Liverpool had concluded all their incoming transfer business by June 19 last year.
When confirming the signing of Calvin Ramsay from Aberdeen for an initial £4m, the young Scot became the Reds’ third arrival of the summer after Darwin Nunez and Fabio Carvalho. And while injuries resulted in Arthur Melo being brought in on loan on transfer deadline day, Liverpool bosses were content with their initial stance despite the clamour for a new midfielder.
Club sources would say that the Reds had signed exactly what they felt they wanted and needed heading into the new season. In hindsight, that stance proved to be short-sighted.
Yet including Luis Diaz, who had previously been considered a summer target only for Tottenham Hotspur to force Liverpool hands into moving early in January 2022, the Reds had successfully revamped their attack. While Sadio Mane, Divock Origi, and Takumi Minamino would all move on, they had their three replacements while also tying down Mohamed Salah and Diogo Jota to new contracts, with a midfield overhaul on hold until 2023.
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Of course, looking back, we can say that the Reds were wrong not to strengthen their engine-room last summer. At least, with midfield the priority this summer, it is seemingly not a mistake they will make again with a new left-sided centre-back also being targeted. After all, with Joel Matip out of contract next summer and Virgil van Dijk getting older, it’s clear that that position is the next one on the list for revitalisation.
While recent reports suggest all four of Liverpool’s senior options will stay put this summer, Jurgen Klopp had previously confirmed a new centre-back is on his radar too.
"We look in all departments apart from goalkeeper at the moment," he told reporters last month. "Yes, if there is a good one (centre-back) out there, I would not deny it. That's all. We look at all areas of the pitch, definitely."
Admittedly, the Reds did look at midfielders last summer too, only to miss out on Aurelien Tchouameni to Real Madrid and Ryan Gravenberch to Bayern Munich, with Borussia Dortmund insisting long-standing target Jude Bellingham was not for sale.
Sky Sports would report that they also deemed Nicola Barella and Frenkie de Jong to not be financially viable, and had kept a ‘watching brief’ on Enzo Fernandez as he swapped River Plate for Benfica, only to make a £106.8m Premier League record switch to Chelsea six months later after winning the World Cup. Yet that shortlist only emerged in the public eye right at the end of the summer when the club were forced to move for Arthur.
Gravenberch is now back on Liverpool’s transfer shortlist of course as they plot their second midfield move, having already signed Alexis Mac Allister, with Khephren Thuram, Manu Kone, and Gabri Veiga also all of interest. And while it is inconceivable that the Reds won’t add to the arrival of the Argentina international in the engine-room this summer, it remains to be seen what they do defensively.
Chelsea’s Levi Colwill has his admirers at Anfield, yet the word from Stamford Bridge is they don’t want to sell the 20-year-old and have already rejected one £30m bid from Brighton & Hove Albion following a successful season on loan.
VfL Wolfsburg’s Micky van den Ven continues to be linked with Liverpool, having been signed by incoming Reds sporting director Jorge Schmadtke for the Bundesliga outfit. The Dutchman has commented on such speculation himself, as has his agent, with reports in Germany suggesting he won’t be sold for less than £25.7m.
Like the Reds’ aforementioned four midfield targets, Van de Ven is currently competing at the Under-21s European Championships. As a result, any movement on a potential transfer won’t take place until international exploits are over, with the Reds not registered any official interest in the 22-year-old at this time.
If they do want the Dutchman, who can also play left-back, though, they will face competition with the Guardian reporting that Tottenham have now added Van de Ven to their own transfer shortlist.
Sporting Libson’s Goncalo Inacio is thought to be another name on Liverpool’s own defensive shortlist. Having denied interest in his team-mate, Manuel Ugarte, the Portugal international was perhaps subject of their scouting missions instead. However, under contract until 2026, reports concede it is unclear whether the 21-year-old would even be allowed to move on this summer.
While Klopp had previously suggested he would prefer all his summer business done before the start of pre-season on July 8, it is already clear that that is highly unlikely to be possible. For starters, with a number of reported targets competing in the Under-21s European Championships, the final of the tournament takes place on the same date.
Consequently, if the Reds did sign any player currently taking part in the tournament, they would miss the start of pre-season regardless of the longevity of their international exploits. But with just under a month until Liverpool’s first pre-season friendly against Karlsruher on July 19, and five weeks until they take on Leicester City and Bayern Munich in Singapore, the club still has plenty of time to wrap up incoming business before the start of the new season.
Midfield is the first priority of course, with defence next up beyond that. Yet the fact that Leighton Clarkson remains the only Reds outgoing beyond expiring contracts shows how much is still to unfold, with it still unclear which reported targets the club actually intend to move for, if signing any of the speculated defensive trio of interest is actually doable, or if there any new reported names that will still emerge.
“The way this club is led is by not splashing the money and having a look at if it works out or not,” Klopp admitted in February. “Our transfers always have to be on point. So that makes it really tricky where we cannot make four transfers before we know who will leave the club.”
Liverpool were left disappointed in their efforts to strengthen their midfield last summer, instead insisting surgery could work 12 months. With Klopp already publicly admitting he wants a new centre-back, the Reds have no intention of being left short again, with last January's enforced premature signing of Cody Gakpo followed by Mac Allister's arrival just the beginning.
It won’t be as swift or as prompt as last year of course, which was partly the result of a mid-season World Cup ensuring an earlier start to the campaign. But, having been burnt before, Liverpool will want to make sure their squad is as strong as possible, without any gaping holes, heading into the new season as they look to learn from past mistakes and leave last year’s disappointment behind them.
