Liverpool have no plans to spend heavily in the summer transfer window following a series of marquee acquisitions in recent years, according to the Times.
Jurgen Klopp’s side splashed the most cash last summer with an outlay of £177million – shelling out £67million on Roma stopper Alisson, in addition to adding Naby Keita (£52.8million), Fabinho (£43.7million) and Xherdan Shaqiri (£13.5million) to their ranks.
Writing for the Times, Merseyside correspondent Paul Joyce explained the “plan for Liverpool is not to repeat the heavy spending of previous summer transfer windows” as he pointed out the need for a new senior centre-back to be recruited.
OPINION
This is a major revelation and will be a concern for Liverpool fans as they digest a series of stumbling recent displays as Klopp’s squad struggle to cope with injuries to key men, most notably Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez, while Jordan Henderson and Georginio Wijnaldum also missed Monday’s 1-1 draw at West Ham. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is also a long-term absentee and his imminent return will rejuvenate a flagging side, although expectations must be tempered given that he would not have played for nearly a year and time will be needed for him to regain the levels he was playing before his devastating knee injury. Joyce’s claim that Liverpool need a new centre-back is questionable, given that Gomez, Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren are on the books and are excellent second, third and fourth choice players in that position. What Liverpool need is a bona fide playmaker who can score and create goals. What price a stunning swoop to re-sign Philippe Coutinho?