Yip, we thrift store shopping for Europa league.
More like Malen, Daka and Hlozek.
If we are going to spend 20,30,40m on players like Malen, Daka etcā¦its still a very high price, its just not inflated like Haaland and Mbappe. ITs not as if we are in the days where the best we can sign is Poulsen and Konchesky. Its almost as if every top team needs to sign a 100m player or else we are not ambitious enough. We have shown and proven that there is more than one way to reach the top and I am pretty happy with the way we did it.
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Eh? Weād already bought Keita 8 months earlier.
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On that Hlozek kid, Iāve noticed a few days ago (when I was going through players with a few months/a year/two years left on their deals) that he has a year left on his deal.
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Apparently would only cost 15 million, not sure if pounds or euros.
Then it would have been an even more massive waste. I canāt see him walking into the starting 11 with Henderson, Wijnaldum, and a firing Chamberlain around competing for No.8 positions.
Hendo was our #6 at the time (Fabinho wasnāt here), Gini wasnāt the player he is now until 2018 (that summer), Ox got injured and firing is also relative since he had a good spring, it was still a process to get a finished article from him in CM (which might not happen, due to different reasons). There was a need for Keita, or a āKeitaā, which actually remains to this day. Fabinho of course brought something (early signs werenāt great, he needed a few months, which can be normal), Gini became more important, Hendo āforcedā Klopp to trust him at #8, thatās basically the central midfield that brought us most success lately. But in the evolution, we had to or still need to add more technical elements to that mix, in order to become a better side and to sustain more what we do.
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A consistently fit Keita walks into the starting XI. AOC was probably our best midfielder in that three month spell before he got injured and is one of our best pressers of the ball when fit. However, Keitaās got game at a different level. Had he not suffered with injuries following his arrival I have no doubt that heād now be talked about as one of the best central midfielders in the world. Thatās what we saw in him and thatās why we paid the money we did when we did.
It hasnāt worked out because of those injuries but you canāt apply hindsight to decisions made at the time. His signing was a coup and people were hugely excited by his addition to the squad. He would have more than justified his transfer fee were it not for his subsequent fitness issues. Him, Fabinho, Henderson and Thiago are our only truly elite midfielders when fit.
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Also, remember how much stick we got in the press at the time for buying him with the agreement he would stay at Red Bull for 12 months before moving. The quality was there for all to see.
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The problem with Keita is that for 3 years in Liverpool he has been consistently unfit.
He had enough time and chances to prove Klopp that he could be the player we all wanted him to be.
Time to move on from Keita and AOC.
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Time to fuck Keita off.
Hasnt worked out for him. I think even Jurgens had enough now.
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Heās a patient man, Jurgen.
Maybe heās really had enough, but itās a bit more complex than an FM game. It takes more than Jurgen saying Iāve had enough.
We have to see whatās even on the table for the two of them. Is there enough interest to sell both on terms we would accept? Do we even want to lose both this summer? Does one stay and one go? It also depends how Klopp views his squad for next season and our incoming targets.
I think Ox is probably the one closer to leaving, but both of them might leave at some point in the next 12 months or so.
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Both Keita and Ox are in a limbo summer if you like.
Theyāre both reasonably expensive commodities for us to own and get quite good wages apparently.
Both of them hit the 2 year mark on their deals this summer so ideally weād be extending their deals. But due to already being on chunky wages I donāt see that happening, they certainly havenāt earned pay rises and that could create a few issues amongst the squad.
For me I think they only cover one slot in the team between them, especially with the emergence of Jones. I donāt see the financial, sporting or psychological need to keep them.
We will make a ālossā on what we paid for them (although football finances donāt work like that and worst case scenario itāll be a break even on the books) as I doubt weāll get near what we paid. But between what we will raise for them and maybe Grujic too we could recruit a real top class, young, CM which is what we need. That player may only need Wijnaldum level wages too meaning a lot of freed up room in the wage bill for extending deals and signing other players.
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Klopp says missing out on the CL next season wont alter our summer transfer plans.
We werenāt planning on buying anyone good anyway 
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The difficult thing for Keita is the contract situation. Jurgen gives him one more year to finally deliver, and if he doesnāt heās entering the last year of his contract.
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With yet another unconvincing year under his belt. Every year he gets further away from his RB reputation without being seen as a success here will drive his value down. At the moment semi-big Italian, Spanish and German sides like Roma/AC Milan, Valencia/Atletico Madrid and Dortmund would possibly be open to the idea of buying him even at up to Ā£30m, I think as long as its over Ā£20m we will see it as acceptable. Next year, if he still hasnāt worked out, with 12 months left on his deal? Weād be lucky to get Ā£20m.
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I think 3 years is long enough waiting for Keita.
If they hadnāt given ox that extra year after injury heād be in final year now.
They both need to be moved on.
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I would prefer Premier League players for that range.
Why? Being in the Premier League doesnāt automatically mean they are quality or guarantees they will step up well here.