In this comment, Theo Squires makes the case that Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, needs assistance in the transfer market.
Jordan Henderson and Fabinho unexpectedly moved to Saudi Arabia with one week until the start of the Reds’ Premier League campaign, leaving Jurgen Klopp’s squad without a senior holding midfielder. The Reds haven’t yet made a move to acquire a desired new center-back, either.
Yes, the long-awaited revamp of the midfield began with the addition of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai before the start of preseason. You can’t help but feel that the Liverpool squad is currently looking thin on the eve of the new season because Roberto Firmino, James Milner, Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Arthur Melo, and Fabio Carvalho are all no longer at Anfield.
Naturally, John W. is being blamed for everyone’s frustration. FSG and Henry. The Reds’ owners may have approved a combined £85 million investment in Mac Allister and Szoboszlai so far, but such activity may not be sufficient to reassert the club’s Champions League status.
Under the management of their American owners since 2018–19, Liverpool has triumphed in every significant competition, breaking a 30-year drought to become the English champions in 2020. However, despite an unprecedented quadruple challenge in 2021–2022, the Reds have regressed since winning the Premier League, which should have been used as a platform for them to continue as the dominant force in English football.
Investment and recruitment have been scarce, allowing their all-conquering squad to senescent together. The result was that Manchester City soared toward the treble last season, while Liverpool stumbled into a period of transition. The Reds are forced to play catch-up from a standing start against teams willing to spend significantly more on their squads as new rivals like Arsenal and Newcastle United emerge alongside established rivals like Manchester United.
FSG cannot match the wealth of Todd Boehly’s BlueCo partnership, the Public Investment Fund, or City Football Group. But that doesn’t mean they couldn’t make a bigger investment in Klopp’s playing group.
After winning the Champions League in the summer of 2019, Liverpool chose not to make a significant signing, a move that at the time received harsh criticism from observers. However, in the end, the club’s stance was justified because Klopp insisted that a team at the height of its abilities deserved one more year to win the Premier League championship. Such faith was rewarded by being named the English champions a year later, despite losing to Man City by one point that year.
But until the arrivals of Mac Allister and Szoboszlai, the Reds had only signed seven senior players. Kostas Tsimikas, Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota, Ibrahima Konate, Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, and Cody Gakpo were also acquired, for a total initial cost of £339.75 million. In contrast, Liverpool recovered £197,8 million from the sales of 17 players, while also thinking about lowering their wage bill, particularly this summer, with the departures of senior players.
The Reds have made the fewest senior signings and spent the least amount of money relative to Chelsea and the four Premier League teams that are currently competing in the Champions League.
In comparison to Arsenal, who spent £574.59m on 19 new players since the summer of 2020, Chelsea has spent a staggering £991.78m on 23 new players since that time. Man United isn’t far behind, spending £563.26 million on 14 new hires.
From a position of strength, Man City has spent £475.59 million on 13 new players, while Newcastle, which PIF only acquired in October 2021, has spent £417 million on 15 new players.
Again excluding undisclosed fees and free agents, Liverpool has made more money and sold more players than Arsenal (£97.4m selling eight players), Man United (£86.3m on eight players), and Newcastle (£38.4m selling three players). Arsenal, Man United, and Newcastle have all sold fewer players than Liverpool. However, Man City and Chelsea have each sold a whopping 27 players, for a total of £435 million and £400 point 23 million, respectively.
It’s clear that the Reds have a lot less to work with. However, we were all already aware of that.
In February, Klopp stated, “The way this club is led is by not splashing the money and having a look at whether it works out or not. “Our transfers must always be precise. As a result, it becomes extremely difficult because we are unable to make four transfers before we know who will leave the club.
As a matter of fact, it is different from other clubs. However, it has so far worked, so we must wait and see if it will continue to work or if we must adjust. ”.
The German acknowledged, however, that occasionally, FSG should take more chances in the transfer market. Let me put it this way: occasionally, I would be willing to take on a little bit more risk, but, as I said, I don’t decide that, he acknowledged in August of last year.
When Klopp suggested FSG should take more chances in the transfer market, he did not intend to leave his squad without a holding midfielder and new center-back on the eve of the new season.
Unhappiness with the Liverpool owners is undoubtedly a persistent issue. While dissatisfaction over not bolstering in the summer of 2019 was followed by a Premier League championship, the Reds’ decisions to forgo signing a new center-back and new midfielders in the summers of 2020 and 2022 cost them dearly.
Even though they were without all of their senior center backs due to injury, Liverpool would manage a top-four finish in 2020–21. The failure to strengthen their midfield last year, when they passed up Aurelien Tchouameni in favor of waiting for Jude Bellingham, would not occur this time around, though.
The groans and complaints grew louder than ever when the club later withdrew from the race to sign Bellingham back in April, already staring down the barrel of a season without Champions League football. As Liverpool looked for alternatives, Mac Allister and Szoboszlai belatedly started an engine-room revamp, but its stalled progress hasn’t stopped fans from being frustrated.
On a regular basis, the hashtag “FSG Out” trends on social media, and FSG are not just feeling the heat in Liverpool. They are even less well-liked in their own country because they are Boston Red Sox owners as well.
The Red Sox are one of baseball’s most recognizable teams, but due to a lack of funding, they are unable to compete with teams like the New York Yankees and Houston Astros.
According to Bill Koch of the Providence Journal, “The Red Sox are among the most recognizable brands in American sports.”. They have been turned into underdogs by an owner who is happy with a midrange payroll and a chief baseball officer who is risk averse.
“Chaim Bloom and John Henry are reducing the size of this team.
It makes me sad.
”.
Earlier this year, Red Sox supporters heckled Henry at Fenway Park because of the team’s owner’s stingy spending habits. Even though anti-FSG banners have occasionally been seen attached to airplanes, such loud protests have not yet reached Anfield because Liverpool is not in such a “midtier” state. But you anticipate that the unhappiness will only increase if the Reds falter once more this year.
The term “risk averse”meanwhile rings a bell and is appropriate given that the Reds are currently negotiating with Southampton to sign Romeo Lavia despite their urgent need for a new defensive midfielder on the eve of the new season.
Liverpool have always been turned off by the Saints’ £50m asking price, despite the fact that the 19-year-old had been mentioned as a potential Fabinho replacement long before the Brazilian was scheduled to leave. After all, Liverpool prefers that their high-priced signings have played between 150 and 200 senior games by the time they move to Anfield.
Lavia has only made 29 appearances in the Premier League despite being a senior member of the Belgium national team. If he were to fetch the desired £50 million, he would rank as Liverpool’s sixth-most expensive player ever.
Southampton turned down a second offer earlier this week worth a total of £41 million, which was still far below the teenager’s £50 million asking price. The initial offer for the teenager was £34 million, plus £4 million in add-ons. It is unclear if the Reds will make another improved offer, but given the urgency of getting the deal done before the new season, a slight £3 million increase that is still far below the asking price is undoubtedly frustrating.
Because stubbornness in an effort to save a few million pounds could end up costing Liverpool so much more in the long run if they start another season slowly with a huge void that still needs to be filled, perhaps this is the risk that Klopp wants to see. Being unprepared and having to play catch-up cost them dearly the previous year, after all.
There is nothing more dangerous than not taking a chance, as Pep Guardiola famously stated while still in charge of FC Barcelona after leading the Catalans to the treble after defeating Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League final. “.
Even though he wasn’t referring to transfer activity, the cautious FSG should still take his words into consideration. They are jeopardizing everything Klopp has accomplished during their rule by sticking to the status quo at Anfield.
As naive as it is to believe a large sum of money and a multi-million pound spending spree akin to their competitors could solve everything, it is simplistic to suggest that they are solely to blame for the Reds’ recent problems.
But as the gap to Man City widens, Kopites, who were champions of England, Europe, and the world as recently as 2019–20, don’t want to have to wait another 30 years for their next Premier League title.
This year, it was always going to be difficult for Liverpool to unleash a new-look midfield in a new-look formation, but at least preseason gave the Reds the best opportunity to get off to a strong start. With so much work still to be done at Anfield, that opportunity has already been lost. FSG must now take a chance.
Liverpool, led by Klopp, need assistance with one week until their Premier League opener away at Chelsea.
