Thiago is ready to go with the new $122 million duo – the best Liverpool team to take on Chelsea after transfer move.

Now that Chelsea is coming up, Liverpool needs to start planning itsteam carefully. That might depend more on Thiago’s return than it does on transfer activity.

There hasn’t been any substantial Liverpool transfer news since Fabinho and Jordan Henderson’s departures were made official. The lack of new defensive midfielders has led to an urgent need for one, but otherwise things have been eerily quiet.

Of course, there has been the widely reported pursuit of Roméo Lavia, but one week out from the start of Liverpool’s Premier League campaign, that has not yet resulted in anything. At this point, Jürgen Klopp must start preparing for the Chelsea game without a new hire in the Fabinho position.

It’s possible that a deal will be reached in the next seven days, either for Lavia or for someone else, but Klopp’s sudden inclusion of a new player without even a week’s worth of training would be highly unusual. Additionally, it wouldn’t be very beneficial. He must look internally for the solutions.

The closest thing to recent transfer news Liverpool has had is two players who might (infuriatingly) be characterized as “like new signings,” so perhaps they hold the key. Both Thiago and Stefan Bajeti were scheduled to resume full team training yesterday, according to David Lynch’s report for This is Anfield, and either of them could legitimately be considered for the starting number six position against Chelsea.

This pair will undoubtedly have limited training experience because they have missed the entirety of preseason, much like any new transfer addition. However, unlike a genuine new signing, they at least are aware of Klopp’s system’s requirements.

They would be preferable to the Curtis Jones solution overall. Considering his attacking tendencies, the academy graduate has performed admirably, but it is obvious that he lacks Fabinho’s ability to break up counterattacks. He is only effective as a deep controller when Liverpool is certain it will win the match.

Overall, Thiago must win, provided he is healthy. Contrary to popular belief, he contributes defensively more than enough; he just needs to break the habit of losing his possessions in dangerous areas. In contrast to Bajeti, he also brings a seasoned perspective, providing some stability in a midfield for Liverpool that has undergone significant change.

After all, he’ll probably be paired with the new Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai team, which has a $122 million (£96 million/€111 million) budget. When they both started together for the first time against Bayern Munich, they both made an impression and have since displayed encouraging signs of assimilating into Klopp’s preferred strategy. They are able to offer Thiago the urgent protection he needs up front, and they are free to move forward with the veteran’s support in their rear.

But that doesn’t mean Liverpool can afford to put off its search for a new center-midfielder until after their match against Chelsea. While Klopp may not be looking for a starter for the first game, he still needs to integrate a new specialist number six as soon as possible, and the ideal situation would still see Lavia signed prior to the start of the season.

He should ideally be prepared to start the match against Chelsea on the bench and possibly enter at the end. However, the Thiago option at least ensures that Liverpool won’t be held to ransom in the days leading up to the start of the new season because the ideal midfield for that match will now be composed of players already at Klopp’s disposal.

Alisson; Alexander-Arnold; Konaté; Van Dijk; Robertson; Thiago; Mac Allister; Szoboszlai; Jota; Gakpo; Salah; could be a lineup against Chelsea.