Liverpool agreed to sell me to Man City – but there was no way I was going there
Daniel Agger has lifted the lid on rejecting a move to Manchester City while he was at Liverpool
Former Liverpool defender Daniel Agger admits he rejected a mega-money move to Manchester City during his playing days at Anfield – despite the Reds wanting to cash in on the defender.
Agger, now 39, made the move to Anfield from Danish Superliga side Brondby in 2006 and enjoyed a fine eight-year career on Merseyside under managers Rafa Benitez, Roy Hodgson, Kenny Dalglish and later Brendan Rodgers.
The former Denmark international was part of Benitez’s Liverpool side that came within a whisker of sealing a first Premier League crown in 19 years in 2009, only to miss out on title success to Manchester United by four points after several draws throughout the campaign.
By 2012, however, Agger found himself at the centre of a transfer tug-of-war between Man City and Barcelona, who both hoped to capitalise on the defender’s expiring contract. However, after Spanish giants Barca’s offer was blown out of the water by the UAE-backed City, Agger admits he had no interest in swapping Merseyside for Manchester.
“It was a strange one,” said Agger, reflecting on the events of 2012. “I remember I got presented for all these things and the club asked me what I was going to do and I said, ‘If you want me here, I will stay’. But I said, ‘If you don’t want me, if you don’t see me as part of your future I think it’s time that I go because I want to play football. I prefer to do it here but if you don’t think I’m good enough then I would like to go because these offers are on the table and I don’t know if I will have them next year’.
“I don’t know the story from their side, I think they agreed a price (with Barcelona) and they accepted it and came to me and said, ‘this is it’. I said, ‘okay, fair enough’. But then from the side, another offer came in which was a lot higher, which they accepted and I didn’t want to go to that club.
“I said, ‘if you want to sell me I go down there (to Barcelona) otherwise I don’t go’. And another offer came in from the same club (Man City), higher, and my feeling was that the club wanted me to go because it was a lot of money back then. I said, ‘there’s no chance I’m going to that club, so better just stop now’.”
Speaking on the ‘Aldo Meets’ Podcast, host and Liverpool ECHO columnist John Aldridge asked Agger if the other club in question was Manchester City, to which he replied: “Yeah.”
After falling down the pecking order under Rodgers in 2013/14, Agger left Liverpool and returned to Brondby in 2014, aged 29. In 2016, Agger retired from the sport altogether.
Anfield Road capacity fears emerge as Liverpool supporters sent concerning message before Newcastle
Fears are growing around Anfield’s overall capacity as the club shares its concerns with supporters ahead of Newcastle United visit
Fans take their seats in the new tiers of the Anfield Road stand ahead of the Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield on December 17
(Image: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)Liverpool fear the new Anfield Road stand will be forced to operate at a reduced capacity if persistent standing during games continues.
The stand was officially open to fans for the visit from Manchester United on December 17 when the Reds played host to their biggest crowd at Anfield for 50 years as 57,000 filed into the venue for the goalless draw with Erik ten Hag’s side.
Since then, the Reds have beaten West Ham United 5-1 in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals and were held to a 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the Premier League on December 23 and each of the three fixtures have been impacted by persistent standing in a part of the stadium that is not a designated area for it.
Liverpool trialled a safe-standing section on the Kop and in the lower end of the Anfield Road over two years ago with rail seating installed in those parts of the stadium before the green light was given in August to allow 13,000 supporters to be able to stand during matches going forward.
The Reds installed 7,800 rail seats ahead of the 2021/22 campaign and added a further 2,500 during last season’s World Cup break between November and December. The most recent installation phase took place earlier this year when an additional 3,000 rail seats were placed on the Kop, in the remainder of blocks 202-208, up to row 33.
However, the newly-expanded stand is not licensed for fans to stand throughout, meaning the club could be hit with sanctions from the relevant authorities should it continue.
It’s understood there are concerns from inside the club that the issue puts Anfield at risk of being forced to operate at a reduced capacity, meaning fewer supporters are able to get to the ground at a time when demands for tickets have rarely been higher. The standing also represents a safety risk.
Liverpool have communicated their issues to supporters who have purchased tickets in that area of Anfield ahead of the New Year’s Day visit from Newcastle United and are determined to avoid a similar situation that saw a number of match-goers removed from the ground against Arsenal last week.
It’s thought a small number of fans were ejected from Anfield for what has been described as ‘”inexcusable abuse” to stewards trying to limit the number of people standing during the draw with Mikel Arteta’s men.
The work to expand the stadium’s capacity began with a ‘groundbreaking’ ceremony featuring Jurgen Klopp in late September 2021 with a plan to increase the capacity from 54,000 to 61,000 in total. Anfield is currently operating at around 57,000, however, due to the hospitality areas and a smaller section of the lower tier yet to be completed.
It is hoped Liverpool are able to open their doors to the full 61,000 by late January but persistent standing could yet have an impact on that going forward.
The 7000-seat expansion, which cost around £80m, had been slated to open back in August for the visit for Bournemouth but was pushed back until earlier this month after initial contractors Buckingham Group were forced into administration.
Liverpool tipped to compete with Real Madrid for Kylian Mbappe
PSG forward Kylian Mbappe has been linked with the move away from the club and journalist Loic Tanzi has tipped Liverpool to be in the race to sign him.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe has been linked with the move away from the club and journalist Loic Tanzi has tipped Liverpool to be in the race to sign him.
The journalist claims that Liverpool have established a strong relationship with his camp and manager Jurgen Klopp has met with the player in the past regarding a potential move.
“Liverpool wanted him when he was playing for Monaco,” Loic Tanzi told talkSPORT.
“[Liverpool manager Jurgen] Klopp went to see him and they were negotiating while they were on the plane.
“The relationship between him, Liverpool, and Klopp is there. I think they have a chance.”
The 25-year-old Frenchman has 21 goals across all competitions this season and he could prove to be a phenomenal acquisition for the Premier League side if they could pull off what would be a major coup.
Players like Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo have struggled to score goals consistently and Liverpool could certainly use someone like Mbappe – who would add creativity and goals to the side.
The French international has a contract with PSG until the summer of 2024 and he will be able to move on as a free agent at the end of the season. Spanish giants Real Madrid are keen on securing his services as well and it will be interesting to see if Liverpool win the race for his signature.
PSG could look to sell the player for a nominal price in January in order to avoid losing him on a free transfer in the summer of 2024.
Mbappe could replace Mohamed Salah
Signing a player like Mbappe would be a major coup for any club and Liverpool would do well to secure his signature. They might need to replace Mohamed Salah in the near future and Mbappe seems like the ideal acquisition.
The Egyptian international will be out of contract in 2025 and Liverpool need to start planning for a future without him.
Mbappe is already operating at a world-class level and he could make an immediate impact in the Premier League if he joins Liverpool. He could take over the goal-scoring responsibilities of the Egyptian and help out creatively as well.
That said, competing with Real Madrid isn’t always easy and Liverpool will have to put together a lucrative financial package in order to win the transfer race.
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