A new centre back is a must regardless of new manager (I think) but other positions will be heavily influenced by him and Hughes. Right now, I hope that new manager will make the midfield of Trent-Mac Allister-Sobozslai work well, so that we don’t need to do much in the summer, aside from the aforementioned CB and Salah’s replacement.
Please just stop.
Stop what exactly? The thread title needs no introduction and all I’ve listed was 5 new players…was that very wrong of me to do? If so I apologise, you have permission (not that you need it) to delete if you feel too uncomfortable with it.
I got laughed and ridiculed end of last season for stating we needed 3 new midfielders ffs.
Really like Endo. He’s got a great attitude and has exceeded expectations this season. That being said, it was telling that he didn’t start against Everton. Those are the games you need a hard DM who will get stuck in and not be intimidated. The first choice DM should be first name on the team sheet for games like that.
Still think we are missing a yard dog Mascherano type.
I actually believe he would start last night, but it’s clear that we might soon look at someone with better quality or a higher ceiling. Will depend also on some other factors such as: midfield structure, whether there’s a change of position for some players, etc.
It’s this desire for constant revolution that is the hallmark of modern fans. Football does not work like this.
This team has got a lot closer to the title than any of us thought possible. Game 34. That’s the business end, and for the wheels to come off in late April is not the end of the world, considering where we were last May.
In a lot of ways we’ve had a season similar to Arsenal last year. They were bang in it to this point when the efforts caught up with them. They didn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. They made a couple of smart signings and went again, with the experience in their back pocket.
We don’t need five fucking players. We don’t need to ship out seven. I’m sure Edwards as got a huge job on his hands, but that’s going to be buying FSG another club, not overseeing another overhaul at Liverpool.
At the very least, it’s massively disrespectful to what these lads have achieved this season. Quite a few we’re not predicting we’d finish top four. This isn’t a team at the end of its cycle. It’s at the start.
And the smart move for any manger is to have a look at what he wants to do with the players he has, before going to the transfer market. Is it sensible to buy a new midfielder before having a proper look at Trent there? What do we do with Elliott? Can we build around Mac Allister?
Looking at the squad, I think the need for a new defender is pretty obvious. New keeper if Kelleher wants to get off.
After that it’s all situational. We’ve got a few older lads like Alisson, Van Dijk, Robbo, Salah. What do they want to do with the final years of their career?
We only need a new LB is Robertson leaves. We only need a new RW is Salah leaves. We only need a new forward if Nunez or Gakpo leave. We only need a new DM if we’re moving on Endo and we think Bajcetic isn’t going to make it.
4 Likes
I suspect that we will get some sort of replacements for Matip and Thiago. Other than that, I would expect FSG will want the new coach to work with what he has and try to improve them where necessary. This is what they did with Klopp.
Even with Klopp’s first January transfer window there were largely only gap fillers (Steven Caulker!) and it wasn’t until the first summer that we went for serious replacements: Mané, Karius, Matip, Klavan, and Wijnaldum. Of those Karius was a punt and Klavan was cover (although a useful addition).
Unless someone is moving on, I don’t see us signing any major upgrades unless this is someone that the data lads have identified.
1 Like
A CB and a forward (Iron Mo has reached his limit). Beyond those, some optional signings like a GK (if Kellerher leaves) or a LB (if Tsimikas leaves).
In hindsight, our recruitment did look a bit disjointed over the last few transfer windows. I guess that sporting director instability had a lot to do with that. I hope that this is the summer when Hughes and co. start putting things right.
Don’t get me wrong, I think we have a squad full of good, established players and young, talented ones. However, I don’t think that this squad is brimming with elite quality, which showed over the last few weeks. Even Man City and Arsenal have certain weaknesses but they have less of them than us.
I imagine that we won’t be fighting for the title next season but I hope that we continue this upward trajectory that started last summer. For that, I believe we need to add one or two players this summer and keep the likes of Quansah and Bradley as genuine first team options (with hopefully more youngsters to follow).
1 Like
The comment we recently heard, I think from Trent, that players look at it season by season, might affect who we need to buy.
It is possible there may be a big player or two who will choose to move on. If so, we need to reinvest on the best quality we can.
For example, if Mo Salah decides to go, we need another forward/wide forward.
If Trent doesn’t sign a new deal we need to probably bring that to a conclusion.
If VVD doesn’t sign a new deal I’d probably keep him for one more year until he leaves on a free, but I would look to sign someone like Diomande this summer.
Another big variable is how good Bajcetic is going to be. Before his injury, and as a kid, he looked very good indeed. If he picks up where he left off, only now a man, having grown into his body, he may well be the long term answer for our needs in the holding midfield department.
Then there is the massive variable over who the new manager might want to bring in. We have a great squad and don’t need an overhaul, but it stands to reason that a new manager will want to put his own stamp on it, not just in coaching and style, but with some change in the personnel. Not loads, as that is not warranted, but 2-3 first team level signings seems a reasonable amount.
Interesting times.
I don’t think we need a new midfielder, especially if we play in the preferred 4-2-3-1 of Slot. We have numbers and quality. Salah should be sold and I believe he will be. So bring in a replacemnet there that can contribute for 5-7 years. We should definitley bring in a quality CB, preferably left sided and left footed. I think we may look at RB, especially if Trent moves into the double pivot. The only other moves I see is to buy a #2 keeper if Kelleher leaves (I think he will) and a LB assuming Tsimi leaves. I think we should look to move him. He clearly has fallen down the pecking order and we will likely want to find a long-term replacement for Robbo.
I do think the squad could do with a freshening up. We don’t really need 5 or 6 new first team players but the squad as a whole is probably overdue a revamp.
The forward line I think needs an injection of pace. Salah used to bring that but he’s lost a significant amount of that explosiveness in the last two years. Diaz brings it but he’s not fast in that “sudden” way Salah used to be. Nunez is fast like a race horse also, great over distances but doesn’t have that immediateness to his game. I can definitely see us bringing in a new RW and allowing Salah to go while we can get a big payday for him. I don’t really know non-English football well enough to have names off the top of my head though.
CB seems obvious. van Dijk, Konate and Quansah will be the only senior CBs left after Matip leaves (unless you count Gomez, which I don’t anymore).
I actually wouldn’t be entirely shocked to see a couple of players get moved on that we don’t necessarily expect - namely Gomez and to a lesser shock value Tsimikas. I think Robertson is still the clear best LB at the club but he’s not aging like fine wine, in all honesty, and he’s been a bit disappointing last couple of years. Tsimikas clearly doesn’t have the quality to replace him on a full time basis and Gomez, who has played well this season, reduces our threat level too much when deployed there. I think we could see us look for a LB we are confident can be the future of the position.
Kelleher may want to move on but I don’t think we will allow that at this point. With Alisson still only 32 it’s a season or two too early to start looking past him with a new signing and Kelleher has 2 years left on his contract. I think we keep him another campaign.
So I see three new signings leaving the squad like this…
GKs: Alisson, Kelleher, Jaros
RB: Alexander-Arnold, Bradley
RCB: Konate, Quansah
LCB: van Dijk, new CB
LB: Robertson, new LB
DM: Mac Allister, Endo, Bajcetic
RCM: Szoboszlai, Elliott, Gravenberch
LCM: Mac Allister, Jones, Clark
FWs: New FW, Diaz, Nunez, Gakpo, Jota, Carvalho, Danns (whatever position you want, they mix it up so I don’t care)
Potential internal solutions:
- Vitezslav Jaros - Adrian will surely leave and Jaros is once again playing well on loan at Sturm Graz. He’s also a full Czech international now. He’ll be 23 to start next season and I don;t think we should give up on him yet.
- Fabio Carvalho - I think he’ll make the squad, he’s been excellent for Hull City playing in the forward line. He’s not a midfielder, like we tried to make him.
- Sepp van den Berg - I imagine the new manager will want a look at him. He’s done very well statistically in Bundesliga, with one of the best Aerial win %s in the division. Pre-season will be big for him I imagine.
- Isaac Mabaya - If he could stay fit he’d be in the mix to make the squad at RB behind Bradley and Trent. Could even free up Trent to move into midfield, but he can’t be relied upon for fitness.
- James McConnell - Probably be looking for a loan period next season, can’t see him being involved heavily at first team level.
- Stefan Bajcetic - Assuming his recovery goes well I think he’ll be kept around and be a squad player/rotational 6.
- Bobby Clark - I don’t think he needs a loan. Presses like a maniac, good eye for a pass and can get a goal. I hope he’s around the squad next season.
- Lewis Koumas - Perfect time for a loan spell for him, League One maybe which we’ve had plenty of success with recently. Needs to bulk up a bit.
- Jayden Danns - I’d keep him around the squad and dip between U21 and first team. He’s done nothing wrong, I haven’t seen anything to suggest he needs to go on loan.
- Luke Chambers - He’s probably one more loan spell away from first team football but he’s been excellent for both Kilmarnock and Wigan. His best bet will be bide his time as Robertson continues to fade.
- Tyler Morton - much better season for him this time and imagine he’ll be given a look in at pre-season but I think he’s the type that could garner interest from lower/new Premier League clubs and I think we will sell him.
So overall my prediction is…
Out: Adrian, Gomez, Tsimikas, Matip, Williams, Phillips, Thiago, Salah, Morton
In: CB, LB, FW
Promotion to first team/Return from loan: Jaros, Carvalho, Bajcetic, Clark, Danns and maybe van den Berg
Check back in September to laugh at how much of this got wrong 
2 Likes
What about Ramsay?
Well he’s played a total of 598 minutes, at any level, since signing for us in 2022. Similar to Mabaya, if he wants to be thought of for the first team he’s going to have to put a full season together and prove he can be relied on.
1 Like
Fixed.
1 Like
I never understood the appeal of that train of thought, as though the refereeing will allow us to have such players and not get penalised.
2 Likes
I think pace is the least of our worries in the forward line, all the players we have there are fast and if some are not among the fastest, they’re mobile.
What’s our attack other than pretty wild, but not very clean and inconsistent in terms of end product.
We lack a bit more technique, finesse, link up and finishing ability.
Of course they won’t.
But I would love to see what some of the current crybaby style footballers would do if they came up against a proper hardman type footballer, like Souness
2 Likes
Roll around and get the player sent off?
Sorry aussielad …but you walked into that one …great reply 
But that’s what they would genuinely be doing after a tackle from souness. And they would be out for 3 months