Liverpool have something to gain from Agger swap deal

Rewind back to 2010 and it was Roy Hodgson as Liverpool manager pursuing Gokhan Inler as one of his leading transfer targets.

This transfer obviously never materialised, with Inler staying put at Udinese, before being sold to fellow Serie A club Napoli in the following summer.

However, Brendan Rodgers is now considering Inler as a possible acquisition to boost his slightly thin midfield in terms of squad depth, but it may take a player swap to enable this deal to progress.

Former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez was responsible for bringing Daniel Agger to Anfield and is now keen to be reunited with the central defender again.

Agger has had to be content with a bit-part role this season, starting only nine Premier League games and seemingly falling below Mamadou Sakho in the battle to be Liverpool’s left-sided centre half.

Given that central defence is one area of the pitch where they possibly have a surplus of players, Agger is far from indispensable, especially if it means strengthening the Liverpool midfield.

Doing this must be considered a lift to Liverpool’s chances of finishing in the Premier League’s top four this season, which can currently be backed at 10/11.

Despite being two years older, Inler would potentially represent an improvement on Lucas in the deeper midfield role, with the Brazilian not quite the force of old since missing over six months with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

Inler would also be a solid fit into Rodgers’ passing philosophy as he plays more passes on average than any over Napoli player this season, while he rivals Steven Gerrard in terms of successful long passes.

Alternatively, Liverpool could look to make the deal for Pepe Reina permanent, who has spent the first half of this season on loan at Napoli.