Liverpool icon John Aldridge has hit out at the club's American owners.
Aldo says he would probably never have played for Liverpool if the current signing policy had been in place during his time.
On the failed deal with Clint Dempsey, who signed for Spurs, Aldridge insisted to the Sunday Express: "We're talking about £6m for a player who scored 23 goals last season - that is a bargain. He would have won us games. The owners believed it was too much for a 29-year-old but that's nonsense. I came to Liverpool when I was nearly 28 and scored 63 goals in 104 games.
"Rodgers would have got three really good years out of Dempsey. To miss out because we wouldn't pay an extra £1m or £2m (Liverpool offered £4m) is insane. Look at Manchester United paying £24m for van Persie, who is 29. He gave them the ability to come from 2-1 down to win 3-2 at Southampton.
"It was negligent to leave us in a situation where we only have two senior strikers."