One of the stories of the last season, even before it kicked off, was the start of a new era with Liverpool. Jürgen Klopp left Anfield after a long period of almost nine years in charge. A lot of questions surrounded Arne Slot, coming from Feyenoord, but the Dutchman wasted no time in jumping straight into work. The epilogue? A very dominantly won Premier League title and a team that shifted into fifth gear very early and didn’t look back.
We can discuss whether their Champions League run was a disappointment, going out in the Round of 16 to the eventual champions, Paris Saint-Germain, but the main objective was achieved, some would even say, easily.
Arne Slot’s excellent work has been largely rewarded this summer – rather than an overhaul, Liverpool are in for a huge upgrade of their squad, investing more than a few hundred million pounds to ensure the silverware keeps on coming. Four signings are already in, but the biggest one might still be in the making.
Giorgi Mamardashvili – GK, joined from Valencia (signed last year for €30M, but left on loan)
The deal was sealed last summer as the race started for the signature of European Championship‘s hit goalkeeper – Valencia’s Georgian keeper had a very exciting summer campaign, and the Reds’ leadership decided to add some competition between their posts.
This summer the Irishman that filled in for Alisson when he was abesnt, Caoimhin Kelleher, joined Brentford, so the battle for Liverpool’s #1 will come down to Mamardashvili and Alisson. How will the battle end and how will it affect the situation at the club… only time will tell.
Jeremie Frimpong – DR, joined from Bayer Leverkusen for €35M
A deal that was announced very early, almost immediately after Trent-Alexander Arnold left for Real Madrid, Liverpool spent no time in finding his replacement.
Jeremie Frimpong, a 24-year-old Dutch right-back, takes his career to the next level after excelling in Xabi Alonso’s system in Bayer Leverkusen. In that system, Frimpong acted as the team’s wide reference, a wing-back with a lot of offensive duties and a big impact on the attacking end of business.
It will be very interesting to see what are Slot’s ideas when it comes to pairing Frimpong and Mo Salah on the right flank.
Miloš Kerkez – LB, joined from Bournemouth for €46.9M
Not only the right-side of Liverpool’s defence was in for an overhaul. A position that was long time synonymous with Andy Robertson, might now just be ready for a new owner, 21-year-old Hungarian Miloš Kerkez.
Kerkez brings versatility, he brings pace both on and off the ball, great physical capacities, and a good season in the Premier League with Bournemouth behind him. One of his specialties within Bournemouth’s offensive setup were his underlapping runs, creating space for his winger and midfielders.
Given their history of signings and the good work they’ve done so far, we can safely conclude that, whatever it may be, Liverpool certainly have a plan for Kerkez.
Hugo Ekitiké – CF, joined from Eintracht Frankfurt for €95M
A topic of one of our previous articles touching on the rising strikers set to change a club, Ekitiké‘s move to Liverpool was sealed just days after we published that text.
The versatile, pacey stirker joins Liverpool to offer a new dimension to their centre-forward position. Rather than staying close to the box, Ekitiké is more than comfortable playing out wide, including his teammates in the action as much as he is comfortable finishing the attacks on his own. At the age of 23, space for his progress is huge, but such will be the challenge of adapting to life in the Premier League.
With big price tags usually comes big responsibility and a presusre not many have been able to deal with but, luckily for Hugo, his price tag won’t be the biggest that joins Anfield this summer.
Florian Wirtz – AM, joined from Bayer Leverkusen for €125M
The next big thing. The hottest stuff on the market this summer, without a doubt. Leverkusen weren’t easy to negotiate with regarding Florian Wirtz, the German prodigy that’s been lighting up pretty much every competition he took part in.
For whatever reasons, Manchester City and Bayern München, who looked to be running for Wirtz’s signing together with Liverpool, opted out, leaving Liverpool with a simple decision whether or not they want to pay so much money for their man.
It didn’t seem like the Reds’ front office spent too much time dwelling on that decision, and they’ve sealed the deal for a club record fee.
A fee that could, and, let’s even dare to say it should be paid off with dividends and it won’t take too long. Wirtz is simply the prototype of the modern attacking midfielder, equally dangerous centrally and on both wings, with a perfect understanding of space – he can operate between the lines as well as he can with runs behind the defence. Technically impeccable, on top of all the things mentioned before, he brings some serious class and flair.
We might enjoy this one for a long time, even those of us who aren’t Liverpool fans.
Alexander Isak – CF, set to join from Newcastle for another record fee?
By the looks of it… the biggest saga of the summer is yet to unfold. Alexander Isak is all but out of Newcastle United, and everything suggests that his next destination will only be about 180 miles to the southwest.
Should the transfer really materialize, bearing in mind Newcastle’s official stance, the Reds are in for breaking yet another club record fee to secure the Swedish striker’s services. Isak’s qualities have been long proven and he’s enjoyed quite a successful spell in English football so, at least when quality is in question, this one seems pretty straightforward for Liverpool.
However, it could leave the coaching staff with quite some work to do, as questions appear. What happens with Darwin Núñez? What about Ekitiké? Is a change of formation on the cards? If both Ekitiké and Isak are in, then who’s out? It may sound like every manager’s sweetest trouble, but any decision Slot and his team take… might come back to haunt them.
Conclusion
Hard to end this story with anything other than saying that this is a clear statement of intent coming from Anfield. They’re at the top, looking good, playing even better. In a place where most clubs would be satisfied, they put their foot on the gas even further, going all-in to ensure not only they stay on top, but that they create a even bigger margin.
They knew, after all, who they were dealing with. Manchester City, the absolute rulers of English football in the last decade that have had a slip-up and want to take what they consider theirs right away. Arsenal, sick and tired of finishing second, in desperate need of a huge triumph. Chelsea, who seem to be able of spending any amount of money they want on any amount of players they like, window after window.
Liverpool simply knew they had to keep up, and they did that in quite some manner. It looks more of a when but if, so when Alexander Isak joins them, the Reds will have made three of the club’s most expensive signings ever in the span of a month. Talk about shopping!