The Danny Ward Dilemma; Sell, Loan, Retain?

Liverpool Football Club has had an issue with the man between the sticks for a number of years with a replacement for Pepe Reina hard to come by; but the resurgence of Simon Mignolet, the potential of Loris Karius and the emergence of Danny Ward has presented Jürgen Klopp with a headache.

When the former Borrussia Dortmund manager took the reigns at Anfield he ushered in a new era starting with a new no.1 in the form of Mainz 05's young shot stopper Karius a £4.7m signing in the Summer of 2016.

Danny Ward - Liverpool's no.1 shot stopper? (image: reuters)

Following a fairly solid debut in September, the form of the 24-year-old quickly deteriorated allowing Simon Mignolet to regain his place where the Belgian excelled, staying put until the end of the season.

While former Sunderland keeper did well, its no secret that Klopp is waiting for the confidence of Karius to arrive before letting him take his place in the starting XI - but where does that leave Danny Ward?

The Welshman, 24-years-old also, has proven himself time and time again during loan spells at Aberdeen in 2015-16 and at newly promoted side Huddersfield town last season, with The Terriers reportedly keen on taking the youngster on a permanent deal.

This decision on for Klopp will be a positive one and he will be in no rush to make a choice on who will start at his number one, two or three until at least after pre season during which he will have time to assess the players he wants to keep or drop.

Taking a closer look at the statistics:

Looking at the table above, its clear that Ward despite making many more appearances notched up a higher average of saves per game than his elder competition in Mignolet but only achieved three more clean sheets, a figure that should be much higher.

For his young age, the Welsh shot stopper has demonstrated not only maturity but proven experience to improve whichever team he is placed in, with Aberdeen finishing second in the Scottish Premier League and Huddersfield being promoted to the Premier League for the time in the club's history.

With just two appearance for his contracted club Liverpool, the Wrexham born goalkeeper will have a big choice to make this coming transfer window, with clubs vying for his signature he may be better off making the switch while he is in demand rather than risk warming the bench for the upcoming season.

However, with Alex Manninger retiring after just one season with the club and a grand total of zero appearances the final decision may lie with Klopp, who with an increased fixture list complete with two domestic cup competitions, Premier League and Champions League the German may not run the risk of an injury to either of his preferred choices getting in the way of what could be a make or break season.

Making the case for Alberto Moreno

Since joining Liverpool Football Club in the summer of 2014 from Sevilla, the once promising arrival of Alberto Moreno has so far left fans feeling deflated with the Spaniard failing to live up to his £12 million price-tag.

Coutinho & Moreno notable friends off the pitch (image: Instagram)

While the 24-year-old may not have the ability to remain a key player for The Reds it may be his relationship with some significant players in the side that provide an unusual case for the left-back to remain on Merseyside.

One of the more valuable players in the Liverpool XI is Barcelona transfer target Phillipe Coutinho, who has made no secret of his desire to remain at Anfield, for now, with close friends Moreno, Lucas Leiva and Roberto Firmino by his side helping the Brazilian to cope in a foreign land.

Coutinho has proved to be a bargain since his switch from Inter Milan in January 2011, and so far Brendan Rodgers and Jürgen Klopp have kept his eyes firmly on Liverpool's quest for Champions League and more but take away his friends and who knows what could turn his head.

Lucas who has also been linked with a switch to a number of Premier League clubs and even to former club Gremio may be heading out the exit door which only decreases the number of reasons for The Reds' no.10 to stay put in the North West.

With this likely action in the transfer window, a lot can happen up until September 1st but it begs the question as to whether keeping Moreno and or Lucas on the books to appease and keep Coutinho grounded would be a wise move.

As Champions League football arrives back at Anfield for the first time since the 2014-15 season it is bound to increase the level of positivity heading into the upcoming season but without a strong back up left-back to fill for James Milner when needed - it may be a foolish decision financially wise to keep an inconsistent full-back on the books.

So the question when the layers are removed is really; how much is Coutinho worth to Liverpool?