer is ridiculous (27m), id vote for keeping him.
As for the talk of getting the alcoholic, sick note Adam Johnson, as part of any deal with city, they can stick that up where the sun doesn't shine.
We'd be better off doing a deal with barca and part ex-ing some of their players.
Stevie G said last night that no one, including agger, wants him to be sold, and that's enough for me. he did also say that it may be out of his hands.
if one looks at the injuries agger has had, some are not brittle boned/sick note related as they were general things that could be deemed unlucky.
if we are indeed going the lyon/arsenal route, then the board will be open to high offer's for 'older' players. however, our defence was awesome last season and any disruption there could be a bigger problem than it need be.
id prefer martin turtle to be sold in all honesty.
Wanting to get rid of the best players and keeping the average ones at the club is mad. Money is good but if u want to compete u want to keep the best players. 50 million for El Niño, 30 for Alonso and 20 for Mascherano was very good money but where r we now.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who was at Anfield last night will know what fans really think. Massive support for him to go "nowhere".
ReplyDeletemicah richards and 15 million would be more benifit than another winger this would hamper young stering progress
ReplyDeleteI think its to late to replace him if it had of been earlier in the summer maybe but not with only a week to kick off. Defenders in my opinion always take longer to settle in.
ReplyDeleteSo fans who went to the game are the only true fans? What about the millions of fans who logisitically can't get to Anfield? Or can't afford it? Their views don't matter, right?
ReplyDeleteStop talking insular, superfan nonsense.
Of course they are not the only true fans but I think they give a more accurate representation than those who press a button on a computer. It is that support that the players take notice of not computer surveys.
ReplyDeletetotally agree Dalglish insisted on playing Carragher when it was patently obvious that he wasn't good enough
ReplyDeleteyou made it 48%... if you put an article now how brilliant he is and how well he fits in the system, then i bet that percentage you are blabbering about, will be very less. In fact i voted to sell too but after watching the match yesterday, I realised that it will be a big risk because he is really good.
ReplyDeleteYeah that's right we know nothing.
ReplyDeleteThere are plenty of quality defenders around who can be bought for less than £20m. For all his quality Agger wouldn't be much good to you if he couldn't play would he?
I voted no, and I'd vote no again. If he wants to stay then brilliant we'll keep him. But if we can get that much money or more for an injury prone player than great. If you were sick and unavailable for 47% of the days you could work in an office over the past 7 years I'd want to replace you even if you were the best I'd ever seen at your job.
Yeah Lee, we know nothing.
Jamie, I'd like to hear your thoughts.
Having said that Agger missed just about the equivalent of 3 out of the 7 seasons he's been with us. Man City at this stage can afford to partner Agger with Kompany with Lescott and Savic coming in as cover. It would be a good way to blood in Savic and to maintain both Lescott and Agger's longevity. To do that you need a lot of money to let these players happy - like Man City super wealth kind of money. We don't have that and we may have to look more practically. Godin coming into Liverpool is better for our longevity in not just the development of Coates but to get the cash to invest elsewhere. Furthermore, BR sides are meant to benefit from winning possesion back further up the pitch so there is less of a reliance on a strong pairing at the back. As much as it hurst me to concede: Godin is a good replacement for Agger and having another attacking player come in with the cash would be very astute business.
ReplyDeleteSome of those months were during the off season. How do you know they were all injuries and he wasn't just dropped?
ReplyDeleteI was one of those who said it was ok to sell him for 27 mln or 23 + Adam Johnson on a season-long loan, but watching him yesterday (the usual back four), I thought maybe it's better to keep him
ReplyDeleteThing is Jamie, players like Agger come few and far between these days. Did you see his new tattoo? Even if he spends half the season injured, his passion and love for LFC can be contagious due to his role model appeal. There aren't many which play for the shirt as he does. Let's be honest, most of us fans become attached to players like that, and quite frankly, if we can blow the millions we blew last season, then we can keep a world class, red legend on the books.
ReplyDeleteIt does not give a more accurate representation. You're talking like an old great grandpa that fears lamenting about modern times.
ReplyDeleteWould not like to see agger go but give him to barca in return for tello and why not sanchez
ReplyDeleteI don't think he meant it that way, he was just saying.
ReplyDeleteOk Jamie i got a hard one for u, do u want lfc to build a team or break it up? bcoz in the past when we sold our bests they became hard to replace. The thing is when he plays with us our defnse looks impenetrable,seriously. We need to build up a team and right know we need one super winger to complete the team, cant we wait for next season to strengthen rather than selling Agger. Except for Lucas i cant see a player who can defend like Agger does. So who will we replace him with. Even if we do replace him its gonna be a gamble u know. If mancity are willing to spend 30million plus Johnson than only we shud talk.
ReplyDeleteanyway why would u ship away a player who wants to stay? Get Reina away and Cole and Carroll to raise money.
ReplyDeleteBy th way i found a cool reina replacement-Fernando Muslera, excellent GK of Uruguay, and ex-Lazio player, currently plying his trade in Galatasaray.
Reina(20m to PSG), Cole(2m to West ham+we have to pay 50%wages for 1st season), Carroll (12m to Newcastle). Does it sound good.
It does. Surveys like this mean very little to the players for those reasons.
ReplyDeleteif to ManCity i would like cash n player
ReplyDeleteI really don't understand all this hype about Tello
ReplyDeleteAsk a loaded question and feign surprise when more than normal are led to agree with your stance? Really?
ReplyDeleteIn an age of the gun for hire player Agger should be commended for his loyalty. City would increase his wages substantially yet he wants to stay. We would be idiots to sell one of the best defenders in the world. He's not as injury prone as he used to be. If we only play him in league games I'd be fine with that. However much City pay we're not going to get another defender as good, or as loyal, as Agger. Get him and Skrtel on new contracts. Now.
ReplyDeleteit's definitely a tough call - especially w/ the YNWA tattoo on Agger's fingers. I guess the only argument against is if LFC could use some of the proceeds to then afford a world class replacement - but if Godin is really available for 10-15 then yes if the right offer comes along. (if LFC get Godin & Gaston then they're going to have include elements of Uruguay's flag or something in their crest.)
ReplyDeleteIt's good if Barca are interested b/c then LFC can reasonably tell league rivals (like Citeh) they'll have to pay a premium. This way Barca, or other foreign clubs, could get him for 20 mil plus maybe add-ons (like an Afellay loan) whereas Citeh have to be closer to 25 mil w/ an Adam Johnson loan.
Liverpool is becoming a feeder club...Alonso who was perfect at Liverpool goes to Madrid and somehow becomes more than perfect, torres to chelsea, started off crap but then found his form...all big clubs have kept their best players...Man U with Rooney, Ferdinand...CHELSEA with Terry and Lampard, and kept drogba as long as they could...arsenal with Van Persie...Liverpool need to keep good players, like Suarez with him staying til 2016, Gerrard obviously staying, carragher staying for a season more or two, reina had his doubts but stays with us, we need to keep Agger, he has made his point that he wants to stay with the club, he even tatood YNWA on his knuckles anyone who saw the game against gomal last night would have seem it...Brendan wants to keep him but will sell him for a ridiculous price, i say agger shouldn't even be out for sell at all
ReplyDeleteFans should have at least some say on what the hell goes on because frankly I am tired of Werner thinking he knows a lot about football yet he doesn't come to watch our games he spends his time running a baseball team, you can't own a HIGH PROFILE english football club such as Liverpool with all their success they've had in the past and now Wener and Henry should come to watch our games more often and see who can play with us, and see our opposing teams players and what they have to offer, Players should be lined up outside Brendan's office just to say what they have for him, not teams looking to take ours...
YNWA JFT96
Saying we wouldn't mind losing Agger because the money is too good to turn down is merely a defence mechanism.
ReplyDeleteOne I was guilty of myself.
Fact is that we should keep him regardless of the offer. How many times have we received "good money" and not adequately replaced the player?
Alonso and Torres are the 2 that come to mind.
"a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush"
We won't replace him easily, his injury record is bad alright but showed signs of improvement recently
The agger dilemma is a tricky one, yes he is a great defender and with carra probably looking to retire soonish(2 more years) every Liverpool fan would love to keep agger. But as Jamie has stated and backed up with facts agger has not been consistently fit at Liverpool, check the amount of games played for him over the last 3 years compared to Reina and carra and its simply not good enough.
ReplyDeleteYes we want to keep our best players and yes agger is one of them but losing agger wouldn't be such a bad thing as everyone has said.
But if I had the choice I'd rather keep him but it's not the end of the world of he goes especially considering we have decent young CBs coates, Kelly and I'm sure Danny wilson needs to start looking the part other wise it'll be too late
I do not believe this, Selling him will be a completely stupid decision! Yes, he has been injury prone, but he is one of the best defenders playing the game. The competition to buy him by such big teams itself a statement of his quality! As a Liverpool fan, I would want to see him in the RED's No. 5 jersey in the next and many more seasons to come! YNWA!
ReplyDeleteWow, 2688 people don't have a clue what they're talking about.
ReplyDeleteAgger is our best defender, by a distance. With him Skrtel and Enrique are not much more than average and the entire team suffers without him.
The figures JK has used, while accurate, are flawed. Agger played very little in the season he arrived because Carra and Sami were one of the best partnerships in the world. His only truly ruined season injury wise was 07/08. That that season and a half out of the equation and Agger's injury record, while not great, is not as bad as people think. You can also throw in the games missed under Hodgson because those were Hodgson's fault rather than Agger's. Agger had a concussion and Hodgson played him against City causing him to miss some extra games, Hodgson then refused to consider him for selection. Likely because he doesn't like central defenders to actually have any footballing ability.
There are 5 central defenders on the same level as Agger. Pique, Silva, Kompany, Hummels and Vidic. We are not going to be getting any of those and anyone else would be a step down. And also, anybody else would not be able to carry Skrtel and Enrique the way Agger does. Look at Skrtel in the seasons before last and compare him with last season. Average and error prone to borderline world class. Why? Agger. Look at Enrique from August to Feb last season, then look at him after Agger's injury in the Carling Cup final. Quality to abysmal. Reason? No Agger. It's not just those two. Look at the difference in Simon Kjaer for the Danish national team compared to at club level. Difference? No Agger. You can look at Carragher's form over the last 4 years and tie it in with Agger's presence as well.
The 2688 need to have a little word with themselves.
Oh and one more point, Agger has played more games than Steven Gerrard 54 to 49, should we sell Gerrard as well??
ReplyDeleteSterling is years away from the first team, and why would we want Micah Richards? He's a mediocre central defender who quite clearly is better at right back. We have Glen Johnson.
ReplyDeleteCheck your facts again. He has not missed 3 of the 7 seasons. He has not been here 7 seasons. He has been here 6 and a half seasons. The first half season he was behind Carra and Sami - one of Europe's best pairings. The second season he was a regular. The third season he missed almost all of. The fourth season he was regularly swapped with Skrtel as Rafa tried to figure out his best defence. The 5th season he missed games because Hodgson didn't like a cultured CB and last season he played most of our games missing out only with two freak injuries unconnected to anything that's troubled him in the past.
ReplyDeleteOh, and Godin has been garbage for the past 2 years and would not be a good replacement for Agger at all. Style wise he's similar to Skrtel, nothing like Agger.
ReplyDeleteYou clearly haven't seen much of Johnson so.
ReplyDeleteSell him with the highest price and bring Mamadou Sakho or Mats Hummell as replacement.He always get injured.But please keep Martin Skrtel.He is very consisten player.
ReplyDeleteWell the fans at the game are a pretty good gauge. Do you think the club thinks anything of an opinion of a "fan" who doesn't pay money over the gate because they'd rather spend their money on a few tininess whilst watching Sky Sports?
ReplyDeleteYour view is predictably insular, and with the greatest respect, ignorant. Buying tickets is not the only way fans contribute cash to the club. There are fans who don't go to games who spend shedloads more merchandise, shirts and clothing, LFC membership and lots of other income streams. You seriously need to stop disrespecting fans who don't live in the UK, who are unable to travel to see the club play. Plus, it's not as if everyone has the money to be able to afford to got to Anfield regularly, so you're also disrespecting those who aren't rolling money.
ReplyDeleteTommy - I agree with you. The facts speak for themselves. Agger can't be that important to the team if he's missing nearly 50% of the time. Given his age and injury history, LFC may never get another opportunity to command such a huge fee for him. From this point onwards, his value will probably only decrease, and that will happen quicker if - as history suggests - he gets another injury this season.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say fans took part how do you grade a fan, I can tell you as an anfield regular that most fans want him to stay and it's the fans that goto games that are the real fans and I think it was blatant at the last game that Agger is very much wanted infact a lot of fans would rather see the manager go before AGGER
ReplyDeleteAnd how exactly are they respecting you?
ReplyDeleteStop having a complex about me being insular. Your view is insular in that you haven't made mention of the support he got from the 43,000 fans at the game in comparison to your little survey, which you can't qualify if it was only answered by LFC fans. This is not about being insular, its about you distorting facts.
If the Club decide to sell Agger for a profitable price ,it would be very difficult to get an equally good player in his position and fit in immediately with the added pressure of replacing a class player and playing for Liverpool weighing over him.Moreover the Premier League is just a week away so i doubt we'll sell him late in the transfer window leaving us with little time to look for a replacement , albeit stranger things have happened in football.I just hope he is not sold and remains injury free this season.
ReplyDeleteJaimie you obviously weren't at the match on Thursday when "Agger's going nowhere" was ringing round the ground. That's the majority my friend, not a bunch of internet spivs who've never been to a football match in their lives. And for the record, it doesn't matter where you come from, I've just been to the States on the pre-season tour and met fanatical fans from America who agree with me. Am I insular? We all have an opinion, only actual Liverpool fans don't post shit on the internet about flogging one of their best players. Dickhead.
ReplyDelete