Liverpool FC: Kenny Dalglish to Sign Scott Dann, Gary Cahill or Per Mertesacker?

Liverpool need to sign a quality center back. Here's why:

• Agger is extremely talented, but he has struggled with fitness issues for the past few seasons.
• Carragher is simply getting up there in age and will not be able to play at the top level for much longer.
• Kelly has the potential to be a great center back, but Dalglish may have plans for him to play on the right.
• Kyrgiakos has heart, but he often makes horrible mistakes leading to goals.  
• Skrtel is a reliable defender, however he needs a confident leader to pair him at the back.
• Wilson needs to play consistently before walking into the first team; he should go out on loan.
• Wisdom also has a lot of potential, but he is not ready to play regularly in the first team.

Liverpool need to have four quality center backs who Dalglish can rely on if any of them need to sit out through injury.  These three defenders would add quality to Liverpool's defense, but which one is the best fit?

Scott Dann

Scott Dann has the most to prove defensively of these three players.  He has not played for Birmingham since mid-January due to injury.  In addition, Birmingham has been relegated in the meantime, so his performances against weaker opponents need to be perfect.

Dann was one of the few shining lights for Birmingham last season, and its season really spiraled out of control after his injury.  Dann is cool-headed, aerially sound and good with his positioning, all of which would really help Liverpool at the back.

Although he is a solid defender, he is not as much of a vocal leader like many other center backs.  This is a really important attribute because he will in all likelihood be replacing Carragher, who is the vocal leader of the defense.  Agger is a good leader as well, but until he can prove his fitness, Liverpool need another vocal leader.  

Skrtel immediately picks up his game when his defensive partner leads the way, but he often looks lost without a decisive teammate.

Verdict: Dann would be a solid choice, especially because of his desire to play for Liverpool, but ideally, he would add depth to the squad rather than leading the defense in the starting lineup.

Gary Cahill

Gary Cahill's fledgling England career speaks volumes about how important of a player he is for Bolton. He has been one of Owen Coyle's best players and is a large part of Bolton's early success last season.  =However, for Cahill to continue to grow at the international level he knows he must move on to one of the top clubs so he can compete against best players in Europe.  

His options appear to be down to Arsenal and Liverpool because the other top clubs do not need to sign a center back this season.  Bolton will hesitate to sell one of its stars for anything short of £15 million, so Wenger will probably turn to younger and cheaper options.  Liverpool is looking to trim some of its squad, so a player exchange and cash deal might benefit both parties.

Defensively, Cahill is often criticized for '"hoofing" the ball rather than calmly passing to a teammate.  This could be very important for Dalglish because clearing the ball destroys Liverpool's new pass and move playing style.  However, Cahill makes up for it with his defensive awareness and leadership qualities. Cahill is undoubtedly a solid defender, but the question here is whether Liverpool can sign him for the right price.

Verdict: If Liverpool can exchange players or manage to lower his asking price, Cahill would be a great replacement for Jamie Carragher.  If not, then I doubt Dalglish will buy him unless he can first offload some high-earners.

Per Mertesacker

Mertesacker is only 26 years old, but he has already made 75 appearances for Germany at the international level.  

He still has a long career ahead of him, and after Werder Bremen indicated it would be willing to sell him, it might be time for him to move elsewhere.  Bremen hope to sell him for a decent fee before his contract expires next summer.  This means that Bremen will sell him for way lower than his true value.

Mertesacker is a great defender.  His aerial ability is basically unmatched (and at 6'6", it is easy to see why), but he is also good enough all around.  Can you imagine Charlie Adam having Mertesacker, Carroll and Agger all as targets for free kicks and corners?  Liverpool would average a goal every other free kick.

The downside is that German players rarely like to leave Germany for England, and recently, only Ballack and Boateng come to mind.  Madrid snatched up Oezil for practically nothing from Bremen after the 2010 World Cup, and if Liverpool can prize another jewel away from Bremen then its defense would be complete.

Verdict: Very unlikely for Mertesacker to move to Liverpool, but if Dalglish and Comolli can pull it off, then Liverpool's defensive issues would be an afterthought.  

Final Verdict

If Liverpool can trim some of the squad, then I expect Dalglish to go after Cahill.  If not, then I anticipate him pursuing Dann.  

I also expect Dalglish to sign another center-back either during the January window or during next summer if he decides to play Kelly on the right.  Wisdom still has a few years ahead of him, and it is unclear whether Wilson will become a first team regular.

Unfortunately, I do not think Liverpool will be able to sign Mertesacker.  I expect that he chooses to move to Munich.  Even though Munich just recently signed Jerome Boateng, Bayern is still weaker at defense than any other part of its squad.

It is tough to say who Dalglish will decide to pursue, but if I had to choose, I would put my money on Dann for this summer.  He desperately wants to play for Liverpool, and if he can prove his fitness, he would provide adequate depth at defense.