Melgarejo 'try before you buy' deal makes sense

written by Dave Usher for ESPN

Signing a left-back may not have been a priority for Liverpool this summer, but it was definitely on Brendan Rodgers' to do list. Having two players for every position is something the manager has often spoken of, and presently the left side of the defence is - along with the holding midfield role - the only area of the team where that isn't really the case.

If money were no object there is little doubt that Rodgers would have been looking to add an established top class left-back to the ranks, but with a limited budget and more pressing needs than signing a replacement for the adequate, if not exceptional, Jose Enrique, it would make little sense to go out and spend £20 million on, say, Leighton Baines for example.

With that in mind, bringing in a young, exciting, attacking full-back on loan with a view to making the deal permanent in a year's time should he impress would appear to be a great move, right? So how come the loan signing of Lorenzo Melgarejo has been greeted in some quarters with the same lack of enthusiasm usually reserved for when Stewart Downing pledges his future to the club during each and every transfer window?

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