Liverpool defender Daniel Agger has claimed that a severe back injury made him think about retirement pre-season.

The Danish international, bought from Brondby in 2006 for almost £6 million, has now completed his return from injury and was amongst the substitutes for Sunday's 2-0 defeat at Chelsea.

However, speaking to Jyllandsposten, Agger admitted that the pain resulting from his back injury was so bad that he gave some serious thought to retiring from football completely.

He said: "My back was hurting so badly that I considered stopping playing.

"I asked myself if it was worth continuing playing. When you can't even lift your own child out of bed, then something is terribly wrong.

In Agger's absence Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has tended to field Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel in the heart of defence, but both players have received their fair share of criticism for a series of unconvincing performances.

Liverpool are currently sixth in the Barclays Premier League, six points behind leaders Chelsea.