Summer transfer window is finally over and the teams have strengthened their line ups as per requirements in order to achieve season objectives. Liverpool too had a busy summer as they continuously monitored the availability of their prime transfer targets and successfully tied down a few.
They snapped up a deal to bring in former Chelsea youngster Dominic Solanke who joined the Reds on a Bosman transfer after refusing to extend his stay with the Blues. Andrew Robertson, the Scottish international left-back, has been acquired from relegated Hull City months after monitoring his progress. Three Lions international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain too secured his ‘dream’ move after refusing to extend his stay at Arsenal and rejecting a higher wage offer from reigning Premier League champions Chelsea.
Also, Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian speed merchant, also plied his trade to Merseyside as the Reds successfully struck a deal after prolonged negotiations with his former employers, AS Roma. Salah, who had a failed stint with Chelsea a few years back, has started showing his quality under Jurgen Klopp alongside Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane in their attacking third.
But Liverpool’s signing of the season will not feature for them this season as Naby Keita, their long-term transfer target, has penned a deal that will keep him with his current employers RB Leipzig until next summer. The Reds have paid a premium on top of the Guinean midfielder’s £48 mil release clause that will be triggered next June.
Also, the management has kept the promise of retaining want-away Philippe Coutinho to set an example, but could not persuade Southampton to sell their highly-rated centre-back Virgil Van Dijk who handed in a transfer request like Coutinho but suffered similar consequences as the Saints were desperate to alter their ‘selling club’ status exactly what Liverpool did to Barcelona amidst immense pressure from player’s camp as well as Spanish media outlets.
But have Klopp and the owners done enough to make Liverpool title contenders?
The defence was a major concern since Jurgen Klopp’s arrival as the Reds have scored plenty of goals but conceded many as well. Their defensive frailty was exposed yet again this season against Watford and Hoffenheim. Joel Matip has been a quality recruit, but Liverpool needed an upgrade for the inconsistent Dejan Lovren who can perform persistently in the league as well as prestigious Champions League competition. Klopp, however, decided to promote teenager Joe Gomez as Lovren’s cover.
The management messed it up early in this window when Southampton reported of a ‘tapping up’ against Liverpool and the club was forced to ask for a public apology and officially ended interest in their Dutch defender. But they kept on monitoring the whole situation and a promise of spending £140 mil (as reported by Liverpool based journalists) on transfer deadline excited the supporters. Thomas Lemar, the AS Monaco sensation was subject to late interest and the player himself wanted to join the Reds (as he rejected a move to Arsenal) in order to experience Premier League football of highest quality.
However, Liverpool decided not to match Monaco’s £92 mil asking fee and cooled their interest after acquiring Oxlade-Chamberlain. They neither made a late attempt to test Southampton’s resolve by offering a hefty fee nor they sighted his alternative when a top-notch centre-back was their major requirement all summer.
Jurgen Klopp has finally offloaded exiled Mamadou Sakho to Crystal Palace on a permanent deal and the decision of not strengthening his back-line might be a massive setback in his title chase. Also, Lemar could have been groomed to fit in place of unwilling Coutinho who is supposed to make another attempt to force a way out in January transfer window. The Reds, who showed true ambition earlier this summer, failed in its culmination and without a quality central defender, Liverpool should not be considered as a genuine title contender.
