The departure of Sami Hyypia could open the door to Liverpool's promising defenders so says Rafael Benitez.

According to liverpoolfc.tv, Liverpool could look to England youth international Martin Kelly and Spanish U21 Mikel San Jose as replacements for the big Finn.

Benitez might still yet dive into the transfer market for a defender but he is looking to his reserves to make the step up.

"We will see the young players in pre-season and we can work on different scenarios," Benitez told Liverpoolfc.tv. "We will see all of them and after decide. They are young players with a great future here.

"We will see - it depends on them and also it depends on whether we can find someone in the market who can be good for us at the right price."

Meanwhile, Kelly played 90 minutes as England beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 in a European U19 Championship qualifier on Wednesday.

The call-up caps a great season for the 19-year-old, who made his senior debut against PSV in December before impressing on a loan spell at Huddersfield.