These potential sales could leave us threadbare

Following the departure of Alberto Aquilani on a season-long loan to Juventus, and the sale of Krisztian Nemeth to Olympiakos for £1 million, Dirk Kuyt is the latest Liverpool player to be linked with a move away from the club.  Kuyt has been identified as a potential target for Rafa Benitez’s Inter Milan before, and the former Liverpool manager has often expressed his admiration for the hard-working Dutch international.  This time, however, the news of a possible transfer to Inter apparently originates from the player himself.

According to the Dutch media, Dirk Kuyt has revealed that Liverpool have now received a bid and he is now considering a move to Italy be reunited with Benitez.  Some reports suggest that the offer is in the region of £8 million, whilst others expect the transfer to be completed for up to £15 million. It was only a few days ago that Roy Hodgson assured Liverpool fans that Inter would not be attempting to buy any Liverpool players, but although a move for Javier Mascherano now looks unlikely, there is renewed speculation as to whether Kuyt will remain a Liverpool player for much longer.

In addition, there are rumours that Barcelona are curently negotiating with Liverpool for the transfer of Mascherano.  The Argentinean would surely see Spain as the ideal environment for his family and would regard Barcelona as one of the few other clubs in the world with the prestige to match his ambitions (this was not the issue at Liverpool if the player’s comments are to be believed).  Hodgson has reiterated his desire to keep Mascherano at the club, but if Barcelona are able to meet the asking price (believed to be in the region of £25 million) then it seems inevitable that he would join the Catalanian club before the transfer window closes on August 31.

If both Kuyt and Mascherano leave (and it is by no means certain that either one or both of them will do so) then Liverpool will lose two regular first-team players.  With the departure of Aqualini having already been completed, and the uncertainty about the left-back position, where does this leave Liverpool in terms of having a squad with enough quality and depth to challenge for a top four place?

Hodgson has already signed Christian Poulsen from Juventus for a fee of around £4.5 million.  Poulsen has a reputation of being an uncompromising defensive midfielder, although both he and Hodgson are keen to emphasise other aspects to his repetoire which may promote creative and attacking play, such as his passing ability.  The arrival of Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic should provide more options in attack, and there are some promising young players – such as Dani Pacheco, who was recently assigned the no. 12 jersey – who may feature more this season.  But will we ultimately need more signings if we are to achieve our target of a top four finish this season, as well as coping with the exigencies of a Europa Cup campaign and domestic cups?  Are Liverpool too fragile to withstand the pressure this year?

With less than 10 days to go before the end of the transfer window, time is running out for Liverpool to address the perceived weaknesses in the squad.  We have been linked with a number of different players, most recently Bryan Ruiz (again), David Trezeguet, Roque Santa Cruz, Carlos Salcido, Victor Obinna and Ola Toivonen, to name but a few.   As the transfer deadline looms ever closer, Liverpool fans will be wondering what the team will be like after the end of the month; who will arrive, and who will go.

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