If anyone knows which refs are bent, it will be the bookies, so maybe the plan is to find out which refs are bent so we can make sure to not have to deal with them ever again
Thatās true but that wasnāt what I was aiming for. We could have afforded quite a few signings they made in recent years, I donāt think that money is an issue with Liverpool. However, the decision making in the transfer market over the past two years at leastā¦ And the horror show that was our CB situation four years ago. Iām getting the feeling that history is about to repeat itself when it comes to injuries and fatigue.
If we go head-to-head with City or Real for a player, they will beat us on wages every single time. Itās only if a player only wants to play for us that we would stand a chance.
And then you have to look at other factors. Zubimendi (or his family) didnāt want to leave Spain, and Rice apparently wanted to stay in London, for example.
Iām fine with that but how come that thereās never an alternative? I donāt want us to sign players for the sake of signing them but the club prided themselves on the model of identification of players, compiling lists of possible targets for every position - if we canāt get the primary target, there have to be alternatives but we rarely go for the second in line. Iām convinced that there are players out there who are an upgrade on Endo and Gravenberch, for example.
Into the Liverpool coffers. Same as all the rest of our sponsorship revenue. Just like the 30 years of Carlsberg cash which no one seems terribly concerned by if weāre getting all moralistic.
It very much depends on what you mean by money not being an issue - City have spent about a Ā£1bn more over the last decade than they have raised from player sales. We know they also have vast sums of money available to them under the table too to induce moves.
Not only does this make it hard to outbid them, but it also means they can carry extra weight in their squad with little worry about it affecting future purchases if that move is a dud. That risk means that we need greater certainty from each signing we make. It is also a reason why the club looks to buy players where there is little risk of getting into a bidding war.
I think if there has been one issue here, itās been the difficulty in moving players on and then being able to use those funds to rebuild. Sometimes thatās a good thing as you can continue incrementally strengthening the squad as you donāt lose players with knowledge of the teamās way of playing, you can also keep your better players for longer - but the side effects is less opportunity for bringing in fresh blood.
Because part of the recruitment model is to work on signing a target a year or two ahead of signing them. Itās also going to some lengths to identify the personal qualities of the individual, and to minimise the risks of their being skeletons in the closet.
Finding an upgrade on Endo and Gravenberch may not be difficult, but how much of an upgrade are they really, do they fit the way the Arne (or Klopp before him) want to play, do they address a specific needs of the squad, do they want to come here, does their club want to sell, and is it within a structure our club is happy to pay. These are all relevant points that often get ignored by fans who often argue for signing players who are completely different to each other for the exact same role.
Our signings have generally since Klopp been really good. For me, the biggest question mark though is probably around the signings of Gakpo and Nunez. Both very talented players. The former perhaps lacks a clear position in the team while the latter has issues around consistency. I could see Arne get them playing brilliantly in his team.
Finding an upgrade on Gravenberch might be a moving target. If there is a clear upgrade like Zubimendi, fine, we tried to sign him.
But the big unknown is how well Gravenberch might take to the role. If he does well, he might button down the position for the duration, and all the talk of upgrades will stop.
Making a signing in the position is not a clear thing, and if we donāt, Iām happy to see how it develops.
Iād still like to see us make a signing or two before the window closes, as there has been a bit of a sense that the decks have been cleared and we could do with a boost. If we donāt do it, hopefully there wonāt be an overreaction, as we should still be competitive as Slot gets into his new role.