Who would you buy?

Sure.
But he does end up having to miss matches as a result. And as time goes on , the recurring injuries do hamper a player.

It’s not like there’s an urge to push Jota out. But if there’s a suitable offer and a chance to replace him with someone newer , the club would be mad to not consider it.

On the summer (and fingers crossed we’re recruiting of the back of a league title) I think we need to be looking for

  • A centre back. Preferably left sided, with Quansah going on loan.

  • A left back. A stellar one. Takes the first team spot and one of Robbo or Kostas moves on.

  • A forward to replace Nunez, who should be moved on.

  • A Midfielder to replace Endo. That’s if Slot doesn’t rate Endo and wants an upgrade.

That’s all without bringing the three expiring contracts into the equation. If Mo and Virgil leave, then we’re going to have to go really big. If Trent goes I would make any big moves. We have Bradley and Gomez, and we might need to have a little look at whether we need a belter to start games or and right sided Kostas to back up Bradley.

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I don’t disagree, but I think a bigger issue with Jota is not that he is injury prone per se. It’s that he wants to get involved in these physical battles with massive lads. His two longest spells out of the last couple of years have literally been because a huge lad fell on him.

Mo Salah doesn’t get involved in that shit. That’s not saying Mo is a coward - he is just clever enough to not put himself in situations where an injury is a possibility.

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Exactamundo

I doubt they do this. If all three contract players leave then replacing them will be the focus. I reckon you might get one other done on top of doing those three.

They’ll not replace 6-7 players in one window. You’ll see them keep Quansah as fourth choice and just replace Virg. Bradley and Gomez would likely be RB options. Endo would get another year or McConnell given that role and replacing the likes of Robertson and Nunez will be kicked another year down the road.

You might even find them trying Chiesa as Mo’s replacement for a year. But I’d be amazed if they did more than four first team transfers, five at a push if there was a squad option at the back.

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I would say our rapid rebuild of the midfield was very successful. It was forced on us I know… but perhaps we learnt from it.

This year we are very settled and doing fantastic.

Huijsen
Kerkez
Isak

I think is enough :bird:

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There are players with injuries, who are also the right players for us. And players who are almost always fit and we’re not getting enough from them. Without it being a rule in every case, I know who I’d start getting rid of first. I don’t think the likes of Konate or Jota are going anywhere this summer. We’re negotiating to keep one (it is beginning to be a bit nervy) and the other has a contract until 2027. No need to rush with sales everywhere and just create new gaps, which can be hard to find on the market, that suit our needs. It’s not a game. We cannot depend on Jota to be our main man up top, but even with his injuries, he’s more than useful when he’s available. You always hope that the staff can find better ways of prevention. At some point in the future, we’ll have a completely new squad made of players who had no history with Klopp (maybe good from an injury point of view and hopefully not lacking in winning mentality).

:joy:

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After Gomez retires, probably.

Yes, I agree with that. The contracts change the dynamics of how we look at the market. If we have to replace the three, then the focus changes from planning for the future and improving the quality of the depth, to immediate impact and running with the depth we have.

That’s another reason why I’m struggling to understand the contract situation. If you let those lads leave then suddenly the summer gets a lot fucking harder. I understand the concern about their legs going, but Hendo and Fabinho’s legs went mid-contract too. We just fucking sold then.

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This! Also, Virg and Mo are currently playing as well as they ever have

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To whom? Do you think the likes of van Dijk and Salah are likely to want to play in that shithole?

I think there would always be takers for Van Dijk and Salah, especially if we were happy to let them leave for nothing.

There will always be takers, but the question is whether they’d want to go to those takers.

Aside from Saudi I do wonder who’d pay them anything close to what we currently are and I’m assuming we’d be looking to extend them on something similar?

Don’t see either of them choosing to stay in the PL. Italian clubs don’t have the money. Bayern might but doubt anyone else in Germany does. Real Madrid are always a possibility but I’m assuming Trent is going there already so can they do him plus another one or two after also doing Mbappe last summer. Barca will try but they’re not the financial powerhouse they once were. PSG will no doubt be interested but even they seem to have lost a bit of their glamour and appeal with Messi, Neymar and Mbappe all gone.

They’re hugely desirable players, even at their age, but anyone else interested in those two will be wondering the same things we are. If you’re going to give them a huge salary and a 3-4 year deal, are you going to be paying the same in those latter years for a player surely on the physical decline.

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