Is this the most underrated all-time Liverpool XI?

Liverpool fans would probably tell you that they’ve had their fair share of overrated players in the past – and ones who they have paid far too much for when you think about what they’ve got back from them.

But there are also ones who simply did not get the credit they deserved, and our regulars in the Football Transfer Tavern have put their heads together and come up with a Reds XI who we think needs to get far more credit.

There are some shock names in there and you might disagree with a couple of them, but here are the players I think didn’t get what they deserved during their time at Anfield, either from the fans, the media or the manager.

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One of the unsung heroes of the Liverpool side. Yes, he could be a liability and at times deserved all the abuse he got, but in their Champions League final comeback, Dudek earned legendary status.

Pepe Reina might be one of the best keepers the club have had in recent years, but people shouldn’t be so quick to forget Dudek.

The left back was one of the most consistent players Liverpool could boast for a fair period of time and it is strange how Premier League fans have forgotten him and fail to mention him in their best left backs over the last couple of decades.

Yes, in a Premier League that boasted Ashley Cole, it is easy to overlook other players, but Riise was dependable, managed to get up and down the flanks well and was someone who could chip in with a goal too.

Liverpool fans might question why one of their greatest ever players make this countdown, but in all honesty, Carragher is often forgotten by other fans when they consider the best defenders to grace the Premier League.

Names like John Terry and Rio Ferdinand are often mentioned, but Carragher was just as good at his peak and some people will even argue a far better leader to Liverpool than Steven Gerrard was.

Laugh all you want, but the much maligned Toure has actually not been too bad for the Reds and at times has been the best defender they fielded (which admittedly, says an awful lot about the players they have been forced to select).

Kolo has become a figure of fun and is not actually as bad people actually say, and while he will be moving on from Anfield this summer in order to get first team action, the Reds might find they actually miss the squad player – you don’t know what you have until it’s gone after all.

The right back was eventually usurped by Alvaro Arbeloa (who could also have featured on this list) and certainly did not get the credit he deserved when he was at Anfield.

Another player who was Mr Consistent and someone who the fans actually took to their hearts, Finnan is easily forgotten when people do their favourite elevens.

Liverpool have been so inconsistent at the back this season and could seriously do with someone who produced performances at the back each and every time they played like Finnan.

A Liverpool legend. The holding midfielder was a vital cog in the Liverpool machine and was a seriously impressive during their comeback in Istanbul.

Hamann is one of those who is a massive favourite of the Liverpool faithful, but someone who often gets forgotten by the rest of fans and the Premier League.

You can only image how a manager like Jose Mourinho would appreciate a player like the industrious Hamann and he would have made sure every single other person knew it – Hamann gets none of the recognition someone like Claude Makelele got and it is criminal.

Someone who most people don’t remember but a player who was a good servant to Liverpool and someone who really didn’t get the credit they deserved during their time at the club, or even after they left.

The fact that Murphy managed to score three deciding goals against Manchester United in four seasons makes him an eternal legend for just about every single Liverpool fan that exists, well, ever.

You know when all the fans and the rest of the footballing world know just how good a player is, but their own manager seems to forget?

Well that’s exactly what happened to poor old Xabi, who Rafa Benitez wanted to boot out the door – for Gareth Barry.

In one of the worst transfers from Liverpool’s point of view in, well, ever, they let the classy midfielder go, and he has now won the Liga with Real Madrid, the Spanish cup, the Champions League and just about every domestic trophy with Bayern Munich as well.

Maxi Rodriguez

Chelsea fans will know all about this one, and Garcia was certainly one of the best players that the Reds had for a period of time, and who delivered on the big occasions, but really didn’t get too many plaudits for it.

 

The creative and pacey Spaniard was a thorn in the sides of Liverpool’s opponents and more often than not, managed to either create a goal or offer up something different to the Liverpool side, and Jose Mourinho is still haunted by that ghost goal that helped the Reds get to Istanbul.

How can Kuyt not be in this countdown? The man for the big goals on big occasions and someone every Premier League manager would want to have in their side.

 

Kuyt wasn’t really adored by the Liverpool fans, and even now, not many of them really talk about how much they miss him. The industrious Dutchman was someone who managed to float under the radar during his time at Liverpool and that quality it seems has seen him forgotten by a fair few.