7 Sept 2013

The End is Nigh: €14m LFC star discussed Anfield exit with top boss. Next to leave...?

The future of Martin Skrtel continues to be a hot topic amongst Liverpool fans, and although the transfer window is now closed, the addition of THREE new central defenders means that speculation is likely to continue right up to the next ransfer window. Skrtel admitted this week that he 'thought about leaving' over the summer, and reports today suggest that Napoli will be back in for the Slovakian in January.

Speaking to Slovakian website sport.aktuality on Tuesday, Skrtel admitted that Rafa Benitez 'approached' him over the summer, adding:

"I would be lying to say that I have not thought about leaving. There were other alternatives, but my transfer was not as likely as the media suggested"

During last Friday's broadcast of Italian football show SportItalia, journalist Alfredo Pedulla - formerly of Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport - claimed that:

* Skrtel's move to Napoli will now take place in January.
* Benitez discussed the transfer with Skrtel on the phone 'a few times'
* Further negotiation could take place 'in the coming weeks'

€14m-rated Skrtel put in a superb man-of-the-match performance during Liverpool's recent 1-0 victory over Manchester United - for which he deserves great credit - but with Sakho, Ilori, Agger and Toure all vying for first team places - and Rodgers clearly not a big fan - it still seems likely that the Slovakian will leave sooner rather than later.

On the face of it, Skrtel seems to have all the attributes to be a top class central defender, but the idea of Skrtel - a big, strong, no-nonsense, tattooed skinhead who strikes fear into the hearts of strikers - is far more effective than the actual defender.

Some may argue that Skrtel suffered as a result of Rodgers approach, which demands he spend more time with the ball at his feet, and less time hoofing it forward, and whilst there may be a grain of truth to that, the simple truth (IMO) is that he is prone to costly lapses of concentration, and last season proved that (again) beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Ultimately, the pertinent question is this: Would Liverpool suffer if Skrtel left the club? The answer is clearly no, which makes the Slovakian eminently expendable.



NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)


37 comments:

  1. I feel sad for the guy who has to adapt to a different style of play and was player of the year 2 seasons ago. We can see this predicament happening in other clubs too when managers change, like mata at Chelsea which is quite crazy when we think about it. Good luck skrtel YNWA.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ill second that he always gives his all so i wish him well....i hope he discovers his form as he has had some outstanding games for Liverpool over the seasons....but maybe a change will do him good as i dont think his face fits under rogers

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think skrtel has been a good servant to this club since he arrived always giving his best and sometimes making mistakes like agger did and all the defenders do all the time, but why dont people judge agger as well for his mistakes but only skrtel, thats unfair and I think the lad deserves a bit more respect, it would have been better to let him go in summer after so many signings of defenders we made, now he will suffer another 5 months before january he probably wont play in cups either with the numbers of defenders we have now, another victim, feel for him hope he finds a good club and moves on from this unjustice rodgers is doing to him.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It will be a shame to see captian madface (redmen TV's nickname for skrtel) leave the club, but I think he will do well in Italy.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks to Brendan we are losing our best players little by little and still we will not be in the top four since Purslow came.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Which ones and why won't we be in the top 4?

    ReplyDelete
  7. highly thought of or respected players over the last 7 years other then gerard and carra
    Kuyt,,johnson,lucas,agger,skrtel,reina,
    everyone agree?
    all of them stuck by us in our most troubled times
    and i respect them as much as the players that won us trophies like rush , daglish etc
    no doubt they are always welcome at anfield
    its disgusting that they had to play with someone like suarez

    ReplyDelete
  8. I like the fact that rodgers is ruthless
    but skrrtel had the chance to join city and committed to lfc
    surely we should give some back

    ReplyDelete
  9. jamie do you think its hypocritical, that lfc ask suarez for loyalty
    but dont show the same to a player who could have moved to a more competitive team only a year ago and decided to commit to lfc?
    why should players be loyal when the club is not ?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Mark my words , agger who could not have had been more loyal to lfc
    will be sold next year for iloris and sakho to take his position
    imo i dont think fans should keep calling "judas" for every player that leaves like torres and owen
    as the club is also a "judas"

    ReplyDelete
  11. He is a good player now, we have built him since he was 23, now that he has the experience, we must keep him...

    ReplyDelete
  12. Stuarezinho , football is simple
    clubs do whats in their best interest
    players do what is in their best interests
    i think everyone apart from fans accept this
    anyway skrtel is not that good

    ReplyDelete
  13. "Prone to costly lapses of concentration"
    Nail on the head.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Remember we have got a top player in Sakho to come in. From what i've heard he wanted to leave PSG to play games and be an important part of a project instead of sitting a bench and being a squad player at a mega rich club. We need a leader a the back and this guys has got the skills to fill that role, those key skills that sadly Skrtel lacks.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Yes skrtel does give his all but the problem is he does really daft things that cost games, if there is one place you want a player to be reliable and cool under pressure that's Center back. I think BR lost faith in him and for that reason alone i would have put money on him being moved on but guess BR had a change of heart?? It said it all when he got dropped for Carra even when it was obvious Carra was struggling to do 90 mins (what does that tell you)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Skrtel is a yellow card waiting to happen. He often gives away silly free kicks in dangerous areas.

    ReplyDelete
  17. It gets on my tits when players call signing for a club a "project" :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Agger has been a great player for us and provides great experience. But don't forget the club has stuck with him despite him missing a lot of football through a series of injuries.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Realistically, he's not developed as we hoped he would, time for him to move on.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I don't think Rogers personally has it in for Skrtel, or indeed any player. Yes he's a good player but to me the problem with the Agger - Skrtel partnership is there is they don't show enough leadership hence why Carra was brought back. Ultimately I think he decided one had to be dropped and Skrtel paid for performances against Oldham & Stoke.
    Toure has already shown he has that ability to lead & organise as good as Carra.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Every manger that comes into a club has a project. Shanks was to make liverpool this invincible team and Fergies was to knock liverpool of their perch. Im sure that Rodgers told Sakho that Liverpool aim is to get back in the top 4 and them to eventually embark on that holy grail of bagging the 19th title.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Another player Jaime doesn't like so goes on his witch head hunting articles. Skrtel is class Jaime. Jaime you make me laugh with your blown over the top comments such as ' and last season proved (again) without a shadow of doubt '. Please explain to us Jaime how last season was a repeat of previous seasons? The year before he was player of the year. He has been rock solid prior to last year. The facts are there we had one of the best defences over the last few years. Jaime just stick to the facts. It is one of the reasons I've stopped reading your pathetic unsabstantiated articles. The only reason I popped in was because your article appeared on newsnow. Get a life and get behind the team. How about sayi g something constructive for once. You have reaffirmed why you are despised so much at Anfield. If I was u I wouldn't set foot in that place unless your well disguised .

    Your a disgrace to our club

    ReplyDelete
  23. Fair comment mate, lfc is in my blood, it's more than just a "project" to me but iam well aware it's just a job to some people :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. All top players are paid obscene money for doing what they love, it's hard to have too much sympathy for them when you compare their lifestyles to what i would call real heroes

    ReplyDelete
  25. Tiago Illori is a replacement for Coates, when he returns from injury at the end of the season he will most likely be sold or at least, not play for us again.


    That leaves Agger, Toure, Skrtel, Sakho and Illori.


    Agger is always an injury risk and some people tip him to leave next season. Toure will be 33 and Illori is unproven. We finally have some depth, so why get rid of it and sell Skrtel? United have 5 centre backs. It makes no sense to me. 4 Centre backs is enough, 5 may be too many because 1 may never get a game, but Toure is not a long term option at all, Agger is an injury risk, Illori is way too inexperienced. Should definitely keep Skrtel.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Skrtel and Agger had a good game against United and were under the pump in the second half. It will highlight Rodger's negligence if he shuns Skrtel after a man of the match performance. If they can do it against United, they can do it against any team. I would not have Illori in my team for any of our other centre backs and Sakho has not even played a game for us, Toure is not a long term option at all. Keeping Skrtel is the best option for me.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I think it's fairly obvious he'll be gone soon. In ways I'll miss him, always liked Skrtel but there was always a mistake in him. I'm sure Sakho will be an upgrade. No room to be sentimental unfortunately.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Skertel has had no competition for his place until now.
    some might say Jamie Carragher but Jamie always seemed to be first option for Liverpool. Now though its a new start for skertel and i think he has a lot to prove and that he will show how good he is from now until January.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Agger is injury prone and Toure cannot play every week. So Skrtel has up till Jan to prove himself.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Both Agger and Skrtel are not good enough. Agger especially he has been terrible so far this season. I would prefer a Toure and Sakho CB partnership.

    ReplyDelete
  31. This season look like Skrtelalready learn from past mistake.LFC should give him a second chance to prove that he is already to be shining again. LFC must get sign Kryiakos Papadoulos to replace him if they realy serious want to sell him.Sell or not.LFC must get sign papadoulos to protect clean sheet record for this season.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Yup but reina's statement really disappointed a lot of fans regarding his intentions towards barca. I strongly agree BR made the right move bringing in mignolet and moving reina's wages off. He has been a great servant but his time is up cos his loyalty is gone. But what loyalty? I've probably only seen real loyalty from Agger, Lucas (not saying the rest that u mentioned are not)

    ReplyDelete
  33. The saying about one swallow not making a summer comes to mind. I continually read about Skrtel being player of the year the season before last. yes, but he was generally poor in the seasons before that and also last season - that's why he was dropped. One good game against United does not make up for his general form which is inconsistent and error-prone. I wonder how many reds fans feel a sudden sense of anxiety when he gets possession or goes into a tackle in an area where giving a free kick away would be dangerous?

    ReplyDelete
  34. Felt it was a bit strange that Skrtel didn't much of a look in when Rodgers dropped the defensive line deeper and play more counter attacking in the second half of last season. As that change surely would have suited him better than what we were playing in the second half of last season. Could possibly depend on Rodger's outlook for the future, in terms of tactics and whether he is comfortable with using Skrtel in that. Never been a fan of Agger or Skrtel, so won't be shedding any tears if and when they are gone. Best days came when they were protected by conservative tactics by Rafa and a strong central midfield (although weren't bad for a period under KK )

    ReplyDelete
  35. sako is our future and should be played from the off....we need someone who strikers dont fancy challenging with in the air or on the deck and i think sako is that guy.....

    ReplyDelete
  36. Style, not good enough, lost it, whatever the reason, if a player doesn't function anymore, plays less often and wants to leave, then so be it. We'd be stupid to let him go in January though unless the new lads have really shown they're better options. If not, we should keep our squad together as much as possible, maybe even one addition in January and allow the players who can leave, to leave in the summer. If we're serious about challenging for top four, I don't think we should be taking any risks by letting players leave in January.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I agree. I absolutely live Dagger but he, like Skrtel has been error prone of late. He will also benefit from competition. When all are fit, I'd fancy Sakho & Tour'o'...with Agger & Skrtel as back up CM, and also with Agger as back up to Lucas as i think he's got all the qualities for a good DM.

    ReplyDelete