Liverpool are experiencing a quiet transfer window at the moment, with Jurgen Klopp set to spend his budget in the summer rather than attempting to navigate the tricky winter market.
The same cannot be said for another Reds legend in Steven Gerrard, who is already making waves at Aston Villa by securing a January deals for Philippe Coutinho and targeting Everton left-back Lucas Digne.
Gerrard has been at the helm for less than two months, but he's already showcasing a clear intent to improve the quality of his squad and particularly his starting eleven.
The former Liverpool captain has been tipped as Klopp's future successor at Anfield, although assessing his early business at Villa Park from a Reds perspective is interesting.
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Gerrard shares similarities with Klopp while also showcasing differences so far, with those potentially influencing his Liverpool credentials further down the line.
First, Gerrard seems set on a narrow 4-3-3 system which is similar to Klopp's current shape and much like the German coach, he seems intent on adding players better suited to the system.
Based on his time at Rangers and now Villa, Gerrard settles on his fixed system and signs better suited players to execute it, adding a new left-back and a new forward in his first window at Villa.
Klopp has largely done the same since moving to England. 4-3-3 has been his go-to formation, with players such as Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho and Andy Robertson gradually acting as upgrades to the players who came before.
Some coaches demonstrate a desire to sign players who can add new options and open up formational changes, but Gerrard and Klopp both seem keen on constantly searching for players who can improve their favoured system.
The two coaches also benefit from an obvious pull in the footballing world. Players want to play for Klopp given his stature in the game, and players - such as Coutinho - want to play for Gerrard given his legendary status.
However, on the other hand, the nature of Gerrard's business at Villa conflicts with how Klopp has operated at Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund.
Coutinho is 29 years old and will arrive on loan from Barcelona for just six months. The deal makes a degree of sense, but it represents short-term thinking. Similar can be said for Digne, who is now 28 and could have already experienced his prime years at Everton.
The pair would immediately improve Gerrard's starting line-up, but they won't contribute for particularly long before needing to be replaced by new players further down the line, which goes against Liverpool's modern approach.
Apart from the recent signature of Thiago Alcantara who arrived as a 29-year-old, the Reds have constantly chased players who are aged 26 or under in the transfer market. Since Klopp moved to English shores in October 2015, he's dedicated transfer fees to players over the age of 26 just twice, in Thiago and Ragnar Klavan.
Liverpool have benefited from years of service from the likes of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino as a result, with each of those stars signed before reaching their peak years of performance.
If Gerrard was to take charge at Anfield in the future, his willingness to make short-term moves would likely have to change given Liverpool's long-term approach to recruitment.
