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Despite the fact that their performances have collectively been underwhelming, Liverpool's strikers certainly lead the way when it comes to players who you'd hope eventually sort themselves out and start scoring goals at some point because that's sort of their jobs but they seem likely awfully nice guys so just make with the goalscoring already okay. Hope hasn't translated to goals, unfortunately, and the future of each of Liverpool's also-rans in attack seems tenuous at best as the January transfer window gets into full swing. Rickie Lambert finds himself the first to be linked with a move away midseason, and it's reportedly Alan Pardew and Crystal Palace who hold the interest.
Of the current strikers not named Daniel Sturridge or Raheem Sterling (who's not really a striker), Lambert appears to be the least likely to move, however, as his role was clearly defined in the most sentimental of transfer deals last summer and continues to remain as such. That in and of itself might not be a reason to keep a player around, especially with a poor goal return, but with Mario Balotelli apparently surplus to requirements despite having far more quality and Fabio Borini destined for some sort of exit in the near future, a deal to send Lambert away after only six months back home shouldn't be expected.
That's not to say he's necessarily earned it, of course, as he once again failed to have an impact after being restored to the starting eleven against Wimbledon. Paired in attack with Steven Gerrard and Philippe Coutinho, Lambert was lost and far off the pace, and while the opposition wasn't the most skillful, Balotelli was head and shoulders above the former Southampton man. Brendan Rodgers appears to have a preference for the 32-year-old Kirkby man, though, and if one is searching for Liverpool strikers that are leaving to leave Merseyside this month, Lambert is third on the list.
Whether or not he should be is up for debate, but it seems clear that chances for Borini have come and gone, and while hope might remain for Balotelli after his promising cameo at the Kingsmeadow, Rodgers doesn't look like giving up on Lambert just yet. Pardew might be more successful if he set his sights on Borini, who won't command nearly the same price as was offered to Liverpool--and accepted on two separate occasions--last summer.
