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24 Feb 2023 11:16:23
Interested to read everyone's opinions on summer transfer possibilities. I have a couple of questions around references to the 'buy to sell' and 'sell to buy' policy.
Not sure LFC have consistently engaged in the first-
Have LFC sold any players at a profit with the exception of Coutinho and Solanke in the past seven years?
Ed01 has mentioned the second, and how poor Edwards and Ward have been with selling fringe players -
How about Kelleher £25m; Phillips £10m; Gomez £25m; Williams £5m Matip £10m; Tsimikas £10m.
Even if you disagree on the figures or indeed the players, £75m could be surely be raised?
I will leave others on here to spend it.
1.) 24 Feb 2023 11:30:33
Selling Tsimikas doesn't make any sense to me, we'd spend at least the same amount replacing him and he's perfectly good as backup.
Gomez as 4th choice CB and backup RB is also a good option whether he's very popular or not!
2.) 24 Feb 2023 11:44:15
I agree with Ed, I think Ward and Edwards tried to be too clever moving certain players on. We priced a lot of teams out of moves for Harry Wilson for example, ended up selling him for £12 million which is significantly less than teams were offering beforehand. Similar story with Origi, we wanted daft money for him and ended up losing him on a free. I'm sure Klopp would have had no issues with letting the likes of Ox and Naby Keita go if we'd accepted a reasonable offer for them as well.
3.) 24 Feb 2023 11:45:27
The Coutinho one was massive tbf, and we got lucky with Solanke, for others: I could be wrong but we got pretty good fees for the likes of Danny Ings, Mignolet, Danny Ward Necco Williams, Minamino, Grujic, Shaqiri, Harry Wilson, Ki-Jana Hoever, Lovren, Brewster, Benteke, Mane, Awoniyi.
Not all of them were huge money or even profits but if I remember correctly, a lot of them in the 15 million pound range.
4.) 24 Feb 2023 12:00:25
Kelleher is the one to bring in the biggest money!
I’d rather loan him out he’s a top keeper!
Gomez 15m only because he’s English!
Philips let the lad leave he owes us nothing!
The rest I’d say you’re scraping the barrel!
Jones ox Keita Matip Gomez Adrian Bobby Philips Williams jota need to be moved on and rebuild!
5.) 24 Feb 2023 12:02:00
2Ajs good question mate. We’ve sold a few at a profit.
Ben Davies, Mino, Mane, Shaq, Wilson, Grujic, Brewster, Hoever, Ejari, Kent, Migs and Ings.
6.) 24 Feb 2023 12:40:51
We do need back ups but we need back ups that come in and do a job or are competing to start.
There is always room for a Milner but do we need players that make you count down the days until the player they replaced returns? ?.
7.) 24 Feb 2023 12:44:01
Mignolet sums up how awful our work on contract extensions have been. We gave him a 5 year deal worth £100k a week when it was obvious he needed replacing as first-choice keeper. For about 2 years (Karius and Alisson years) we had a keeper on the bench on £100k a week.
8.) 24 Feb 2023 14:00:09
Lets not forget Jordan Ibe who went for around 16m.
9.) 24 Feb 2023 14:34:07
For me, selling players is not where the “Legendary” Michael Edwards has failed as much. It is his ability to agree contracts of players or extensions and giving them wages their place in the squad does NOT deserve that has partly contributed to our transfer predicament.
Really you can NOT in one side of your mouth, complain about not being able to sell Ox or Naby on the top wages they are on or giving Hendo a huge extension at his age and with the other side of your mouth put Edwards, the guy who gave them these top wages their playing time does not or should no longer justify to the point where we cannot move them, on a pedestal. Sorry, those two things cannot be correct at the same time.
Ed01 is even harsher on him than I am cos he said he was pretty poor at his job and lacked the bottle to challenge Klopp and just agreed to these terms. Not saying he nor Ward have not done a decent job cos they have BUT putting Edwards on a pedestal is just asinine stuff, imo.
10.) 24 Feb 2023 15:00:55
The disrespect joe Gomez gets in here is insane. He’s home grown can play anywhere across the back line and does a good job. I’d keep him over matip. Not many other teams in the league has a 4th choice CB of that quality.
The ones to be moved on should be ox,
Keita, Bobby, Phillips Fabinho and maybe kelleher, he won’t be displacing Alison anytime soon and we have that young Brazilian keeper who can hopefully fill that void. It’s just the wrong place wrong time for Kelleher.
11.) 24 Feb 2023 15:53:42
Sailor Jerry. Gomez is a loveable guy. Taking that aside he is simply not good enough unfortunately. As for Matip who should also be moved on in the summer. I can no longer be annoyed, disappointed, shocked or whatever you want to call it with Gomez. He is simply playing to his level which has been bad for a long while now. Sad really when you consider how he was before that the ACL injury he first suffered all those years ago.
12.) 24 Feb 2023 17:29:45
Keep Joe Gomez, he just needs game time, there’s deeper issues with our defence which wouldn’t have aided him, all of them have made errors.
He’s HG and he’s at a good age, as pointed out above can play across the defence too.
Just a question to the guy’s about the Madrid match, I noticed more than once it appeared there was an issue with Alison and VVD and communication between them both, I thought VVD as vocal guide for the defence and so on, yet those incidents I noticed says contrary.
13.) 24 Feb 2023 17:27:47
Ed001 said something the other day that stuck with me, I can't believe the thought had never crossed my mind before. Joe Gomez is simply too nice.
Until the past couple of seasons, Gomez had looked excellent most of the time. He was cultured, composed and had very good recovery pace, but it always felt as though there was something missing, even when he was in brilliant form.
It's harsh to judge him now, as he has had so many injuries that have caused his collapse in form. He needs to move somewhere else and play regularly to recover it. However, I think it was probably the case that he'd never have been ready to be a top centre back for Liverpool, at least not in a post-van Dijk world.
He doesn't assert himself in games in the same way that Konate does. Headers have always been an issue for him, there's a reason he's never scored a competitive goal. I've never seen him as a leader, although I'd hoped he'd have grown into one by now.
He's been a good servant for us, but the injuries have caught up to him and he hasn't kicked on. In fact, he's gone backwards. He isn't what we need anymore and he deserves to go and rebuild his career elsewhere, in a less pressured environment than a rapturous Anfield.
Good job his deal is winding down and he should be easy to sell. Oh wait.
14.) 24 Feb 2023 18:55:51
I can accept most things on a football pitch but twice recently Joe Gomez has turned his back on the opposition and given goals away. By his own admission he does not like heading the ball. He was at fault for all five of the goals against Madrid and is currently playing Championship level football.
If he doesn't like the physical side of sport he should take up snooker or darts. Apart from that a great guy.
15.) 24 Feb 2023 18:57:18
I wouldn't describe Gomez as cultured or composed. I'm not going to write him off for us completely but he needs some time out of the team and to find himself again.
He could be a fourth choice centre half that could cover right back but he seems a confidence player and his is shot.
If he decided he'd sooner move on or we decide to sell it could be the best for both parties and I'd wish him well.
16.) 24 Feb 2023 19:14:27
The problem is we have sold to buy players, but fringe players that do not allow for significant reinvestment. We haven't sold anyone for big money, unfortunately, that would have required us to sell our best players which, we did not do anymore., .
We have, in the last 3 years, probably more, been using our youth system to fund a number of transfers. Neco Williams for 20 million, Brewster for 25 million, Harry Wilson for 12 million, etc.
Then, we use our cheap signings to fund further investment by selling them on for profit. I. e. Minamino, bought for 7 million, sold for 15-17 million. Grujic, bought for 5 million, sold for 11 million. Awonji, bought for 400,000 and sold for 9 million.
There's more but these are the key ones. For me, we did not sell players that could have couped a decent return. We held on to them instead, and we are paying for it. Truthfully, we should have sold Gini before we let his contract run out, use the funds to invest in the squad, but we let his contract run down. We could have sold Mane, the exact same thing, could have and would have gotten way more than 35 million for him, which was a joke.
Now, we have Ox and Keita leaving. Yes, we would have probably got paltry amounts for both, 10 million each, perhaps. But, we could have gotten them off the wage bill, used the small funds to buy or strengthen a potential purchase. We didn't, now they will leave for free after enjoying a significant wage packet they did not earn.
We need to sell Matip, Joe Gomez, Nat Phillips, Rhys Williams, Fabinho, Jones now. And, let Milner, Keita, Ox, Arthur (Loan, obviously, return to Juve), Firmino leave on frees. Firmino has been integral for us, but, he needs to go as he can not be consistently available. Those calling him to be a mentor, that is a stupid use of money. We have coaches that taught Firmino the position, they can teach Gakpo too, without the need of Firmino. His legs have gone, no point paying significant wages for a coach.
I would also consider selling a big player, Salah maybe, to support funding. We need rid of deadwood but, at the same time, funds to strengthen us. Love Salah, and disagree with many, as I believe he is in top shape but being used poorly by Klopp, but he will give us the most money to spend, I feel.
Who we sign, honestly unsure because of the lack of Champions league football, etc. That will be an issue. But, we need to ignore Bellingham, in my opinion. Funds must be used to strengthen numerous positions (A right back to compete with Trent or replace him, 2 Centre backs, 2 central midfielders, is needed, in my opinion. ) That would take a lot of money. Bellingham would cost 150 million, leaving less room for transfers elsewhere.
We need to be clever with our money. Yes, Bellingham is an exceptional player. But, we need to strengthen the team, not an individual.
17.) 24 Feb 2023 21:04:29
OP - I posted about this a couple weeks back and agree. I don’t think we buy to sell at al and if we do, then we’re pretty crap at it lol. It’s a sustainable approach to running a club that has benefits if you fo sell for profit later not that the sole intention is making a profit like some like to claim is all FSG want to do with transfers. If that was the case then surely Mo would have been sold 2 seasons ago at his peak.
For our transfer activity, the fact remains that wr can’t just have 10+ first team midfielders son the books. So we have to move players on to bring others in. This is the problem that Klopp, Edwards have created.
18.) 24 Feb 2023 22:18:58
At the end of the day, you have to judge a player (who is still playing) by how he's playing today, and not what he was like 3-4-5 years ago. And supporters opinions simply go along with the way he's playing at the current time. There is more than substantial evidence that he has not gotten back to the level and form he had a few years ago. How long must Klopp and players, as well as the coaches and supporters, wait for him to recover his form, if ever? How many titles are you willing to pass up just being nice to the players who performed very well a few years ago, but can't do it now?
Just above, some posters pointed out how Edwards rewarded players with far more than what they deserved. Supporters are doing the same exact thing. Sentimentalism.
This team has to be broken up and 4-5 players need to be brought into the squad. And if Gomez is not deemed to be good enough for 4th or 5th CB (and I don't think he is based on how he buckled completely against Real Madrid) , then he has to be moved on. Of course, he has 4 more years on his contract thanks to Edwards. So we'll wait and see.
19.) 25 Feb 2023 08:27:05
LFC MANGO, every club sells to buy. It’s called balancing the books, complying with FFP and managing the squad, something even Real Madrid do. People who keep saying that like it’s a bad thing are showing their ignorance about how football actually works. If anything, we have been dreadful at managing the squad which is what has gotten us here for the most part, IMO.
20.) 25 Feb 2023 08:35:03
Gomez earned his disrespect when he started ducking headers, turning his back on shots and jogging back when he's caught out of position. The minimum expectation as a centre back is putting your body on the line. The worst part is that Phillips is the only centre back we have who would do just that. It puts our first choice options to shame when you watch the passion from players like Martinez, Dias, Gabriel, Botman, Romero, Ream, Mee and Dunk. None of them are world class but they leave absolutely everything out on the pitch. It's embarrassing watching our lads defend. I bet the kit man hasn't washed Virgil's kit since 2019.
{Ed025's Note - your right MK, 100% effort is the minimum requirement mate..
21.) 25 Feb 2023 11:30:07
Ox and Keita have stolen a living, the latter one of our worst ever signings given the price tag.
22.) 25 Feb 2023 11:30:07
Ox and Keita have stolen a living, the latter one of our worst ever signings given the price tag.
23.) 25 Feb 2023 14:30:25
I'd argue Ox has been a pretty bad signing too HRT given we're supposed to have signed him for at least £35m (some reports say £40m) . He started poorly, was in brilliant form for a few months, got injured and, apart from a brief mini-renaissance in form, has been off it ever since. We've had about half a season's worth of decent football from him in six years.
{Ed002's Note - £35.2M plus fees.}
24.) 25 Feb 2023 14:55:50
HassleRedTom, and who gave them the contracts they had in the “living” they are stealing that made them very difficult to move on when it was time to do so? Yeah, the legendary Michael Edwards.
18 Jan 2023 11:33:14
I will leave the rubbishing of individual players to others but would mention two things that ware interesting from last night.
Liverpool controlled the game and pressed really well until 66minutes then hung on after that- something must have happened at that point.
During those 66minutes Mr Shearer claimed that 'every time Wolves attack, Liverpool foul them' - I LOVED IT!
1.) 18 Jan 2023 11:45:01
What happened on 66 minutes was they became knackered because they’ve been training to play walking football for the last 18 months!
The young lads who are full of energy, Bajcetic and Elliott, were going down with cramp on the 70th minute.
I think that should tell us everything we need to know. This is not just a personnel issue.
2.) 18 Jan 2023 19:03:44
We need to change our medical team.
3.) 18 Jan 2023 19:45:39
no on 66 mins Klopp made changers and we reverted back to defending for our lives prior to the subs we were mentality monsters the kids were outstanding and i hope the old hands watched and realised that their places were under a big threat .
17 Jan 2023 13:56:24
Hearing a lot of opinions on here about Linders and his book.
All the negative narratives appear to question the 'bad' timing of the book after losing Premier league then Champions League Final within a week.
Those who actually read the book will know it was actually a dairy written everyday throughout the season and not written as some sort of 'look at me-arent I brillant'.
I don't know anything about Linders coaching qualities (other than Klopp approved him) and he may well be a reason for any tactical problems the team are suffering but 'the book' argument seems a little far fetched don't you think.
1.) 17 Jan 2023 15:39:20
Nope. Whether it's fiction, an autobiography, a tell-all diary or anything else, I still feel it was a distraction that the team and the club could have done without. And the timing issue for me was different. I would have accepted that he write anything he wants about LFC, once his career with LFC was over, and not while he's right smack in the middle of it. I will even go further and say he is using the club for personal gain, beyond the purvey and responsibilities of his job. Tell me of one person who would be interested and buy the book if Lijnders was not assistant manager at Liverpool FC? Nobody would give a damn about what he has to say if he didn't have that job. So what does that mean? He's using the club for personal gain beyond what his job responsibilities are (unless of course, LFC contractually allows employees and staff to write books and have financial gain, while still employed in their various capacities) .
2.) 17 Jan 2023 16:03:54
If it was a dairy written throughout the season, I don't know why some fans have turned sour towards him and churn out what they do. I bet most have not even skimmed through the book. I said to someone the other day that "it's not even past your eyes but you still crate a fuss". He is a cereal moaner though.
3.) 17 Jan 2023 16:18:18
OP, it's not about the book. Don't care who writes what, personally. The issue is that he is using this "diary" to enhance his reputation and image by profiting off of Klopp's hard earned clout, IMO. He is acting like without him, there is NO Klopp or no success whereas he gets as much credit as all the other assistants cos clearly, he ain't no football genius based on the evidence.
Klopp is the complete opposite to him. Klopp does not care who gets the credit provided the club does well and when people try to give him credit, he always says "We" not "I". Klopp would rather have his assistants get the credit publicly than him hence why, he didn't object to endorsing his book nor is he threatened by Lijnders cos he is that secure in his skin. Lijnders seems to adore being seen and heard in the media and that is NEVER good, IMO.
An insecure geezer like Mou, Pep (Guardiola) or even AVB would NEVER have stood for any of this nonsense from ANY of their assistants. That is the problem. Ultimately tho, Klopp has allowed Lijnders to do all of this and signed of on his tactics so it is his cross to bear. Just my take.
4.) 17 Jan 2023 16:20:34
If he's a "cereal moaner" then can I suggest he try some of the Raisin Bran or Muesli? It'll relieve some of the intestinal pressure. ?.
5.) 17 Jan 2023 16:21:26
Didn't help with him going round all the players and staff videoing himself handing out his book and looking all smug and twatty about it like he was Micheal Aspell.
6.) 17 Jan 2023 16:52:49
That video was cringe worthy. Seriously.
7.) 17 Jan 2023 18:09:26
Ask Brian kidd about autobiographies and books I’d have him as the most successful assistant of all time!
What was the need to write a book the clown!
Should be seen not heard! He’s paid from the shoulders down and klopp from the shoulders up!
8.) 17 Jan 2023 19:02:34
I wonder if people would be crying themselves to sleep over that book or slagging Pep off if we weren't on a run of poor form?
9.) 17 Jan 2023 19:04:42
All books should be burned - they just give people ides and what use are they.
10.) 17 Jan 2023 20:00:16
Not read the book and 100% will not be doing so. Why does he feel the need to write a book anyway? He's an assistant manager of a top European football club. hope the clown never ever gets to manage this team when jurgen finally says his goodbyes. Concentrate on your real job. that is the only thing people care about. Bell and end come to mind.
11.) 17 Jan 2023 22:03:19
"Concentrate on your real job" - he's not allowed to write a book in his spare time?
Very 1984ish.
12.) 17 Jan 2023 22:06:31
It's caused more fuss than Prince Harry's book.
26 Dec 2022 12:33:43
Some really interesting comments on here in recent days- looking back at the Man City game and forward to our assault on a top four finish in the league. VVVV gets a lot of stick for his obsession with our midfield. My feeling is that all our problems this season emanate from this area of the field. I don't want to repeat the same narrative about x, y and z being to old or FSG not having the finances to secure the quality of player deeded through the transfer market. My observation centres around Harvey Elliott- an excellent young talent who clearly loves the club and has great potential. However I can't see us winning anything with him in a midfield 433 system. He could be devastating in any of the front positions (bit like Foden) or in the 10 role or even false 9. However, his total lack of defensive ability is leaving the midfield wide open and contributes to our lose of midfield control in almost all games. i like the lad and think he has a great future but not in a midfield three with the other players we have at the moment. Feel free to troll me if it pleases you!
1.) 26 Dec 2022 13:15:18
I think Elliot can play in midfield with Fabs and Hendo. But only if they were in form. Clearly this season none of our midfield have been good enough. I keep repeating myself but where is Jones.
2.) 26 Dec 2022 13:16:04
I look at the midfield as the figurative engine of the car, if it doesn’t function, it compromises the rest. Leaves defences exposed and attackers unsupported. That’s where we are now. We’ve under invested for years and are paying the price.
3.) 26 Dec 2022 14:06:31
According to some on here Jones is absolutely rubbish so what difference does it make where he is?
4.) 26 Dec 2022 14:11:33
AJ, I think I agree with you on every point. I, too like Elliot and hope he is with us for years and years. But Klopp seems committed to a three-man engine room and Elliot will never be that player. He should, in my view, play in front of the midfield and behind two forwards where his vision would be utilised. This would also address the fact that we aren't a good enough team to carry three forwards at the moment.
It's all about opinions!
5.) 26 Dec 2022 15:07:02
It was obvious at the start of the season we were poor in midfield but funds not made available or Klopp being too loyal to bang average players.
6.) 26 Dec 2022 15:16:21
I think it's more the case that Klopp couldn't get his top targets in so decided to wait. He wanted Tchouameni but he chose RM over us. Other targets (I think we were interested in Laimer) were more interested in moving to other clubs too. So the money was there but just not used. Klopp also said he was happy with our midfield but made a u-turn and brought in Melo before the deadline.
7.) 26 Dec 2022 15:28:45
No direspect to Elliot or Jones or posts opinions, but for me they are not ready for us at this time. would they get into other so called too 6/ 8 club squads? ✌.
8.) 26 Dec 2022 15:57:04
Laimer was a last minute desperate job when it was obvious we needed another midfielder, as he is coming up to the end of his contract and he was perceived to be cheap, he said no as he wanted a big pay day at Munich, we also sniffed around Sander Berge, hence why we ended up with Arthur from the bargain basement in desperation.
Personally, I don’t think there was funds for Tchouameni and Nunez. It was one of the other.
{Ed001's Note - not true about Laimer.}
9.) 26 Dec 2022 16:15:22
I think it's the lack of physicality in our midfield were not mobile and don't press well of late
At our best with a peak hendo and gini/ milner along with fab
They had the legs to cover full backs press like mad men aswell we don't have it anymore maybe we switched our style to more possession football and now we're a bit lost
Also mane used to be a tempo setter with a hard tackle and great pressing he left and nobody stepped up everyone waiting for someone else to do it.
10.) 26 Dec 2022 21:38:17
Totally agree Whitewalker, overlooked season after season in my view. FSG can be held to account for a large part of this season’s mediocrity.
28 Dec 2020 10:12:16
Have to agree with ed. 01 about over reactions to a 1-1 draw. However, LFC have two long standing problems that should be addressed. Firstly, the absence of a clinical psychology when leading 1-0 (This is surely down to Klopp and the coaching staff and has been neglected for months) . This is particularly important when we're missing key defenders to see out games. Secondly, the CB problem.
Names that continually surface are Upamecano, Konate, White, Akanji, Schurrs and Botman. My question to ed. 02 is: are any of these really available in January and what do you think of a Kabak/ Origi swap?
2AJs.
1.) 28 Dec 2020 13:18:56
Bit of an over reaction that 😜.
2.) 28 Dec 2020 13:50:14
Ask Palace about that absence of a clinical psychology.