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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Paul Gorst

Jurgen Klopp drops big Liverpool transfer hint despite 7-0 hammering of Man United

For Liverpool supporters themselves, it may take some time before the celebrations of events at Anfield last weekend subside completely.

After all, you don't beat Manchester United 7-0 every time, even if games between the two giants of English football have tended to be convincingly won by Jurgen Klopp's side of late.

Klopp described the historic hammering as "a freak result" last Sunday but the outlier of his team's last few meetings with their fierce and storied rivals is the 2-1 loss they suffered at Old Trafford in August.

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The last four games between the pair, in what is the most watched fixture on the planet, have finished with 5-0, 4-0, 1-2, 7-0 scorelines. That's 17-2 to Liverpool for those keeping score across the past two seasons.

But even allowing for that particular trend, Reds supporters still toasted long into the night across Merseyside last Sunday. And who could blame them?

The 'We Beat United 7-0 Trophy Parade' was the predictably glib response from those down the other end of the M62 but if the joy found in such performances and results is to be limited, then what exactly is the entire point of this sport that we all invest so much in?

But while Liverpool fans will continue their jubilation and those of a United faith will try their best to downplay it all, for the protagonists themselves, it has passed. And for Klopp, he cannot use the victory as evidence for why the job of restructuring his squad need not be as dramatic as first thought.

Liverpool may have recorded their biggest-ever win against United last week but there is still much to be done later this summer when it comes to freshening up the options to return them to the levels generally enjoyed in recent years.

Klopp admitted as much himself, saying in his Friday press conference: "We need players. We cannot go with three midfielders for a season."

Despite the need for an aggressive, proactive approach to this summer's wheeling and dealing, however, it was no major surprise to hear the club's principal owner John W Henry talk about the continuity of a strategy that has generally served Liverpool well in recent years.

In an exclusive interview with the ECHO, Henry said: “We continue building at Liverpool Football Club in a responsible manner. We’ve seen many football clubs (including LFC previously) go down unsustainable paths. We have and will continue to focus our attention on investing wisely in the transfer market and we remain incredibly proud of our squad."

The recent revival that now sees the Reds unbeaten in five and within three points of the top four with a game in hand has proven they are far from the busted flush they have been painted as in recent months but, like the win over United, it has not negated the need for significant additions later this year, even if it must be done under the watchful, prudent eye of FSG.

The seven-nil shellacking will never be forgotten by those privileged enough to have been at Anfield last week but that alone should not be seen as the magic sponge that suddenly cures Liverpool ills. There are still concerns for Klopp to address, even if fans should allow themselves an opportunity to park the inquests for now.

A midfield overhaul is needed and another top-class centre-back will also be required to provide further competition for Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk. The only difference the upturn in performances and results will do is give Klopp further food for thought for just who exactly belongs in the blueprint for his next great Liverpool team.

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