Samed Yesil and Ashley Williams (R)
Brendan Rodgers could raid Swansea City for Ashley Williams (R) Reuters

Jamie Redknapp believes that Ashley Williams could be a long-term replacement for Jamie Carragher at Liverpool, whose absence was keenly felt in his team's defeat at Southampton this weekend.

The Reds were on a mental high after defeating Champions League contenders Tottenham, a victory which put them in the fight for a top four and gave the club hope that they might be returning to their European days of old.

But a 3-1 loss to Southampton the next weekend showed the cracks are still there as Brendan Rodgers looks to rebuild Liverpool, and Redknapp pointed out that those cracks will get bigger when Jamie Carragher retires at the end of the season.

"No Jamie Carragher and a bad defeat for Liverpool at Southampton," he said in the Daily Mail. "It's a sign of how much they are going to miss him when he retires at the end of the season.

"Liverpool need someone who can defend - and play - and my guess is they will try and sign Ashley Williams from Swansea."

Liverpool are no doubt going to have a busy summer, as Rodgers' influence over the squad starts to create more positive results.

A failure to land a striker in the summer was addressed in January when the club purchased Daniel Sturridge, and though Carragher's retirement will leave a huge hole in the squad, if Rodgers has learnt from last year he will move quickly to fill it long before deadline day.

Williams has been an integral part of the Swansea line-up since joining the club in 2008. Having already worked with Rodgers, the manager is aware of his influential role with making the Welsh side a regular in the Premier League after their promotion in 2011.