Liverpool were a shadow of the side they used to be and would again become during the 1990’s and 2000’s.
Following Manchester United’s arrival as the dominant force in English football, the Reds dipped off and were left to fight for a ‘best of the rest’ tag.
Nevertheless, they still had some super players over those years. One player who saw them all come and go at Anfield was Jamie Carragher, who played for Liverpool from 1996 to 2013.
Carragher played with some superstars for the Reds. Steven Gerrard was perhaps the best of the bunch, while the likes of Fernando Torres, Luis Suarez and Robbie Fowler also come to mind as well.
But amongst those shining lights, there were plenty of other very good players who made up every Liverpool squad Carragher was a part of.
Not all of them got their due, though, and according to Carragher, Danny Murphy was very much one of those.
Danny Murphy of Liverpool celebrates after scoring the first goal with a penalty during the FA Barclaycard Premiership match between Manchester Uni...
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Danny Murphy was sold too soon
Murphy was brought to Liverpool in 1997, one year after Carragher made his debut for the first-team.
In the end, the tenacious midfielder made 249 appearances for the Reds scoring 49 times, before being sold by new manager Rafael Benitez in 2004, aged 27.
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And asked to name his most underrated teammate during a Q&A with The Telegraph, Carragher said that Benitez had come in and sold Murphy too soon.
“Someone who was really underrated was Danny Murphy,” said the Liverpool legend. “Danny could play anywhere across midfield, created goals and scored goals – often in the biggest games. Danny always turned up when it mattered against Everton and Manchester United.”
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“He was not the most mobile player but he was brave – he always wanted the ball and wanted to contribute.
“You see some midfielders highly rated today and they hardly ever assist or score and they will hide when the going gets tough.
“We sold Danny too early,” bemoans Carragher. “He was a lot better than many we brought in afterwards, that’s for sure.”
Who did Liverpool play instead of Danny Murphy?
It was a surprise to see Benitez ship Murphy to Charlton upon his arrival at Anfield 20 years ago.
The midfielder had been key to Liverpool earning a Champions League spot in the season before, making 42 appearances across all competitions, scoring eight goals.
But Benitez obviously wanted a different kind of profile and in came Xabi Alonso from Real Sociedad.
Although few would suggest that Murphy was a better choice than Alonso, there was surely still room for them both in the squad.
Salif Diao remained at the club, for example, and Murphy would almost certainly have offered more to Benitez than the Senegalese eventually did. It’s a similar story with Igor Biscan.
Alongside Gerrard, Alonso and Dietmar Hamann, Murphy could have still played for years at Liverpool.
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