£9m Royston Drenthe will lift Liverpool

Liverpool appeared last night to have moved to solve the problem of the left back position at Anfield by attempting to secure the signature of Real Madrid's £9m rated Dutch player Royston Drenthe.

Though Wigan Athletic's Maynor Figueroa had seemed to be priority target for Roy Hodgson, the Liverpool manager can ill afford to delay in his move to fill a position which is a priority for him.

The departure of Argentine Emiliano Insua to Fiorentina for £4.5m earlier this summer has left the club with no recognised left back, following the departure of Andrea Dossena to Napoli in January and Fabio Aurelio's exit from the club as a free agent, following his failure to agree a new contract earlier this summer. Drenthe, 23, a former Dutch under-21 international, has been frustrated during his spell in Spain, having played just 46 times since he arrived three years ago from Feyenoord.

Drenthe, who can also operate as a left winger, claimed on his own facebook page that he is set to move to Anfield. "I will soon be joining Liverpool FC. I hope I will have a good season," he said.

Liverpool's interest in the player, who arrived at the Bernabeu at the same time as his compatriots Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben, pre-dates Rafael Benitez's departure from the club with initial inquiries coming before the end of last season.

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.