Liverpool FC Transfers: Massive Clear-Out of Unwanted Players on the Cards

Liverpool have been a busy club in the transfer market. 

Though, most of the media has focused on the high-profile transfers into the squad at Anfield, the Reds have also started a clear-out of the large number of unwanted players on their rolls.

Liverpool have already sold off a large number of players such as Paul Konchesky, Milan Jovanovic, Danny Ayala, Nabil El Zhar, Chris Mavinga and Thomas Ince.

However, Liverpool still have many players that they would ideally like to pack off to other clubs before the transfer window closes.

The presence of so many unwanted players even after such a big clear out just shows the kind of dead-weight that Liverpool had on their rolls—one of the reasons for the financial crunch they found themselves in.

The following list comprises the players expected to leave Anfield before the transfer window closes on the 31st of August.

David N'gog

The first on the list of outs seems to be David N'gog. The 22-year-old joined Liverpool from Paris St. Germain in 2008.

However, he has been unable to impress the Liverpool fans in the over 60 appearances he has made for the Reds.

He was earlier expected to join Sunderland as a part of the deal for Jordan Henderson, which fell through due to the player being unable to agree to personal terms.

Owen Coyle is said to be on the lookout for striking options after the departure of the last season's top scorer Johan Elamnder and the return of Daniel Sturridge to Chelsea.

According to crunchsports.com, Coyle has set his sights on N'gog, and he is expected to move to the Reebok stadium in a £4 million deal.

Alberto Aquilani

Another player who has been linked with a large number of clubs is Alberto Aquilani.

Ever since coming back from loan to Liverpool from Juventus, he has been linked with a move back to Italy with clubs like Fiorentina (The Guardian), Napoli (Radio Crr, h/t Tribal Football) and AC Milan.

Though Liverpool had paid £17 million to get the player from Roma, the club is understood to be ready to take a loss to get the player of their wage bills. 

According to The Guardian, Aquilani is close to a move to AC Milan with the owner Silvio Berlusconi said to be a big admirer.

The deal is expected to be a loan deal which would be made permanent for £5 million next year, a huge loss on a talented player, but Liverpool seem to be desperate to get the unhappy player to his home country.

Joe Cole

Joe Cole was the marquee signing of the erstwhile manager Roy Hodgson. He was expected to rebuild his career as well as Liverpool's fortunes.

His Liverpool career has however been plagued by injuries and bad form and does not seem to be a part of Kenny Dalglish's plans this season.

Liverpool have been trying to sell Cole for some time now, with his £90,000 a week wages being the main stumbling point.

After being linked with clubs like West Ham and Tottenham, Cole seems to be most likely to join Queens Park Rangers, according to Metro News in a loan deal.

Though, QPR are not expected to pay the their full share of wages, even a 40-50 percent reduction from the books might be reason enough for the Reds to send Cole on loan.

Christian Poulsen

Christian Poulsen, along with Paul Konchesky were probably the two most dreadful players for the Reds last season.

The 31-year-old Danish international joined from Juventus last season, but after some unimpressive performances, he fell down the pecking order behind even youngsters like Jay Spearing and Jonjo Shelvey last season.

This season, with further reinforcements arriving in the center of midfield in the form of Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson, Poulsen is not expected to get any playing time.

After initially talking about fighting for a place in the team, he seems to have realized that he would need to move away from Anfield to get any playing time.

According to crunchsports.com, FC Copenhagen seem to be interested in securing his services, though no formal bid has been launched yet.

Sotirios Kyrgiakos

Kyrgiakos being on the list would be a surprise for many as he was not even a part of the transfer rumors till a couple of days ago. 

He has been the fourth choice center-back for the Reds for the past two seasons and has provided decent cover in the absence of the injury-prone Agger and aging Carragher, 

Very strong in the air, he has been sometimes found wanting against quality strikers.

Along with the defensive duties, he was able to provide Liverpool with that extra dimension in attack from set-pieces. 

He was awarded a 12-month extension on his contract over the summer due to his performances over the course of the last season.

However, with the Reds looking to sign a center-back before the close of the transfer window, Kyrgiakos seems to be ready to make a move to the Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, according to clickliverpool.com

He has already been training with the Wolfsburg side, further adding fuel to the rumors.

However, any move of this tall Greek would depend on the signing of a center-back by Liverpool. 

Looking Ahead

Apart from the players mentioned, other such as Philip Degen and Brad Jones might also move out.

Players such as Jonjo Shelvey and Daniel Pacheco might also go out on loan spells, however, not with a view to offload them but with a view to give them valuable first-team experience.

If the mentioned outs do go through, Liverpool would have offloaded over 10 players this season, a sizable number by any account.

It just shows that the new management is acting prudently in terms of finances and not just splashing cash around.

Reducing the wage bill is as important for long-term sustainability as any other factor, and it would become important once the financial fair-play rules come into effect next season.