Rafa Benitez completed his first signing of the summer after Philipp Degen agreed to join the Reds today. The Swiss right-back will join the club on July 1st on a free transfer from Bundesliga outfit Borussia Dortmund.

The 25 year-old attacking full-back has won 29 caps for his country and is expected to be part of Switzerland’s European Championship finals squad. However, he made just 10 League appearances this season as Borussia finished a lowly 13th in the German top division. In 3 seasons in Germany he made a total of 68 League appearances and scored just once. Degen began his career alongside identical twin brother David at Swiss side Basel where he won back to back League titles in 2004 & 2005. Subsequently he does have Champions League experience from that period.

Whether the Swiss full-backs signing will excite Liverpool fans remains to be seen as this season he has remained nothing more than a bit part player for a low mid-table German side. This transfer also seems to have ended the Reds link with Sevilla’s Brazilian full-back Daniel Alves which paves the way for United or Barcelona to move a step closer to signing him. Degen may be Rafa’s first new signing of the summer but another fullback could also be on his way…the Italian Andrea Dossena.

Liverpool may have to spend up to £8million if they want to capture the highly-rated Udinese left-back if press reports are to be believed. The 26-year-old’s signing would allow Benitez to sell John Arne Riise as well as to add some much-needed quality to his left-flank. The Italians price tag is relatively high due to the fact his current contract runs until 2012 but after starting 35 of Udinese’s 38 League games this season, Rafa should be signing a player he can rely on.

Dossena won his only Italian cap back in October 2007 but that is to be expected as he’s spent his career playing for relatively small clubs - Verona, Treviso and Udinese. Therefore, a lucrative move to one of the European superpowers could catapult Dossena into the national squad on a regular basis as he’ll be competing in the Champions League year on year. So if the two clubs can agree a fee, expect Dossena to be joining Degen at Anfield this summer.

So what do Liverpool fans think about these signings? Would you have preferred Rafa to have signed a player of Daniel Alves standing than a Swiss free transfer who made just 10 League appearances last season? Let’s hear your views.