Ranking Liverpool Players Most Likely to Be Sold or Loaned Out in January
Even with the addition of the UEFA Champions League to Liverpool's schedule this season, there still aren't enough minutes going around to keep everyone satisfied.
The January transfer window isn't too far away now. Besides 2011, when they sold Fernando Torres to Chelsea and signed Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez, the Reds aren't renowned for being busy midway through a campaign.
Fans will focus more on potential incomings than those heading for the exit, and the relatively small size of the first-team squad at Anfield is unlikely to see too many departures.
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Still, there's no harm in trying to forecast the identity of those fringe players who could be on the move. Using Liverpool's first-team squad list from the official site, we've picked half a dozen potential departures.
Emre Can did not make the list. While the midfielder's contract is due to expire next summer, there seems little possibility of Klopp allowing a key player to depart without having a replacement arrive first.
While it increases the risk of losing him for nothing in the summer, there's little benefit in selling the Germany international.
The same applies to Philippe Coutinho, who will not be leaving Anfield for Barcelona in January despite what the Spanish press may claim.
6. Daniel Sturridge
This always had the feeling of a make-or-break season for Sturridge at Anfield.
The England international scored just three Premier League goals in 20 appearances in the 2016/17 campaign, as yet another year in his career was disrupted by injuries.
There were promising signs back in July when Klopp declared the striker was in the best shape since he took charge.
"We don't have to talk about what a difference he could make, everybody knows about it. We just need to have it. We need him fit," the German told James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo.
Of course, not long after those words were published, Sturridge suffered a hamstring problem in a pre-season friendly against Bayern Munich.
Sturridge has started just three league games since recovering from the untimely setback, the last of which was a disappointing outing against Newcastle United when he fluffed a clear one-on-one opportunity.
If he's not taking the chances that come his way, there's little other reason for the 28-year-old to be in the team.
While Liverpool will be reticent to lose Sturridge in January, there may be a tipping point when an offer from a club desperate for goals proves too good to refuse.
With summer signing Dominic Solanke also now in the squad to add depth up front, the Reds could just about afford to lose one member of their forward line despite having a relatively shallow squad.
Possible destination: Liverpool's likely high asking price could be a stumbling block for many. Newcastle United makes some sense, as might a return to London to join struggling Crystal Palace.
5. Adam Bogdan/Danny Ward
Liverpool have four senior goalkeepers listed on their squad page. That feels like one too many—and Simon Mignolet and Loris Karius aren't going anywhere in a hurry.
Bogdan is the most likely to leave. He's an unwanted leftover from a previous regime and is at the bottom of the pecking order. But what if Ward has the chance to go out on loan again?
Having remained on Merseyside in the summer, the Welshman—who helped Huddersfield Town secure promotion to the Premier League in May—has made just one first-team appearance this season.
His solitary outing saw a much-changed Liverpool lose 2-1 at Leicester City in the Carabao Cup. Ward did little wrong in the game, yet the result has left him lacking further opportunities to press his claims for the No. 1 job.
He is not even getting games for Wales either at the moment, as he's stuck behind Crystal Palace's Wayne Hennessey in the pecking order.
Barring injuries to his rivals, Ward may have to wait until the FA Cup comes around to get another go in the first XI. If Liverpool suffer an early exit in that competition, a temporary switch would be beneficial to all parties concerned.
Possible destination: Could Huddersfield return to sign their play-off hero again? A Premier League team with a problem between the posts would do well to go after Ward.
4. Jon Flanagan
Remember Flanagan? The Scouse Cafu who was part of Brendan Rodgers' squad that came so close to winning the league title in 2013/14?
Of course you do. Well, he has fallen so far out of the first-team picture that some fans may have thought he had already left before suddenly being picked to play against Leicester in the League Cup.
Flanagan's performance against the Foxes is unlikely to have convinced Klopp to give him another go anytime soon.
The Liverpool manager has preferred to pick teenager Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez—more at home as a centre-back—on the right side of his defence in the continued absence of Nathaniel Clyne.
A loan spell at Burnley last season was meant to kick-start a career that was held up for two years by injury problems, yet Flanagan barely even made it on to the bench during his time at Turf Moor.
If he wants to play regularly again, it might need him to swallow a little pride and drop down a level or two.
Possible destination: Who knows? A Championship side must think he's worth a look on loan.
3. Harry Wilson
Wilson might already be on loan somewhere now had he not suffered an untimely Achilles injury during the summer.
While the injury denied him the chance to impress Klopp in pre-season, the versatile forward must have caught the manager's eye with his scoring feats for the under-23 team in the last few months.
Wilson has found the net five times in four outings, including hitting a hat-trick in his side's 4-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur in September.
However, at 20, the Welshman would surely benefit from playing senior games. A loan stint at Crewe Alexandra in 2015/16 didn't pan out as hoped but that's no reason not to try again.
"He's been fantastic for us. He's hit the ground running. It will do him no harm in building his confidence and playing for us in the next few months," under-23 manager Neil Critchley told Andy Kelly of the Liverpool Echo. "Then when we get to January, I'm sure we'll revisit his plan for the future again."
Celtic's advances were knocked back in May, per James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo. There will not be a shortage of offers in the next transfer window, though.
Possible destination: Somewhere in the Championship.
2. Danny Ings
Ings deserves huge credit for the way he's fought back from two lost seasons. His big move to Liverpool hasn't worked through any fault of his own, as injuries ruined his chance to make an impact.
Having arrived from Burnley in the summer of 2015, the striker has played just 12 first-team games.
His only outing this season consisted of 17 minutes off the bench against Leicester in the League Cup. Other than that, he's had to make do with appearances as an overage player for Critchley's under-23 side.
At 25, Ings—who won his solitary England cap against Lithuania in October 2015—needs to be playing.
Per Teamtalk, Crystal Palace, Everton, Southampton and Watford are just "some of the clubs to inform Liverpool of their interest." The same article also states the player is unwilling to drop down lower than the Premier League, as he still retains hope of forcing his way into England's plans for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
A loan move, possibly with an option to buy in the summer, would allow Ings to prove himself.
Possible destination: Take your pick in the Premier League.
1. Lazar Markovic
It was a surprise when Markovic remained at the club beyond the last transfer deadline day.
The Serbian winger seemed certain to move on in the summer window after it became clear he did not feature in Klopp's plans. Lazar's quest was to end his Anfield hell and start again somewhere else.
When no move was forthcoming, he was included in Liverpool's 25-man Premier League squad, although his selection was mainly due to under-21 players not needing to be named on the list.
Markovic hasn't played a competitive game for the Reds since May 2015, when Rodgers was in charge. Loan spells at Fenerbahce, Sporting CP and Hull City have kept him out of the way since then, but Liverpool now need to cut their losses and find the player a new permanent home.
Where he ends up is tough to fathom out. In August, TalkSport's Geoff Peters stated on Twitter that Brighton & Hove Albion, Crystal Palace and Watford had all shown an interest in the former Benfica wideman.
Considering he's still only 23, a club—whether in the Premier League or abroad—will surely consider Markovic worth a punt in January.
Possible destination: Somewhere, anywhere. Markovic needs to be moved on.
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