Daniel Agger: Has the great Dane had his day?

By asking this question I am not saying that Daniel Agger has become a poor player, I’m not saying that he is not still a very capable centre half, I am just wondering if the best outcome for both parties is for them to go their separate ways.

Daniel Agger has been a cornerstone of the Liverpool FC back four since the then manager Rafa Benitez brought him to the club in 2006 from Danish club Brondby. Agger has an affinity with the club and the fans that are shown in his performances, the interviews he gives and the tattoo’s that cover his body.

Agger has impressed us all with his excellence in defence and his wonderful goals. I remember that strike against West Ham at the Kop-End as he strode masterfully out of defence before unleashing an unstoppable 40 yard effort into the top corner of the goal. And who can forget the cleverly worked free kick in the 2nd Leg of the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea.

Things have not always been rosy for Agger at Anfield though, he had an unhappy spell under Roy Hodgson, who’s idea of lumping the ball out from the back went against the Dane’s natural instincts to pass the ball out, to step into midfield to help start attacks, to actually play football, he has had long spells out of the team through injury and he has struggled physically when up against teams such as Stoke and certain types of striker such as Didier Drogba, Victor Anichebe and more recently Romelu Lukaku.

When Brendan Rodgers took over it looked like a match made in heaven, a manager with a philosophy of playing out from the back and a centre back who is happiest with the ball at his feet. However one of the first things Brendan Rodgers did was to give Martin Skrtel a new and improved contract, a strange decision given that Skrtel has never been comfortable on the ball and seemed more suited to Roy Hodgson’s style of football than Rodgers’. It was even stranger given that rumours were flying around that Manchester City were preparing a bid for Daniel Agger. No official bid was made though and Agger started the 2012/13 season as Liverpool’s first choice centre back once more.

Liverpool and Agger had worked hard to improve his fitness during the off season and Agger went on to make more appearances and play more minutes than any other season in his Liverpool career. It looked as though Rodgers would build his defence around the Danish international and in October 2012 Agger was rewarded with a new deal.

At the start of the 2013/14 season Agger was awarded the Vice-Captaincy after the retirement of Jamie Carragher and it appeared that there would be no way that Liverpool would consider selling the Dane, no matter what the offer. There were strong rumours that both Barcelona and Manchester City had made firm offers for him during the Summer window but Agger was quoted as saying “Everyone at the club is an integral part of my life – I even have a YNWA [You'll Never Walk Alone] tattoo! Frankly I don’t mind if we don’t finish in the top four, I love the club.”

By the final days of the summer transfer window however, things appeared to be changing, Liverpool had just confirmed the signing of French central defender Mamadou Sakho from PSG for a fee in the region of £17million pounds. Sakho, who is 23 had been signed with one eye on the future for sure but he is an experienced player with 16 caps for the national team and as Sakho explained, he had joined Liverpool in an attempt to get back into the French national squad after a lack of first team football to PSG had led to him being dropped from the squad and with a World Cup approaching he needs to be playing first team football regularly again.

Whilst Liverpool signing a new centre back shouldn’t have been a shock, the fact that he plays in Daniel Agger’s position certainly was. Both players are left footed and have played the majority of their careers as a left sided centre back. That is a key fact when considering what Liverpool’s options are when it comes to dealing with Agger and Sakho.

Unless Liverpool are going to play a back 3 for the rest of the season and beyond then I cannot see Agger playing alongside Sakho nor can I see him displacing Sakho as the first choice left sided central defender anytime soon. In fact, manager Brendan Rodgers preferred Martin Skrtel as the left sided centre back in the recent defeat against Hull City. Has Agger now dropped to third choice left centre back in the squad?

If that is proven to be the case then Liverpool has a dilemma, Agger has been exceptionally loyal to Liverpool over his career with the Reds, he has never moaned when the club have failed to win trophies or when they fell out of the Champions League, he has never rocked the boat and asked for a transfer.

Loyalty such as that is extremely rare in football and Liverpool have benefitted greatly from it. It is Liverpool’s time to repay that loyalty and If Brendan Rodgers cannot guarantee Daniel Agger first team football then at the age of 28 the club should not stand in the way of him leaving the club.

The summer is the club’s best chance of getting a substantial fee for the Dane and it would also allow them to get his £80k per week wages off the wage bill.

So should the club stick or twist with Agger?

Has the Great Dane had his day?