What should Liverpool do with their wantaway star?

It has recently been made apparent that Juventus are unwilling to meet Liverpool’s asking price for their midfielder Alberto Aquilani. Juve only have a matter of weeks left to activate the £14.2m buy-out clause attached to Aquilani’s person, following a season-long loan with the club in Serie A. The chances of this happening are rapidly decreasing. According to manager Guiseppe Marotta the Bianconeri wish to keep hold of the Italian midfielder but not at the price Liverpool are requesting. He recently told the Press:

“There is a buy-out clause that has to be activated by May 15… We’ll try to reach an agreement before the deadline. I can certainly say we will not sign Aquilani for the sum set by Liverpool.”

Despite the fact that Aquilani has made it clear that he doesn’t seek a return to Liverpool, there’s every chance the 26-year-old will be back at Anfield in the summer when his loan deal with Juventus comes to an end. Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, he recently reiterated his desire to stay in Juventus and avoid a move back to the Premier League:

“I would like to stay in Turin for a long time and win a lot. I want to be a protagonist in the new winning cycle that is opening up at Juventus. I have no doubt that Juve’s project is a winner, they just need a little patience.”

As much as I rate Aquilani as a footballer – and I do think he’s a good deal better than purported Liverpool target Charlie Adam – if he’s got no interest in playing for the Reds, then he should be sent packing, even if it means the club taking a small loss on his transfer fee. Aquilani arrived at Liverpool from Roma in 2009 and is reported to have commanded a transfer fee of around £20m. Given that Juventus are unwilling to activate Aquilani’s buy-out clause for £14m, Kenny Dalglish will have to be willing to take a big loss on the player if he’s to leave Anfield this summer.

I do believe that Aquilani is a ‘Kenny Dalglish type player’ meaning that he’s technically good, with good feet, ability and a footballing brain. Whilst Liverpool could always use more players of this mould, if he’s unhappy with being a Liverpool player, I wouldn’t be too keen to hold on to him. Forget ‘motivational’ problems, it’s offensive to the fans to have a player on the books who has made it clear he has no interest in playing for them.

I question neither Aquilani’s ability nor his professionalism – I just have no great desire to see him playing again for Liverpool. This is one transfer deal that Liverpool should be willing to take a loss on – rather than holding onto a player who doesn’t have the club’s best interests at heart.

Follow @ThePerfectPass on Twitter for details on all the latest updates and various football-related musings.

ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.

To have a peak at the top SEVEN available FREE TRANSFERS this summer, click here.

[bet_365 type=’generic’ size=’468′ af_code=’365_061437′]