Liverpool won't repeat midfield revamp but Jurgen Klopp knows what transfer he needs next
After a difficult transitional season last year, it has been a case of so far, so good for Jurgen Klopp’s ‘Liverpool 2.0’.
The Reds sit second in the Premier League table heading into the November international break, just a point behind league-leaders and reigning champions Man City. Returning to domestic action away at the Etihad on November 25, Liverpool could sit atop of the table themselves in little over a week.
It’s a far cry from their ageing squad’s plight last term, where only a late recovery saw them finish fifth and qualify for the Europa League. While Klopp’s ranks had won every major honour going between 2018 and 2022, the 2022/23 season was ultimately a year too far.
Club bosses were aware of this, at least, and have spent the past two years slowly revamping the German’s squad. Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo were brought in for a combined fee of £179m with add-ons as the Reds’ sought long-term replacements for Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, while also waving off Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino.
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Meanwhile, this summer Liverpool parted with £150m when overhauling their midfield as they snapped up Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch. Going the other way, Jordan Henderson and Fabinho completed unexpected moves to Saudi Arabia, while James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain departed at the end of their contracts.
“We pretty much have to reinvent the team,” Klopp acknowledged on transfer deadline day back in September before Gravenberch was officially a Liverpool
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