Liverpool Transfer News: What Will Become of Alberto Aquilani This Summer?

Liverpool have made some major changes to their midfield corps this summer under new manager Kenny Dalglish.

The Reds have been wheeling and dealing with the best of them this summer and have already landed a troika of talented attacking midfielders in Jordan Henderson, Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing.

When combined with the players already at Anfield, it gives the Reds one of the deepest, most versatile midfields in the Premiership.

However, the moves also create a bit of a logjam in the centre of the midfield for the Reds. While depth is good, too much depth means that talented players worthy of playing time won't get it.

So, Dalglish is working to wheel and deal to get rid of a few of the surplus parts in an effort to clear some space (and playing time on the roster), and few players have been linked to moves out of Anfield more often than Alberto Aquilani. 

But is the talented playmaker actually headed out of the club?

The Italian attacking midfielder has had a long, strange journey at the Kop, despite being there for all of one season.

He was purchased from Roma in 2009 by Rafa Benitez as a replacement for Xabi Alonso but was used sparingly and was loaned out to Juventus the next summer by Roy Hodgson. 

Many figured Aquilani would head back to Juve this summer, but Dalglish's £13 million asking price scared the Italian giants away. 

Since then, several clubs have expressed an interest, but each time, either the fee or Aquilani's £70,000 per-week wages have frightened off potential suitors, leading his agent to declare that the Italian was likely staying at Liverpool at various points this summer. 

Does that mean that the 27-year-old attacking whiz is doomed to be relegated to the bench next season, a victim of a price too high for his suitors to pay?

Not necessarily. There is still at least one suitor interested in freeing Aquilani from the logjam at Anfield: Fiorentina.

The Viola have offered to pay the £13 million Dalglish is demanding for the talented midfielder, and several Fiorentina players have expressed support for a move to land the Italian international. 

But even the Viola may have been scared away from landing Aquilani, courtesy of those £70,000 per-week wages. In fact, an ESPNSoccernet reported that Aquilani's agent has continued his naysaying surrounding a potential departure from Anfield, saying his client is "definitely" staying put. 

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His agent, Franco Zavaglia, told Radio Mana Mana: "Aquilani will definitely stay at Liverpool."

"Alberto has got over his ankle problem, he's back in the international setup and has the characteristics needed to do well in the Premier League.

"He's in preseason training with Liverpool and has played in all of the team's summer tour games so far."

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So, the talented offensive force is doomed to the life of a reserve at the Kop, right? Wrong. 

If his play during the club's East Asian tour is any indication, Aquilani is ready to give the rest of the Reds' midfielders all they can handle in the fight for places in Dalglish's squad.

Given the chance to play an attacking role in the middle, the Italian has thrived in a major way, becoming the offensive force many expected him to be and playing a key role in the offense's success. 

As long as Aquilani delivers this kind of play for Liverpool, Dalglish can't bury him on the bench. He's still not likely to start, but as a change of pace midfielder, the talented scorer should be a perfect fit for the Reds.

He brings energy and intensity to the pitch, and as long as he's turned loose offensively, he can thrive. 

What will become of Alberto Aquilani at Anfield? Given his agent's comments (seriously, has any agent ever been so negative about his client's chances of getting a new position?), it's pretty clear he's not going anywhere.

But given his level of play this summer, don't expect to see him fade into the background at the Kop, either.

As long as Dalglish gets him on the pitch, he'll thrive in his attacking scheme and will have an impact on their chances next season.