After signing for Liverpool in 2009, Glen Johnson has made 141 appearances for the Reds, but at the age of 29 it is clear he may be coming towards the twilight years of his career, and his future at Liverpool is somewhat uncertain. He has also earned himself 52 caps for England and will be featuring alongside many other Liverpool players in the 2014 World Cup that is just around the corner.
During a shaky 2013/14 season at Anfield, Johnson has received a lot of criticism, often appearing rather lost when on the field of play and his performances of late have arguably not been up to the standard of what a player who is wearing the famous red shirt should be. With Liverpool currently on the rise and now showing traits of a title-challenging side, inconsistency is not something that Rodgers will allow his players to settle for. Is it time for Johnson to say goodbye?
Liverpool will undoubtedly have a plethora of options in mind if they were to look for a replacement for the defender, and it was rumoured that despite Johnson wanting a new deal, the club were not keen on offering him any more than a 1 year extension on his current contract. With Liverpool finally back in the Champions League after a 4 year absence, they will be expecting to attract new, elite players from all across Europe, and make the most of the opportunities that will arise from being back where they belong.
However, if the club were to sell Glen Johnson sometime soon, it is unlikely that they would get a great deal of money for him. Since the summer transfer window opened, numerous rumours have been flying around as to who Brendan Rodgers will be hoping to bring to Anfield in order to strengthen his already flourishing Liverpool side. With talented youth players coming up through the system such as Jon Flanagan who can play both left and right full-back, and Martin Kelly (now age 24) who worked his way up through the ranks a few seasons ago, but has since struggled to tie down a frequent position in the starting XI. The question is: if Liverpool were to sell Glen Johnson, would they really need to sign a replacement? With money not appearing a problem, the safe option may be yes.
With a total of 50 goals conceded this season it is clear that the defence is certainly an area that Rodgers needs to improve, but at the same time he is not the type of manager to make a split-second decision which could lead to him bringing in the wrong type of player. It is also no doubt that the club possesses some very good defenders already, such as Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel and Mamadou Sakho, but sometimes big mistakes are made if the winning defensive formula is not found, which is something that cost them dearly this season. In addition to this, after signing Sakho for around £15-18 million last year, we can see that the club are not afraid to spend big money on defenders if needed.
After a whirlwind of a season seeing Liverpool rise from 7th to 2nd place in the table in just one year, and the prospect of a stadium development just around the corner, there is a strong sense of excitement and anticipation around Anfield Road as the fans look on to what the future may hold for the Reds. However, whether this future will be one that Glen Johnson will be playing a part in is a different matter, and only time will tell for the England full-back.
