Liverpool’s mastery in the transfer market must leave rivals hot under the collar. FSG have their drawbacks, criticised for their frugality, but who can reasonably rail against their formula?
Arne Slot, though, has exceeded expectations this season, winning the Premier League at a canter, somehow replacing the irreplaceable Jurgen Klopp.
It’s frightening to think that Liverpool are now ramping up their transfer plans, rewarding Slot with a deep-pocketed transfer chest which has already led to the signing of Jeremie Frimpong, with his Bayer Leverkusen teammate Florian Wirtz lined up for a reported British-record €130m (about £110m) transfer.
With a deal for Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez also in the pipeline, Liverpool fans would be forgiven for indulging in fits of excitement: Slot and the powers that be are investing in a team ready to challenge at the highest European level for many years to come.
However, more is needed in attacking areas if the Reds are to do it all over again next year and keep Mohamed Salah, who turns 33 this month, on his A-game.
How Liverpool can keep Mo Salah firing
Last season, Liverpool won the Carabao Cup and restored their place in the Champions League after a wretched 2022/23 campaign, but failed to secure the biggest prizes.
Salah promised the Liverpool faithful he would put that right, and delivered on his promise by winning the Premier League under Slot’s wing, winning the clean sweep of individual prizes in the process.
It was, all in all, a rather good campaign for the Egyptian King, but there’s no question he was overburdened with responsibility at times, dragging his profligate teammates across the finish line.
Salah no doubt misses the seamless synergy that Jurgen Klopp pieced together when creating one of the Premier League’s greatest-ever frontlines, Salah joined by Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane in turning Liverpool back into a superpower over so many years.
Premier League
38
29
18
Champions League
9
3
4
Carabao Cup
5
2
1
Now, Liverpool must reward their legendary veteran with new partners in the final third who maintain clinical rates of scoring, of supplying. Whether Salah will secure teammates on the level of Firmino and Mane remains to be seen, but FSG are certainly acting with the intent of achieving just that.
Slot driving ambitious Liverpool deal
As per TEAMtalk, Liverpool are considering ‘a fresh approach’ for Newcastle United’s Anthony Gordon this summer, who is valued at around £80m.
Contacts were established one year ago when Newcastle fretted over ways to circumvent PSR, having failed to qualify for Europe. Liverpool were drawn to the possibility of signing Gordon, but in the end, Eddie Howe’s side found alternative routes to go down.
Now, though, it’s become clear that Anfield’s interest has remained intact, and while the former Everton star would not force his way out of St. James’ Park, a return to Merseyside to sign for his boyhood club would be a big temptation.
Why Anthony Gordon could replicate Mane at Liverpool
Liverpool released Gordon from their academy when he was only 11 years old, leaving him adrift until washing up at Goodison Park, where he made his name.
Newcastle paid Everton a £45m fee to sign Gordon in January 2023, and this was before he made genuine headway. Now, it’s understandable that the Magpies would want to bank nearly double that figure, and if Diaz is sold, Liverpool might just be able to make it happen.
Hailed for his “unbelievable” 2023/24 campaign by teammate Bruno Guimaraes, Liverpool’s interest came after a campaign that saw Gordon post 28 goal contributions across all competitions, earning Newcastle’s Player of the Season.
Despite winning the Carabao Cup and restoring his club’s place in the Champions League, the current season hasn’t been so kind to the England international, with injuries and suspensions disrupting the second half of the term.
The 24-year-old remains one of the most talented wingers in the Premier League, though, having pronounced himself a “nightmare for anyone” he plays against.
With levels still to scale as he makes improvements, Gordon might just be Slot’s long-term solution on the left flank, maybe even becoming Liverpool’s new version of Sadio Mane, with blistering speed and a dynamic danger to his skill set.
Last August, pundit Jamie Carragher actually tipped the Three Lions man to serve as Mane’s heir over on Merseyside, claiming he could make a “frightening” impact.
“Salah’s obviously not as quick as he was, of course he’s not, and I don’t think Diaz has got that pace. I go back to Mane. I think Anthony Gordon’s pace is frightening, I do. You know when you’re watching a game on TV and you go, ‘Wow!’, and you just see someone leave a full-back.”
A player of such physicality and athleticism with ostensibly sharper weaponry than Diaz could certainly make a positive impact, striking a stunning partnership with the evergreen Salah, who will remain at Liverpool for at least two more years.
And if Darwin Nunez is sold and replaced by Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike, with Liverpool locked in battle with Chelsea for the French forward, Slot might even have his own version of Firmino to complete a deadly new strike-force.
How to define Bobby Firmino? The Brazil forward was the glue which held Klopp’s iconic front three together, effortlessly brilliant and commendably selfless.
Mane and Salah were the goal-getters, but Firmino made it all tick, and given that Ekitike would join Liverpool as an up-and-coming Bundesliga talent, the similarities are clear to see, as Firmino arrived from Hoffenheim a decade ago for £29m.
Ekitike, 22, is a good goalscorer, having scored 22 times for his club this term, but he’s also so much more. As per FBref, he ranks among the top 10% of strikers across Europe’s top five leagues this season for assists and the top 6% for shot-creating actions per 90.
Such quality would give Gordon an inroad to a new level of goalscoring success, especially with Salah shaping into one of the game’s superlative wide playmakers in recent years.
Liverpool have enjoyed tremendous success in Slot’s newly-crafted system, but with such signings, they could reach even higher, giving Salah a new attacking partnership for the ages.
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