Brendan Rodgers
Brendan Rodgers has had a strong start to the season but is likely to be keen to add to his Liverpool squad in January. Reuters

Daniel Agger has stated his intention to remain at Liverpool, despite admitting that the club rejected an approach from Barcelona this summer. It was the second close season running in which Agger was the subject of interest, with a £20 million offer from Manchester City having been rejected in 2012. The Danish defender subsequently signed a new contract and, with Barcelona’s bid thought to have reached only £13 million, Liverpool again stood firm this summer.

"The [Barcelona] move was up to the club," Agger told Danish publication Ekstra Bladet, while on international duty this week, according to Sky Sports. "The club would not sell me. I do not know [if I will play at another club].

"Right now I have two and a half years left on my contract, and I intend to fulfill my contract. I'm glad [to be] at Liverpool and playing well. We have a great team, and if I can win something it will be great. Liverpool is a huge club."

There are conflicting reports about whether Barcelona will again look to sign a center-back in January, but, given that Agger will be 29 by that point and the high price Liverpool will charge, the former Bronby man looks set to remain at Anfield.

Meanwhile, Liverpool have been linked with two Barcelona youth products, whose long-term futures at the Camp Nou remain in doubt. Martin Montoya’s contract is set to expire next summer and his agent has said that the right-back’s lack of first-team opportunities mean he is considering his future. Jose Maria Orobitig also claimed last month that Liverpool were one of a number of clubs to have expressed an interest in the 22-year-old.

Talksport has now made the assertion that the Reds are preparing a pre-contract offer for Montoya. The Spain Under-21 international can sign a contract with a new club from January.

Also long said to be on Liverpool’s radar is Montoya’s teammate Cristian Tello. Despite only signing a new contract this summer, the winger has admitted that he will reevaluate his future at the end of the current campaign.

"Right now I am very happy, but next year we'll see," he said, according to Talksport. "Every year I've felt more integrated into the team, more mature, but then every year you want to play as much and when the season ends we'll see what suits me best.

"[I want to be] playing as much as possible but I know who I have in front of me. But hey I'm ready to play it all if needed. I know that I can perform at the top, but that's the coach's decision. He has to choose between all of his options."

There are also rumors swirling at Barcelona’s fierce rivals, Real Madrid. Xabi Alonso has long been linked with a return to Liverpool at some point, potentially when his contract at the Bernabeu expires at the end of the season. However, Spanish journalist Pipi Estrada this week suggested that the 32-year-old would instead move to Major League Soccer. That speculation may prove to be wide of the mark, with both the clubs he mentioned as possible destinations, L.A. Galaxy and New York Red Bulls, denying making any approach.

Alonso has yet to feature for Madrid this season because of injury and his future appears in doubt given that the Spanish giants have already signed his long-term replacement in Asier Illarramendi. A move back to Liverpool still seems unlikely, though, not least because, especially with another veteran in Steven Gerrard already in the team, Alonso is not a natural fit for Brendan Rodgers’s dynamic style.

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