When Daniel Agger left Liverpool in 2014, it was clear that injuries had taken their toll to the extent that football at the highest level simply wasn't an option for the Danish international. Now that has become even more clear after the 31 year old was forced to announced his retirement from football.
When he was on form/fit, you'd have done well to find a Liverpool fan who would have swapped him for almost any centre back in Europe. Supremely comfortable on the ball and just a little bit of a maverick on the pitch and off it, Agger was a Liverpool legend waiting to happen. But, although he's no doubt held in very high esteem, it was always the trouble of stringing a decent number of games together that stopped Agger in his tracks.
175 league appearances in eight seasons at Anfield was belied by the fact that the now 31 year old only once managed more than 30 league appearances in a single season. When he made the decision was made to move back to Brondby, Agger admitted that it was because of the toll the injuries had taken. Now the decision has come for him to call it a day once and for all.
Thank you for your support.A great experience.It's sad,but it is the right decision to stop. I'm proud of my career. pic.twitter.com/Geu9y47vnN
— Daniel Agger (@DanielAgger) June 9, 2016
A wonderful defender who'll be remembered fondly, not least for that goal against Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final, but there'll no doubt be the thought of 'what if' from Liverpool fans in years to come. Sami Hyypia may have something to say about it but there's certainly an argument to say that, when fit, Agger must be included in the discussion of Liverpool's best central defenders over the past twenty years.
