Liverpool to Bring in a Car Salesman in Defense

Oh wait, that’s Kolo Toure. With Carragher playing his last match, Liverpool needed some experience at center back and they got it with Toure on a free transfer. However, how much of a boost this is remains to be seen. While he has loads of experience, little of it has come in recent times where he has been confined to the bench while making millions and moonlighting as a "car salesman."

On the surface this looks to be a good pick up. The price is obviously right and has a look of low risk high reward. However, this might stymie some of the growth we were seeing in the youth ranks. That is, unless Skrtel is also on his way out. It would seem odd for Skrtel to plunk down 70,000 on a suite and then turn around and leave, but as FSG would have you know, this is a business to them.

Toure is a wealth of experience from his days at Arsenal, but those days are well and truly behind him. He made only 17 appearances last year for City so the rust might be a bit thick. However, Carragher more than proved last year that you can be slow, old and still successful at this level. At 32, he is entering his twilight years, but perhaps FSG have finally seen that stop gaps are necessary while waiting on youth. Kelly should be fit for next year and with the emergence of Wisdom, he might be fighting weekly for one of the CB spots. Either way he should have plenty of opportunity in 2015 as Liverpool will fall victim to the African Cup of Nations for the first time in a long while with Toure playing for Cote d’Ivoire (assuming he lasts that long).

While an odd, unexpected signing (when he eventually does since this is just an agreement in principle), it does bolster a part of Liverpool’s team that had a huge hole with a player who has boat loads of experience in the EPL and international level. The bigger picture is that FSG might finally be realizing the errors of their ways. However, it has been quite a while since we have had a free transfer that actually performed up to expectations.