Martin Škrtel (born 15 December 1984) is a Slovakian international footballer, who played as a defender for Liverpool from 2008 to 2016. He was signed in January 2008 by then-manager Rafael Benitez for what was at the time a record fee for a defender for the club. He spent most of his career at Anfield as a first-choice centre back, initially partnering Jamie Carragher and then later Daniel Agger and Mamadou Sakho. In 2012, the Liverpool fans voted Skrtel the Standard Chartered Player of the Season for 2011-12. After falling out of favour under new manager Jurgen Klopp, Skrtel left for Fenerbahce in 2016, after eight years at the club.