Liverpool Discussion Thread

Mar 27, 2025 -- 6:42PM, duncan idaho wrote:

agree POP FSG were distracted in the summer by the key appointments and appeared to drop the ball on the 3 contracts be amazed if that was true...company that runs top-class sports clubs simply falling asleep on the contract status of 3 of your biggest assets?..nah, dont buy it

I don't see any other explanation. Remember last season we were also in the title race till pretty deep. We had bigger fish to fry. As stated above, the time to re-negotiate was Summer 2023. Maybe Klopp himself was distracted or at least a bit burnt out. But once that window was missed the next few months were put on the back burner as they completely re-structured the management team. And you always have to check if a manager likes a player or if they are compatible (the reason we didn't go for Amorim). There's a parallel universe where we gave them bumper deals and then got a new man in who couldn't get a tune out of them and they were doing a Casemiro for a few years.

If Trent always did want to leave (bit odd that it's only now the stories of him learning Spanish come out) then the club would surely have known and maybe should have sold him on. Or maybe they calculated keeping him for these two years would be better value. Or maybe they just thought they could convince him and failed.

Doesn't really matter in the end. It's how the game works. Great players come and great players go. And they'll always be replaced. That's just how it is. Him being a local lad is immaterial really. He's got the same career as everyone else. We'll all be very understanding if Isak or Branthwaite decide to join us in the summer and how they're putting their career first so it's a bit hypocritical to be upset at one of our players making the same choice.

I wish him good luck.

But I'll always hate Madrid. Horrible club. Hope this league title is the last thing he wins for a long time, at least till he moves on from them.

It won’t be hypocritical if Isak or Branthwaite go for big fees though will it? Will be a completely different scenario.

I don't think Everton fans will be wishing him well and thanking him for the money he's generated.

That’s not the point though mate. You are comparing others going for healthy fees to someone stiffing his club and going on a free.

I'm just comparing fans being disappointed when a good player leaves. As stated, I get the disappointment at him being allowed to leave for nothing. But if I was in his shoes, and looking to pocket (prob) tens of millions in a signing on fee before drawing my wage even, then I'd do exactly the same thing. And I think the majority of people would. And if he'd negotiated a MacAllister type £35m get out, I think that would actually have been perceived much worse. It's all just the game though. The only ones who really care about a club are the fans. All of the badge kissing, the this means more etc, it's all just for sponsors and instagram clicks.

And there's the flipside too. If Trent was crap he'd have been thrown on to the scrapheap as a teen and no-one would bat an eyelid. We're fine when clubs treat people like dirt but are upset when it's the other way around. It's a funny old game saint.

I blame the dicks doing the murals for current players. Idiotic imo. You become a legend after you retire and your career can be viewed as a whole. Some people just never learn that footballers can disappoint you.

Pop. I get it. And said above. Im fine with him putting himself first. Just making the point that club legends don’t act like this so let’s stop pretending he was ever any different to the rest. He’s tarnished his legacy for me now. Just add him to the long list of good players we had. He’s probably not arsed about that either. In fact I’m absolutely positive he’s not arsed about that. He sees himself as a global superstar now.

Good luck to him. Give him a clap and a wave and that’s your lot.

But when VVD and Salah sign, which I’m convinced they will, they will rightly be anointed as Liverpool legends and be remembered alongside the greats.

And I’m still not having FSG have any responsibility for this. He’s acted selfishly and looked after his own interests. The club are powerless.

It amazes me how many FSG Outers exist. I think we are as well run as any club out there. Which club are the moaners hoping we could become like?!

I think you can still criticise the club and not be an FSG weirdo.


To have three of your main players running their contracts down and being at risk of walking away for free is a bit of a sh!tshow. I think there are reasons it's happened, if not excuses. But the club needs to learn the lessons from this and be looking to tie Konate down this summer or get a good fee for him for instance. We've gotten lucky that the players are both good and professional but we can't keep dealing with contracts like this.

I see Carragher blames Michael Edwards going and Klops's mate Jorg Schmadtke taking temporary charge for the contracts not being progressed. I dont agree that players have all the power. If he has been learning spanish for 5 years ( he must be a slow learner) then the club should have made arrangements knowing he wanted to leave

I do think some supporters look at these transfers as some sort of betrayal and will boo TAA if he ever comes back despite the 20 years service he has given to the club. That all goes out the window. We got the best out of Torres and managed to get £50m for him. What a fantastic deal for the club yet he got dogs abuse from supporters for leaving. Perhaps weve got the best out of TAA as i think hes gone a bit stale

So its OK for VVD and Mo to try and screw as much out of the club to renew their contract (probably over £50m a year combined) but if a local lad leaves without a fee then hes a traitor

He wants a new challenge and to play abroad just as Kevin Keegan was probably the first to do this and became a better player


Perhaps our new full back will take the team forward - thats football players come and go

I don't think letting a poor player leave or a good one go when their contracts are up is stiffing anyone.
There are fans who would boo him even if he went for £100m
I'd see him as a traitor if he's colluded with Madrid to run down and leave for free. Could be the case, more likely than not imo but no proof.
But there has to be blame on the hierarchy for allowing this to arise. It could have cost them the league but even allowing the prospect of all 3 leaving for 0 in one go is negligent to say the least.

To fans that aren't happy with Trent, what way would you have preferred him to play it so as you would be OK with him?

he shouldnt be negotiating a deal until the season is over. his mind will be elsewhere when playing, esp if he makes a mistake in a game. the fans will be on his back straight away.

Madrid last 5 years mostly bosman signings. Reckon they’re in it with the players agents. Deal being more wages for the player + signing on fee, agent fees his big cut Madrid don’t payback bean in transfers. As far as Trent is concerned was over that a long time ago. He loves Lfc but been here for most of his life, and won the lot   No point being bitter, one man doesn’t make a team. Mbappe leaving a good example of that

You can count the Bosmans on one hand.
What about the plethora of signings of the world's very top prospects as teenagers, long before they've hit their prime?

They offered big money for Mbappe but PSG wouldn't sell. Reportedly offered €30m for Trent in Jan but pool said no, may have made other offers previously. Wouldn't blame them for the Rudiger situation at Chelsea either.

PGMOL have acknowledged that James Tarkowski should have been sent off for his challenge on Alexis Mac Allister in the Merseyside Derby



...see LiVARpool got lucky with the officials once again

Any mention of Pickford's wild hack at Darwin after he'd been done up like a kipper?

The whistle had been blown before Pickford did that

What relevance does that have to Pickford not getting a card?

Or are we saying that you can go around doing whatever TF you like so long as the whistle's gone?

Any update on bringing in VAR for the VAR officials...?

They reckon pickford should have got yellow, but var cannot add one, unless
they send ref to monitor to recommend a red... Then ref could give a yellow.

Bizarre, innit.

really dislike Pickford for a number of years now
angry thug

This is what the season would look like without the raised performances from Salah, and this is what the board are afraid of if they give him a new bumper deal.

pickford is a total nob

Which is the Salah of 25/26 and beyond though. The early season version or the one of the last couple of months? Therein lies the rub.

You've got to expect a fall off and if and when it happens you've got to assume it will be harder and harder to come back from, Liverpool have to plan for that.

The concern of what Liverpool would be like without his form has been playing out in recent times, it's all there to see, it strengthens the argument in favour of the board wanting to tread carefully.

Yeah, but if he were to leave he'd be replaced. Maybe completely replaced with (eg) Isak and maybe someone like Bowen on the wing, rather than trying to find his copycat and playing the same way. Just like the team was rebuilt when our best player - Coutinho - left. Obviously there wouldn't be the seed money this time, but just saying sometimes you can lose your best player and go in a different direction and get better.

I think what the last few weeks have shown though is that both players should be getting two years max, at least at a top player salary rate. Time waits for no man, no matter how great they are.

Yep...and I have no doubt that they will meet somewhere in the middle, but even with him staying Liverpool will need to start to look toand begin to augment what you've said PP.

Mo's all wrapped up. 2 more years. Feels right to me.



He's 20/1 to celebrate with a hat-trick on sunday.

400k a week and signing on fee.

Couldnt replace him for that so good deal all round.

Liverpool and Netherlands defender Virgil van Dijk, 33, has agreed terms for a new contract with the club which he will sign before the end of the current season. (Fabrizio Romano)

happy days

It’s fairly well going like we predicted now, couple of summer signings, should freshen things up as well

yup feeling much more relaxed now, gl to trent if he does eventually go . gl to him.

lets win v the hammers tomorrow and close in on that 20th title

cmon u reds!!

well hard work but we got there.. shd be it now . champers is on ice

Must be only one that noticed
How slow he looks compared pre-Christmas MO
Had kid marking him yesterday
But kilman wank slow looked fast against mo
Hopefully for Liverpool his skills what you want not his speed cos as none

linford christie won olympic gold 100m at 32. salah is still quick enough.

what fantastic news - most important signing of the 3
We have our leader for another 2 years so enough time to come up with a succession plan

hopefully some positive signings in the summer a forward with pace, a class left back (robbo has a year left on his contract so im assuming Tsimi might leave), a right back to compete with Connor, a midfielder as I assume a couple will go, and a centre half as I assume Gomez and Quansah will go

nearly there

How many goals has Mo scored since he re-signed?

How many goals have United scored collectively all season?! 

Since January 2021, Salah is the 5th highest scorer at Old Trafford. The four above him were all Utd players.

Arf!

Deflection

dont worr wey snc will be 21 this time next season and you will be far behind us with no hope and no future .

History is for classrooms. The only thing that counts is here and now.

United are a struggling team playing for a struggling club.

The dream Ange has been having all his life could be happening on Sunday. Being at Anfield seeing Liverpool win the league, can see him doing a Jurgen shortly after full time down at the kop end

My only Anfield claim to fame is that i was there in 1990 v qpr, on a tour booked well in advance - may well be my only visit to Anfield! I also took in a Neds Atomic Dustbin gig (might have been Mega City 4 or even both come to think of it). Then seeing my dads childhood haunts in Huyton with a hangover from hell.

here we go !!!!!!!!

strong team cmonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Well done Liverpool, another one to celebrate!

championees championeess vwd mr slot and all the players brilliant

cant hrelp but feel for jurgen -his team

liver bird back on its perch .... love it

congratulations, lfc have been different class to the rest this season. much kudos to slot.

Boom

Well deserved winners.

Liverpool's chances of signing Bryan Mbeumo this summer look to have significantly increased following an honest admission from his manager, Thomas Frank. The Reds have been linked with interest in a winger who has quickly established himself as one of the Premier League's deadliest forwards.

happy if we get this one over the line

Disappointing v Chelsea.

However it has confirmed a few things for Slot.

Elliot, Jones, Tsimkas and Jota are all now just useful squad players. Endo was always just a squad player.

Quansah is no more than a 4th choice centre back, so we desperately need another centre half.

And Nunez 100% needs to be replaced. Today even as a sub he looks woeful. Terrible free header.

Would like to see Bradley start the last games to see if we need to buy a squad right back or a first team right back.

Nah. Today means nothing. Players had their grill flops on. Just fulfilling necessary obligations now. Probably spend training sessions planning summer holidays this week.

Get used to life without Salah, at the club but without him, it's must be a bit surreal, celebrating but with a degree of concern just below the surface, who scores the goals if it looks like you're having to carry Salah for the forseeable.

Still, worthy winners this year, the one eyed man and all that

2 or 3 good signings will make a big difference, we’ll almost certainly sign players that haven’t been connected to us by the media, apart from Kerkez possibly

United had the same from Rashford. A goal machine while his big contract negotiations going on then MIA once they were signed.

Salah's been in contract negotiations for the last 7 years apparently

2017/18: 32 goals

2018/19: 22 goals

2019/20: 19 goals

2020/21: 22 goals

2021/22: 23 goals

2022/23: 19 goals

2023/24: 18 goals

2024/25: 28 goals (as of April 2025)

2017/18: 10 assists

2018/19: 8 assists

2019/20: 10 assists

2020/21: 6 assists

2021/22: 13 assists

2022/23: 12 assists

2023/24: 10 assists

2024/25: 18 assists (as of April 2025)

That's some bump in stats this year isn't it!

Thought it was the perfect result scenario before kick off.
Looked at the league table and saw that Chelsea and Forest could get within a point of Citeh.
If Citeh capitulate they finish outside of the top five and hence miss out on champions league.
would be ideal for the cheating ///** still up on the hook for 115 counts of filthy cheating, busily worming their way out of manacles via highly paid lawyers.
would like to see them miss out naturally.

Decent first part of a write-up from the Statsbomb boys on LFC this summer


The 20-time league champions are likely in for a busy summer. Michael Edwards is back in the seat of ultimate oversight across FSG’s footballing operations, with Richard Hughes executing strategy directly for Liverpool. This is a good thing, since they (and Ian Graham — and more recently Will Spearman and the lovely nerds who work alongside them) were responsible for building the core that powered Liverpool to huge success across the last decade.

Despite pushback from coaches and their stone aged friends in the media, the nerds won a resounding victory. Which is why it was curious when Edwards stepped away and Jürgen Klopp + compatriots were given the keys to the shiny, red Liverpudlian car for a couple of years. The reasoning there was that the club was in a potential sale process, and keeping Jurgen’s smiling maw happy for further seasons was deemed a better marketing strategy than potential coach turnover and the uncertainty that would go along with it.

Klopp’s era of football oversight, like Klopp’s later years of football on the pitch, was somewhat untidy. That’s no knock on the man — it’s a hard job and has different incentives as a coach who knows he is likely to leave in the near term versus heading an administration that is locked in for the long haul.

Hughes and co. now need to tidy up the age curve, find new cornerstones for the next ten years, replace their greatest ever right back as he leaves for the bright lights and warmer weather of Madrid, and in a year or two also replace the best centreback of recent Premier League times and the best right wide forward ever to be seen on English shores.

Simples, right?

What we have learned about this group of football people is the following:

They rarely overshoot, and though transfers are impossible to get right every time, they don’t often make mistakes.

They’ll take risks on reviving the careers of former world-beaters, IF they can find value.

If the price gets too high on a transfer, they will move on further down the list. Same for wages.

Everything has to align properly in order for a big fee to be triggered.

And perhaps most importantly — they have the exceptional ability to tune out the media and the fans and exercise discipline.

All of the above has made them literally the best in the business at what they do on their particular budget. It’s harder now than it was during their first era at Liverpool — A LOT harder, and part of that is my fault because StatsBomb made it easy to access insights at every level of football across the men’s and women’s games — but they’ve been doing it longer than anybody else, so that should balance out… maybe?

Eh, probably not.

The massive advantage they do have now is the full backing of an ownership group that has been there, done that, and has all the scars and trophies to go with it.

Unlike nearly every other group of smart nerds that is not part of the coaching staff, they SHOULD be able to get all of the insights down to the pitch and help Slot and co. execute the best they possibly can. But even now, that’s after easier said than done.

Liverpool started the season hot, took a big lead in the title race, and never looked back. Their attack has slowed down a bit as the season has gone on, but it’s never been poor at any point. At the same time, their defense has shown slow but steady improvement over the course of the year.

This is a team that’s gotten good at controlling games, with the 2-0 win over Manchester City being a particular highlight.

While there’s been a lot of discourse about Slot moving away from Klopp’s high-intensity football and towards a slower, more possession-based style, he’s done a great job of what Liverpool has been great at in their recent history. They’re still pressing high and countering quickly, and getting a ton of high-value chances out of doing that.

Liverpool’s PPDA and distance from goal that they’re making defensive actions are still well above league average, but down a touch from last season. Between some subtle changes to the pressing structure and Ryan Gravenberch’s move into a more disciplined holding midfield role, the Reds’ defense has improved significantly, going from 1.1 xG per 90 conceded last season down to 0.79 so far this season.

The team’s current composition and style of play should offer them quite a bit of flexibility in recruitment. They undoubtedly have detailed positional profiles that they recruit from, but they neither have a manager who is married to a specific style, nor a team that’s currently bad at anything. Liverpool does not have to overpay for anyone because they’re the only player that fills a particular need. They can hunt for value.

Who should they keep?

Real quick, some shiny radars from the two big dogs. Getting Mohamed Salah to sign a 2-year contract is massive. There’s almost no downside risk on a deal that short. If he retains anywhere near this level of production next season, he’s worth whatever wage he asked for.

Ladies and gentlemen, your 2024/25 Premier League player of the season: Mo Salah

Also sticking around is Virgil van Dijk, who is absolutely still that guy. Best center back of the Premier League era?

Besides the obvious superstars, I’ve really enjoyed the midfield partnership of Gravenberch and Alexis MacAllister this season. Neither jumps off the page with outstanding stats, but these are just really solid all-around central midfielders. They give their team a bit of everything. MacAllister does a bit more of the aggressive pressing, and Gravenberch doesn’t get beaten easily as more of a holding option.

Pretty much an ideal double pivot. Nice job boys.

And incredibly, after this point, I think everyone else is very much up for debate. I’d be willing to hear a case for retaining or selling every single other player on the squad, which is kind of an insane thing to say about runaway, deserving title winners. This is a complete team, much greater than the sum of its parts, well-designed to enable their one true superstar.

Who’s for sale, and what’s their budget?

In case you’ve been on an internet detox ayahuasca retreat in the jungle, Trent Alexander-Arnold has announced he is leaving Liverpool on a free transfer. He’s expected to join Real Madrid.

I’m sorry for making Liverpool fans look at this. I don’t want to rub salt in the wound, I know everyone’s real sad. But here’s one last reminder of how good Trent is, and how difficult he will be to replace like-for-like. There are precisely zero other fullbacks who both pass like this and add plus defensive value.

It’s pretty obviously time to move on for two other big name players. The first is Darwin Núñez, who has seen his production fall off a cliff under Slot. Liverpool have to get somewhere in the neighborhood of £30m from a sale to break even for PSR purposes, and will obviously be hoping to get a lot more than that. I do think they can get £40m, but given how far his shooting numbers have dropped off, the case for Liverpool making more than that is probably fanfic.

And then there’s Andy Robertson. He’ll be remembered fondly and was an absolute beast at his peak, but his decline is pretty clear to see. A lot of times a team will keep a player like this past their sell by date to retain some leadership, but Liverpool have enough of that kicking around with Virgil, Salah, and Alisson.

There are no PSR concerns here, he’s been paid off for quite some time, but he’ll likely struggle to find someone to match his £8m+ per season wage elsewhere. If Liverpool want to move him on, they might have to pay him compensation. It’s worth their couple million pounds to clear squad space for a younger left back.

And then stuff gets weird. Some bullet points:

Alisson has been linked to a big money Saudi move for a bit, but I assume he’ll stick around one more year. Caoimhín Kelleher should depart with Giorgi Mamardashvili replacing him, and I assume we’ll get one year of Mamardashvili as the backup/cup keeper before they decide if he’s That Guy or not.

Ibrahima Konaté has had a solid season, but perhaps not good enough for Liverpool to give him a big money extension instead of looking to sell him for a big fee. His current wage is in the £3.5m range, and he’ll want a raise to at least £8m to bring him in line with players of similar standing in the squad.

Wataru Endo could be a low fee sale or a low cost backup. I don’t think he significantly impacts their budget and strategy either way.

I know fans always want the homegrown guys to stick around and spend their whole career with the club, but I wonder if Liverpool might look to cash in on one of Curtis Jones or Harvey Elliott. I think they’d both have a huge market in the Premier League, and there’s no accounting tricks here. A sale is pure profit straight into the budget.

Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota both had very good but not sensational seasons, and they’re both 28. As Ted noted up top, this is a team that has to do some age curve adjusting. They probably both have a decent, but not terribly robust market, and that market will only get worse with each season that passes. At least one of them has to go. It wouldn’t be crazy to sell both.

Federico Chiesa has been injured all year and makes about £8m, so he’s unlikely to have a sale market. Just gotta eat crap on this one.

Liverpool were middle of the pack when it came to profit/loss shown on their books last season, likely on purpose. They did not spend big in the summer transfer window despite being prepared to drop £50m+ on a midfielder if they found one they liked, so they had no reason to pull any accounting tricks in order to make the books look pretty. It was a good year to get any losses from “other operating expenses” on the books.

The wage bill is well under control for a team of Liverpool’s revenue, and there are no unsellable disaster players gumming up the works. If Darwin Núñez at £7m wages per season and a £30m fee required for break even is your “albatross,” you’re doing a good job managing the money.

Liverpool could probably get away with a £100m net spend this summer even if they didn’t sell Darwin. It’s likely we see something along the lines of £100m in sales and £200m in purchases. This is going to be a crazy summer.

Tomorrow: What they should spend all that money on.

interesting read

for a team thats just won the EPL its pretty unusual the amount of transfer activity thats being forecast for the summer

True, but this is basically now the run off of the Klopp team. We lost the midfield a couple of years ago, then most of the attack, and now the back 5 are starting to enter their final straight.


A couple of points of interest for me.

Allison. He's still only 32. Probably got another 3 years at least as en elite keeper. But it's been 2 or 3 summers now where he's rumoured to be leaving. And not going to one of the giants, but to semi-retirement in the sand. Seems odd to me. Obviously there is chatter so some truth to it, and we've bought the Georgian lad to be his successor but I find the rumours a bit odd.

Diaz and Konate. Think these have both got 2 years left on their deals now. Diaz is often linked with Barca, which must be balls as they're completely broke. Konate seems to get linked to PSG a bit. I think we need to learn the lesson of Trent and make them a deal now and be ready to sell this summer. We'll get a good few quid for both and neither are so good they can't be replaced.

Jota. Think it's time to move him on too. Injured too much, and takes too long to get back up to speed. Think he'd rip it up in Italy if he fancied it.


So potentially a really big overhaul this summer. The good news though is we've got the guys who built Klopp's team to do it, and have added the lad who built the Bournemouth team for pennies.

the goalie situation will be interesting with Mamardashvili coming in. Will he be happy as a back up to Allison for a season or two?

I agree Konate could be replaced. He's benefitted from playing alongside VVD but he's not good on the ball at all. Its reported he is looking for a massive increase on his current contract so perhaps offloading would be a good move

I have a soft spot for Diaz. Ok he's not as good as Mane (but who is) but he provides us with energy and tenacity when he plays as well as his other qualities. He must be a nightmare to mark

Going to be an interesting summer

cheers PP...looking forward to Part 2!

yup roll on part 2

Here ya go



Welcome to Part 2 of the Liverpool rebuild, where we discuss potential transfer targets. Part 1, on the current state of the team, is here. We also have a companion podcast where Ted and Patrick discuss this stuff, if you enjoy transfer talk with human voices and some more back-and-forth.

This is going to be quite a bit more complicated than the Manchester United version of this post. For them, we picked out 4 positions where they need to buy better players ASAP. For each position, we picked out an ideal, likely, backup, and high variance target. Easy.

Liverpool is in a much different situation. They don’t really need anything, except at least one more warm body who knows how to play right back. They’re title winners, everyone not named Trent Alexander-Arnold seems pretty happy to stay, and there will likely be minimal short-term consequences from maintaining the status quo.

But preventative medicine is a hell of a lot more effective than post-disease treatment, and Liverpool management are generally a proactive bunch. Just because the squad is good enough now doesn’t mean things can’t change dramatically in the near future. I’m sure most people reading this remember Liverpool’s 2009-2013 period very well.

So we’re going to talk about a lot of different squad building options here, rather than some black-and-white, they must buy X position, here are players for that position. There are a lot of different ways for Liverpool to approach getting better this summer. Let’s dig in.

Recreating Trent in the aggregate, midfield option 1: Adam Wharton

Liverpool have been linked to some star midfielders as part of a potential Recreating Trent in the Aggregate project. If you are not familiar with this meme from the movie “Moneyball,” the Oakland Athletics lost a star player named Jason Giambi in 2001 and had no way to replace him. Brad Pitt’s character concludes that if the team can improve marginally at two other positions while minimizing the loss in quality at Giambi’s position, the team can retain the same level of production.

There is no such thing as a direct Trent replacement, which is why he’s about to get a shitload of money from Real Madrid. If Liverpool are going to maintain the same quality of playmaking from deep positions in a post-Trent world, they will likely need to improve their passing output from their deepest-lying central midfielder.

It’s not impossible that there’s an internal solution to this. Ryan Gravenberch is just 22, and that’s an age where central midfielders are still improving their passing vision. Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliot could transition into deeper-lying roles. But if Liverpool want some immediate help in this area, they’ve only got a couple great options, and they’re going to be expensive.

That was a very long-winded introduction to a simple thesis: Adam Wharton is good at passing, he’d made Liverpool a better football team.

Unfortunately for Liverpool, Crystal Palace have done a good job of managing their finances in recent years and do not need to sell cheap. They managed to repel the vultures circling Marc Guehi last summer, telling everyone it’s £80m or piss off. They’ll probably do the same for Wharton.

Option 2: Angelo Stiller

From the rebuilding United piece:

“Unfortunately for United, I think Stiller is going to have the option to sign for a team who is currently participating in the UEFA Champions League instead, and I suspect he’ll be much more interested in that.”

Well, here’s one of those teams. Stiller is older than Wharton, and might be close to his ceiling. His defensive numbers aren’t as good. But he’s got much more experience in European competition, he’ll still be in his 20s at the end of a 5-year contract, and his passing numbers are off the charts.

I don’t have more options here, because I don’t think Liverpool should spend a lot of money on a midfielder if they can’t get one of these two at a price they’re comfortable with. They’ll just be spending a lot of money for a guy who is worse than Gravenberch, and I’m not sure what the point of that would be.

Right backs, from Trentiest: Óscar Mingueza

I don’t know exactly how Liverpool is going to approach the right back situation on a scale of Moneyball meme to really wanting a Trent-like substance, so we’ve got three options. Here’s the most Trent-like substance they’re going to find, at least from a passing numbers standpoint.

The Barca-trained Mingueza is not on Trent’s level athletically and I suspect he might not be a good enough defender to get through the Liverpool recruitment team’s filters. But if you want a guy who does Trent Stuff with the ball from the right back position, here is the one other guy on the planet currently doing that. He completes 5.69 line-breaking passes in the attacking half per 90, which is actually higher than Alexander-Arnold’s 4.87.

Kinda Trenty: Martim Fernandez

Fernandez doesn’t quite have the line-breaking pass capability of Alexander-Arnold and Mingueza. He’s only 19, and might not be ready for a move to the Premier League. But he’s an excellent passer for the position, and much more defensively capable than Migueza despite his young age.

I mentioned Fernandez in the United piece as not really fitting their existing profile for a wingback, despite his talent. Fernandez does appear to fit Liverpool’s profile a bit better. But, again, he might not be ready for this kind of jump.

Not Trenty: Vanderson

I think the most likely scenario is that Liverpool accepts that there is not a Trent replacement out there, and they should just sign the best all-around right back who is good enough at passing that Arne Slot feels he can work with him. I think that player is undoubtedly Monaco’s Vanderson, who has outstanding defensive numbers to go along with totally fine passing and dribbling numbers.

Over on the other side of the defense, it’s time to replace Andy Robertson with someone younger who can run. But do Liverpool want someone to mimic Prime Robbo, or does the recreating Trent in the aggregate concept require something different entirely?

Left backs, from most Robbolike: Milos Kerkez

You’re probably already sick of hearing Kerkez to Liverpool rumours. They’ve been relentless for 6 months at this point, and for good reason. He’s a 21-year-old who plays a lot like the early 20s version of Liverpool’s current left back.

I do wonder if the data will move him down the club’s list, though. He’s certainly got the pace and fitness to grow into a star, and his highlight plays are nuts. But he’s not a terribly consistent performer with the ball at his feet. There are quite a few games where he doesn’t produce much of value.

Kinda Robbolike: Rayan Aït-Nouri

If you’re willing to sacrifice some of Kerkez’s athletic ceiling in order to bring in someone who’s a bit more experienced, as well as a bit more consistent and well-rounded, perhaps Wolverhampton’s Rayan Aït-Nouri is more your cup of tea.

He runs plenty, he’s a good athlete, he can dribble and cross. Maybe not as spectacularly as Kerkez, but he does all those things at an above average level. He’s fine. Liverpool fans shouldn’t be over the moon or disappointed if they sign this guy. Unironically, this is fine.

I SAID we’re recreating Trent in the aggregate: Juan Miranda

Hey, remember the Barcelona-trained right back who is an elite passer but doesn’t play much defense that we talked about earlier? How about a Barcelona-trained LEFT back who is an elite passer but doesn’t play much defense!

Juan Miranda has taken a big jump in his passing quality this season after moving from Real Betis to Bologna. Ages 24 to 25 is a pretty normal time for a player to do something like this, and he’s otherwise stayed pretty similar stylistically.

Liverpool “replacing” their fullbacks by just flipping them, signing a playmaking LB and a RB who runs a lot, would be an amazing bit.

The striker I love: Hugo Ekitike

I don’t think anyone knows exactly what kind of striker profile Arne Slot prefers, which is going to make this summer very fun. My hypothesis is that he’d like someone who is very much a true 9 who can run into the box and score goals, but has some level of back-to-goal, combination play skills.

If I’m wrong and Liverpool just buys someone like Victor Osimhen or Viktor Gyökeres who is just a straight-up goal-scorer, cool. Those are good players and they’ll probably score a bunch of goals on Liverpool.

But the guy who I think best combines timing runs to the top of the 6 to get tons of high value chances with combining in midfield is Hugo Ekitike. He’s a bit of a risk — he’s only had one really good season in the Bundesliga, and he’s not as physical as he should be given his frame — but I think he does what Liverpool needs and is only getting better

The striker who terrifies me: Benjamin Šeško

We are in the business of doing opinionated analysis. Ted and I have been doing this for a long time. We’re right more than we’re wrong, but obviously we are wrong sometimes, and we accept that’s just part of the game we’re playing here. 99% of the time, I am not scared of saying a player or transfer is bad because I might get proven wrong in the future. But I am extremely unsure of my opinion on Benjamin Šeško.

I just… don’t think he’s that good. He’s not a particularly productive shooter or playmaker. He wasn’t last season either. This is not a £70m player. Anyone who pays £70m for this is crazy, right?

It’s easy to look at this shot chart and say “xG overperformance lol,” but he’s going to do this kind of thing repeatedly in his career because he’s one of the most talented headers of the ball I’ve ever seen.

The circles aren’t luck. They’re low xG chances because on the whole, over hundreds of thousands of shots, a very low percentage of them from all players are goals. But some dudes genuinely are built different, and this mf can seriously head a football.

The “what if” scenario Šeško makes me feel like I might look like a real moron in a couple years for saying he’s not worth signing at a big fee for the kind of clubs that can afford it. If his off-ball movement gets just a little better, if he starts getting just one more shot per 90, he could be an absolute monster.

We call Premier League directors of football mean names in this newsletter frequently and will continue to do so. But I’m not going to say it about whoever signs Šeško, as much as I’ll disagree with signing him.

A potential value suggestion: Gonçalo Ramos

So these numbers are fake. There are a lot of sub effects, there’s a lot of farming bottom half clubs. If I played striker for PSG against relegation fodder Ligue 1 teams, I’d get some high xG tap-ins on accident.

But Ramos was pretty good for Benfica, and pretty good last season, and he’s still only 23. The striker market is pretty weak, so if PSG are selling at a reasonable price, he might prove to be an excellent pickup.

Salah understudies, from most to least ready: Johan Bakayoko

I was a bit surprised that Liverpool didn’t jump into the Yankuba Minteh or Matías Soulé market last summer, so maybe they will once again put off buying a left-footed winger to back up Mohamed Salah. But I wouldn’t put that off another year, so here are a few options.

Johan Bakayoko has been linked heavily to Liverpool since scoring a goal against them, and he’s had another very solid season at PSV. Cody Gakpo’s working out well, why not go get Left Footed Cody Gakpo?

Ready: Mohamed-Ali Cho

I think that Cho is a bit more of a project player than Bakayoko, but he’s performed well in Ligue 1 this season. He might not be as spectacular of a dribbler, but he’s a little bit bigger and I think he might grow into becoming the more well-rounded player. Apologies if you are unable to get over the fact that he was once an Everton youth player; I can’t imagine this bothers him or Liverpool management.

Not quite ready: Roger Fernandes

I suspect that Roger Fernandes will either wait another year to make a move, or transfer to one of the three richer Portuguese teams. He’s quite an inconsistent performer, especially in games against the toughest opponents Braga faces. But he’s an elite dribbler, his playmaking stats are good for his age, and his highlights are out of this world.

I wouldn’t be surprised if a Premier League team wanted to get in on the ground floor of this project instead of paying the Benfica or Porto premium two years from now.

The project: Tyler Dibling

“Southampton have put a £100m price tag on Tyler Dibling,” and obviously no one is going to buy him at that price. Southampton know this, and it is their way of telling potential bidders to piss off. But things can change real fast when a player on a relegated team has bids from big clubs and starts throwing a fit.

Currently, Dibling is a genuinely elite dribbler already, but does almost nothing else that a football club would find useful. Regardless, I’d much rather take a player who has Dibling’s dribbling skills and try to make them better at other stuff than try to teach a decent all-rounder how to do Tyler Dibling stuff.

If I could concoct a perfect situation for Dibling’s development, independent of any financial concerns, it would be going to Liverpool to become Salah’s understudy. In reality, I think it’s likely that Liverpool struggles to get Southampton down to a price that they’re comfortable with. But from a complete fantasy perspective of wanting to see a fun player go to the right place to reach his potential, I very much want to see this happen.

much appreciated

im hoping we get izak from newcastle

Thanks Pop some really good stuff

Dragon I wouldnt have thought Isak fits into the FSG purchasing strategy i.e. buying a player at 26 at his peak and the top of his value although the new contracts for VVD and Mo didnt seem to fit either

livepool echo is reporting interest on life long fan kevin de bruyn

I think Isak is simply too expensive. Particularly when we've got an LB, a RB and a CB to get too. Trick is finding the next Isak.

Tyler Dibbling was in same primary school class as my youngest daughter

you are prob right PP

'Tyler Dibbling was in same primary school class as my youngest daughter'


Can he play, Capt?

If you don't already think that Brighton at 7/4 is a mahoosive bet against us on monday, you should maybe be aware that Slot himself was partying in Ibiza on SUNDAY EVENING.

He literally got on a plane straight after the final whistle and was knocking back the jaegerbombs in a beach bar a couple of hours later. No wonder he didn't even catch the first goal, he was texting his missus to remember the convertor plugs.

Meanwhile all the players are currently in Dubai, having a large one for a few days.


We'll certainly want to sign off the season in style at home and picking up the trophy. But a monday night trip to the other end of the country for a completely meaningless game? Good luck thinking we're giving 100% there.

you're welcome

my m8 backed liverpool 1-2 at ht at 22 to a tenner - brilliant

gd shout pp but a disappointment all the same

champions v fa cup winners on sunday

Liverpool have made a formal approach to Bayer for Florian Wirtz

After initial green light from the player, liverpool and bayer are in talks over transfer package.

Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Babyyyyyy!

Fabrizio Romano
@FabrizioRomano
·
33m

FC Bayern president Hainer confirms Florian Wirtz’s decision to join Liverpool as next club.

“Our director  Max Eberl informed me that Florian Wirtz is probably leaning towards Liverpool”, says Hainer.

is he any good?

Yes very good.

Florian Richard Wirtz (born 3 May 2003) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and the Germany national team.

impressive nos of goals from midfield

14 assists the season just gone.
Only 22- German international - 3 goals in 6 games this year.
He carries a hefty price point but if Bayern wanted him he must be decent, although they consider his price tag too hefty.

whats the price?

Probably around 100+ million with add ons and stuff.
They can have Darwin Nunes in part exchange if they want to take him off our hands

wow not cheap then

nunes off to saudi