Jude Bellingham Welcome to Liverpool…

[John102]

44 minutes ago, El Rojo said:

James Pearce a lot more positive on it in a Q&A on The Athletic today.

 

He also says that he met with Jurgen and they've settled their differences after the press conference thing last month. 

 

Dunno how to post it, but some good stuff in it. He's in agreement that we need 2/3 midfielders and a centre half and sees Matip as most likely to leave in that area. Doesn't see a high profile departure. 

 

[navbasi]

50 minutes ago, El Rojo said:

James Pearce a lot more positive on it in a Q&A on The Athletic today.

 

He also says that he met with Jurgen and they've settled their differences after the press conference thing last month. 

 

Dunno how to post it, but some good stuff in it. He's in agreement that we need 2/3 midfielders and a centre half and sees Matip as most likely to leave in that area. Doesn't see a high profile departure. 

 

When all our forwards are healthy, do you think Darwin Nunez is in the starting 11 or Luis Diaz? Is it a good idea to approach Dortmund before the window opens so we don’t get into a bidding war for Bellingham? How do you feel about selling Thiago, Fabinho, Joe Gomez and maybe Diogo Jota to give us money for Bellingham? (Jennifer E)

In terms of the pecking order up front, it’s tricky to predict because Liverpool haven’t had a situation yet since Cody Gakpo came in where they’re all available and Klopp wants to be in a position where he can rotate without the quality dropping off. I’d like to see Diaz on the left, Nunez through the middle and Mohamed Salah on the right. Gakpo has shown he can play slightly deeper when required.

In terms of Bellingham, any club speaking to him and his representatives will have a clear idea of what Dortmund want in terms of a fee. If you get a firm commitment from the player about his destination of choice then that should avoid any bidding war.

Finally, given any payment structure for Bellingham would be spread out, I don’t think it’s a case of needing to sell players to raise funds. I wouldn’t be selling any of the quartet mentioned unless Liverpool receive massive offers. For what you’d get for Thiago this summer, you’d be better off keeping him for the final year of his contract.

If you’re upgrading one of the centre-backs this summer, I think it would make more sense to offload Joel Matip rather than Gomez. And as for Jota, he’s still a great option.

 

What are our chances of having enough money to sign Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe and even Mount, too? We can sell players if needed like Diaz to get the cash. (Brooks G)

Bellingham is Liverpool’s top target, although as my colleague David Ornstein has revealed, it is by no means certain that they end up getting him given the other clubs interested in doing a deal.

In Liverpool’s favour is the fact he has a good relationship with Jordan Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Bellingham is considering his options and I’d expect the picture to be much clearer by the end of the season. Mbappe isn’t realistic, though. The numbers involved would be too crazy.

Even if Liverpool get Bellingham, they will still need at least one other midfielder and Mount is a serious option if Chelsea look set to sell him this summer. Whatever happens, Diaz is going nowhere. He’s a big part of Liverpool’s future.

 

Can you shed some light on the Reds’ interest in Matheus Nunes? I know he was initially played out of position at Wolves, but his numbers are just not that impressive. (Carrie F)

There was a lot of talk about Liverpool signing Nunes last summer. I reported at the time that wasn’t a deal they were looking to pursue during that window and he ended up going from Sporting Lisbon to Wolves for around £40million. However, he’s highly regarded by the club and he’s an option for this summer. You’re right, his numbers aren’t great but, at the age of 24, they believe he’s got real potential.

 

Is there any truth in the Ryan Gravenberch rumours coming out courtesy of Jose Enrique? Sounded like it was nailed on! (Oliver F)

My information is that nothing is nailed on at this stage. Gravenberch will be one of many under consideration. Bellingham is clearly the priority.

 

How many signings do you think Liverpool need and where? And do you believe the midfield is the main issue during our disastrous season? (Eltion K)

Liverpool need a minimum of two, preferably three new midfielders capable of going straight into the starting XI. That has to be the priority followed by an accomplished centre-back to provide better cover for Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate. If Caoimhin Kelleher goes then they will also need to bring in a keeper as backup.

I don’t see any reason Liverpool can’t tick all those boxes. There are lots of issues behind Liverpool’s struggles this season but, yes, I do believe the midfield has been the biggest problem. The back line has been left exposed too often, the protection has not been good enough and they have lost the art of controlling games. With a new look midfield, I think the whole team will function a lot better.

 

Are you and Jurgen Klopp friends again? How was it resolved? (Susan B)

Yes, all sorted. It was actually an article published elsewhere the day before that game that had annoyed him. Around that time, he felt that certain members of his staff were being unfairly singled out for criticism and emotions were running high after a bad defeat. I saw him privately at Kirkby a few weeks ago for a chat and we shook hands. He’s answered my questions in press conferences since and everything is fine.

 

Why were there no options to extend Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and other fringe players by 12 months to get money for them rather than they leave for nothing? (Stephen P)

Sometimes contracts do have the option of an extra year built into them that a club can trigger. Sometimes it’s dependent on appearances. However, that’s not the case with the Liverpool players who are free agents this summer. Even if Liverpool did have the option to, say, extend Oxlade-Chamberlain’s deal for another 12 months, there’s no guarantee you’d then get a fee for him. He could just decide to stay put and then you’re stuck paying someone who isn’t going to contribute for another year.

Last summer was the time to sell Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain if Liverpool were going to get money for them. But, at the time, they were in discussions with Keita over an extension while Oxlade-Chamberlain wasn’t pushing for a move and there wasn’t an offer on the table for him.

Getting them off the wage bill, along with the likes of Roberto Firmino and Arthur Melo this summer, will free up a lot of cash.

 

Is there concern about Jota’s form? I think Fabio Carvalho has been more effective. Also, is Jota one of the highest-paid players on the team? (John T)

No, I don’t sense there’s any concern. There’s an appreciation that he’s had some wretched misfortune with injuries and needs time to regain rhythm. He’s only started seven games all season. I actually thought he was very good in the home win over Wolves earlier this month. Jota just needs a goal.

Carvalho is talented but is still learning his trade and doesn’t offer as much in terms of work off the ball. And no, Jota isn’t in the top bracket of Liverpool wage earners.

 

Do you expect Tyler Morton to be part of next year’s squad? (Rob J)

The feedback from Blackburn to Liverpool has been really positive. It’s been a great loan spell in terms of aiding his development. I believe the plan is for Morton to come back and start pre-season at Liverpool and then it’s down to him to prove he should be part of Klopp’s plans for 2023-24.

 

When times are hard, should the owners not provide a bit more of a positive future outlook and backing other than saying we are going to spend responsibly? (Brendan T)

I think those comments from John W Henry can be interpreted in different ways. You can still spend big and spend responsibly. The owners know what needs to be done to put Liverpool back to competing for the biggest prizes. Klopp said himself a few weeks ago that even without Champions League football the squad needs bolstering. FSG would agree.

Bellingham would be a transformative signing like Van Dijk and Alisson. Say he costs £120million and you can spread those payments out, that would be spending responsibly. Liverpool also have the new Standard Chartered and Expedia sponsorship deals kicking in this summer, plus budgeting for next season will include the extra revenue from the Anfield Road redevelopment.

 

Have you heard anything about the rebuild that involves the sale of a big player to generate funds? Are players going to be forced out? (Nameanothe R)

Unless one of those big players says he wants to leave or there’s a crazy offer, I can’t see it. No one will be forced out. That’s not the way Klopp operates.

I don’t think Liverpool will be able to raise much in terms of sales this summer unless something comes out of the blue. Caoimhin Kelleher could leave if he’s offered the chance to be a No 1 elsewhere and I reckon he’s worth £20million. Then you’ve got Nat Phillips who will probably go for around £8million. However, as stated above, Liverpool will be creating a lot of space on the wage bill given the earnings of those who are about to become free agents.

 

Luis Diaz, Luis Diaz, Luis Diaz. When, oh when, Luis Diaz? (Manuel S)

The short answer is hopefully off the bench against Man City on April 1 as long as building up his fitness continues to go to plan in the next fortnight. He’s been sorely missed.

 

If the Reds are to miss out on the Champions League next season, do you think it will help the team transition/rebuild better? Or will its impact on revenues and potential signings make it a tougher comeback for us with other English teams on the rise? (Cyriac S)

I don’t think missing out on the Champions League would have any benefit at all. It would be a real blow in terms of prestige and in terms of finance. And then you’ve got the prospect of Thursday night football in the Europa Leagueor even worse in the Europa Conference League. That then means you’re frequently playing catch-up domestically on a Sunday.

Of course, in 2016-17, no European football meant Klopp often had a full week to prepare for matches. I can’t see Liverpool missing out on Europe completely this time around.

 

Liverpool’s recently revealed financial results showed they have one of the largest wage bills in Europe. Have they made the error of paying declining players for past performance? And will the current salaries restrict what they are capable of doing in the summer? (Brian O)

For a long time, Liverpool struggled to retain their best talent. In the summer of 2021, they prioritised retention and dished out a lot of lucrative extensions. This time last year, no one would have complained about those deals as Liverpool challenged on all fronts. Now questions are being asked. I guess we need to wait and see whether this season proves to be a one-off and whether some of those who have looked like fading forces can get back to the heights they reached previously.

I don’t see the wage bill restricting what can be done in the market this summer. The bonuses paid out will be much lower this season compared to 2021-22 and, in fact, with Firmino, Keita, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Arthur and, possibly, James Milner and Adrian leaving as free agents, about £650,000 per week will be freed up.

 

Regarding Jamie Carragher’s comments, can you see Trent Alexander-Arnold being moved into midfield next season? Could we see Calvin Ramsay involved more? (Danny B)

Klopp has always been against the idea, so it would take a real change of heart. I don’t think Alexander-Arnold’s game has really changed, it’s just that with Liverpool being much less dominant this season he’s having more defending to do and opponents are having more chances to expose the space in behind him.

One issue is the lack of competition and cover there. Ramsay was obviously bought to provide that last summer but has missed most of the season due to injury. The hope is that he will be ready to step up when required next season.

[Scott_M]

Nobody asked him on investment?

[navbasi]

11 minutes ago, Scott_M said:

Nobody asked him on investment?

 

They may have done, but it just wasn't a question selected...

[Mark M]

He was asked about signing Mbappe ?!? Does the person asking the questions think we are owned by an Oil state ? 

[Russ Atmosphere]

The question about extending Oxlade-Chamberlain's contract to get a future transfer fee! 

 

Mind blown.

[navbasi]

David Lynch on Twitter basically saying what Dave said yesterday..

 

"Liverpool still in the race for Jude Bellingham’s signature. Move has always been predicated on the player choosing Anfield rather than victory in any bidding war with Manchester City and Real Madrid..."

[Scott_M]

7 minutes ago, navbasi said:

David Lynch on Twitter basically saying what Dave said yesterday..

 

"Liverpool still in the race for Jude Bellingham’s signature. Move has always been predicated on the player choosing Anfield rather than victory in any bidding war with Manchester City and Real Madrid..."

And I think this is fair. Anybody thinking we’d ever get into a bidding war with them needs to give their head a wobble. 
 

If he chooses Guardiola or Anchelotti’s pitch over us, then that’s really disappointing but I’m sure we’d have thrown everything at it. 
 

Unless the fee has gone up extraordinarily (ie from £120m to >£150m) to get this far down the road to decide he’s too expensive would be incredibly poor. 

[Joey8FrogsLegs]

5 hours ago, Daisy said:

 

We started signing players purely because of their perceived low value a while back, paying no attention to how they would fit in the team. 

 

Shaqiri

Minamino 

Diaz

Gakpo

Carvalho

 

All of those were signed because they were cheap at the time. Only Diaz has been successful, the rest just dont/didnt fit in with how Klopp plays. Gakpo might come good but he doesnt seem to have enough aggression/intensity to lead fhe press. 

 

Nunez is the outlier, in that he was both ridiculously expensive and also doesnt fit Klopps system.

 

Been a total shambles

 

Agree about Shaqiri, and so far Carvalho.

 

The other three all seem a very good match to the way we want to play. Minamino wasn’t really good enough, but that’s a different discusssion. Diaz and Gakpo both seem to fit in well, and both look excellent signings to me.

[Barrington Womble]

17 minutes ago, Joey8FrogsLegs said:

Agree about Shaqiri, and so far Carvalho.

 

The other three all seem a very good match to the way we want to play. Minamino wasn’t really good enough, but that’s a different discusssion. Diaz and Gakpo both seem to fit in well, and both look excellent signings to me.

 

Yeah, I agree with that. The forwards we have now, if we can keep them fit for a sustained period, give klopp the opportunity of what he's always done and get forward players frightening the shit out of the opposition. I see no reason why that won't be the case with these lads, they've all shown they have talent. We were obviously not going to spend our lives looking for clones of existing players, rather get lads with lots of ability, pace and physicality. I think gakpo, nunez and diaz have all shown that. 

[Ronnie Whelan]

Personally I think Diaz and Gakpo were terrific signings. Carvalho was a good punt that might pay off and Minamino  was worth a shot as well.

 

I think we'll sign Bellinghan this summer. It makes sense for FSG - if he is transformative he pays for himself, if he is just "very good", they'll still get their money back. He's so young and a likely English captain. Worth a fortune on and off the pitch. Furthermore, by all accounts, he's a great lad. An Irish lad I know from the pub comes from the same place as his granny in Ireland and said the whole family are the loveliest people. Ties in what people on here who know his dad said as well.

 

I think he will do great here if he comes. However, we need a lot more than him in midfield. I do like Mount and I'd be happy with him here. Put aside he plays for Chelsea. He's a good player who is being cast aside for shiny new playthings there.

 

Personally, I would go big on a centre half like Gvardiol this summer. I'm not saying Virgil is finished, but I can see a big decline in the next 18 months. Big Bird is on the decline as well and Joe isn't going to get to where we hoped. Let's at least make sorting our defence out a little easier rather than turning it into the next clusterfuck in 2024 by getting one big costly defender in.

 

It's all very kid in a candy shop but if we did spend big and well this summer, it really sets up well for the next few years. 2018 was a really good summer where we spent big and I'd love if we did that this summer.

 

I'm no fan of FSG and thanks to Jurgen, they have been getting multiple free spins on their free bet of the day. This feels different though. If they don't invest in the team, it could unravel completely and they would stand to lose a lot more financially. That's why I think they will back Jurgen good style this summer. They aren't stupid.

[Pidge]

55 minutes ago, navbasi said:

David Lynch on Twitter basically saying what Dave said yesterday..

 

"Liverpool still in the race for Jude Bellingham’s signature. Move has always been predicated on the player choosing Anfield rather than victory in any bidding war with Manchester City and Real Madrid..."

Bit more literal than his usual approach.

[gkmacca]

16 hours ago, Harry Squatter said:

 

 

 

 

And in other news: cockroaches are seen to be important creatures after a nuckear explosion.

[DaveT]

7 hours ago, Daisy said:

 

We started signing players purely because of their perceived low value a while back, paying no attention to how they would fit in the team. 

 

Shaqiri

Minamino 

Diaz

Gakpo

Carvalho

 

All of those were signed because they were cheap at the time. Only Diaz has been successful, the rest just dont/didnt fit in with how Klopp plays. Gakpo might come good but he doesnt seem to have enough aggression/intensity to lead fhe press. 

 

Nunez is the outlier, in that he was both ridiculously expensive and also doesnt fit Klopps system.

 

Been a total shambles

 

You can please some of the people......none of the time.

Diaz - has been a big success; very influential in the 2nd half run to nearly 4 trophies last year and unlucky to get injured when he'd been probably our best player early in the season

Gakpo - for me he's already shown enough (coming into an erratic, injury hit team mid-season) to suggest he's going to be a good player for us 

Shaqiri - bought relatively cheaply - as a SQUAD player who could bring something different. Worth the £12m for the role he played in the Everton 5-2, Barca and United 3-1 games alone.

Minamino - again, a SQUAD player, brought in cheaply, and able to get a goal or two - as he did to help us get to 2 domestic cup finals last year

Carvalho - agree - I don't see how he'll ever fit into a Klopp formation, but he's clearly talented, only cost £5m and I could easily see him being worth £20m or more to a team more suited to his style in the not too distant future.

In short, I don't see what your problem is.

[Scott_M]

14 minutes ago, DaveT said:

 

In short, I don't see what your problem is.

He complains when we don’t sign players, he complains when we do

sign players. 
 

If only we’d got those more expensive players we were allegedly after like Sancho, Havertz, Werner & Pepe. 

[3 Stacks]

25 minutes ago, DaveT said:

You can please some of the people......none of the time.

Diaz - has been a big success; very influential in the 2nd half run to nearly 4 trophies last year and unlucky to get injured when he'd been probably our best player early in the season

Gakpo - for me he's already shown enough (coming into an erratic, injury hit team mid-season) to suggest he's going to be a good player for us 

Shaqiri - bought relatively cheaply - as a SQUAD player who could bring something different. Worth the £12m for the role he played in the Everton 5-2, Barca and United 3-1 games alone.

Minamino - again, a SQUAD player, brought in cheaply, and able to get a goal or two - as he did to help us get to 2 domestic cup finals last year

Carvalho - agree - I don't see how he'll ever fit into a Klopp formation, but he's clearly talented, only cost £5m and I could easily see him being worth £20m or more to a team more suited to his style in the not too distant future.

In short, I don't see what your problem is.

The problem isn't necessarily with the players specifically, it's that ultimately they don't form a coherent collective. We have no idea what our best front 3 is. Even the somewhat successful trio of Nunez, Gakpo and Salah has been thrown together, with two of the players playing in different positions in an attempt to cobble together a coherent shape out of thin air. None of it has been well planned.

 

And the squad players like Minamino are just here until they're sick of not playing and they leave. Some of them contribute but there's no high level idea with any of them either.

[Barrington Womble]

4 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

The problem isn't necessarily with the players specifically, it's that ultimately they don't form a coherent collective. We have no idea what our best front 3 is. Even the somewhat successful trio of Nunez, Gakpo and Salah has been thrown together, with two of the players playing in different positions in an attempt to cobble together a coherent shape out of thin air. None of it has been well planned.

 

And the squad players like Minamino are just here until they're sick of not playing and they leave. Some of them contribute but there's no high level idea with any of them either.

of course he doesn't know what our best 3 is, he's barely had 3 fit at the same time all season. 

[Joey8FrogsLegs]

10 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

The problem isn't necessarily with the players specifically, it's that ultimately they don't form a coherent collective. We have no idea what our best front 3 is. Even the somewhat successful trio of Nunez, Gakpo and Salah has been thrown together, with two of the players playing in different positions in an attempt to cobble together a coherent shape out of thin air. None of it has been well planned.

 

And the squad players like Minamino are just here until they're sick of not playing and they leave. Some of them contribute but there's no high level idea with any of them either.

One could argue that neither do the two teams currently top of the table.

[navbasi]

13 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

The problem isn't necessarily with the players specifically, it's that ultimately they don't form a coherent collective. We have no idea what our best front 3 is. Even the somewhat successful trio of Nunez, Gakpo and Salah has been thrown together, with two of the players playing in different positions in an attempt to cobble together a coherent shape out of thin air. None of it has been well planned.

 

And the squad players like Minamino are just here until they're sick of not playing and they leave. Some of them contribute but there's no high level idea with any of them either.

 

Sorry, I don't agree, no way have we 'cobbled' together these lads... What they've given us is strength in depth.. Other than Mo on the right, we have so many different options now..

 

Nunez - Gakpo - Mo

Gakpo - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Jota - Mo

Diaz - Gakpo - Mo

Jota - Nunez - Mo

 

Mo has shown he can play in the middle as well, I don't know if any of Nunez or Jota can play on the right, if they can, then that's another option for us...

 

If everyone is fit, then my 1st choice would be Diaz - Nunez - Mo (with Cody and Jota on the bench)

 

[Barrington Womble]

1 minute ago, navbasi said:

 

Sorry, I don't agree, no way have we 'cobbled' together these lads... What they've given us is strength in depth.. Other than Mo on the right, we have so many different options now..

 

Nunez - Gakpo - Mo

Gakpo - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Jota - Mo

Diaz - Gakpo - Mo

Jota - Nunez - Mo

 

Mo has shown he can play in the middle as well, I don't know if any if Nunez or Jota can play on the right, if they can, then that's another option for us...

 

 

diaz had moments on the right last season and did well enough. 

[3 Stacks]

7 minutes ago, navbasi said:

 

Sorry, I don't agree, no way have we 'cobbled' together these lads... What they've given us is strength in depth.. Other than Mo on the right, we have so many different options now..

 

Nunez - Gakpo - Mo

Gakpo - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Nunez - Mo

Diaz - Jota - Mo

Diaz - Gakpo - Mo

Jota - Nunez - Mo

 

Mo has shown he can play in the middle as well, I don't know if any of Nunez or Jota can play on the right, if they can, then that's another option for us...

 

If everyone is fit, then my 1st choice would be Diaz - Nunez - Mo (with Cody and Jota on the bench)

 

We're playing someone who is meant to be a 9 on the left and someone who is meant to play on the left as a false 9.

Even if those two can play those positions, this was not the idea. 

 

Also we don't know if any of those options you listed are any good.

[SasaS]

3 hours ago, navbasi said:

David Lynch on Twitter basically saying what Dave said yesterday..

 

"Liverpool still in the race for Jude Bellingham’s signature. Move has always been predicated on the player choosing Anfield rather than victory in any bidding war with Manchester City and Real Madrid..."

 

 

[3 Stacks]

20 minutes ago, Barrington Womble said:

of course he doesn't know what our best 3 is, he's barely had 3 fit at the same time all season. 

I don't really care about the factors surrounding it. If the attack works next season, fair enough. That's the important thing. For now, our process looks terrible.

[Barrington Womble]

13 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

I don't really care about the factors surrounding it. If the attack works next season, fair enough. That's the important thing. For now, our process looks terrible.

What do you mean by process? 

[3 Stacks]

2 minutes ago, Barrington Womble said:

What do you mean by process? 

Our decision making and way of doing things. As a club, in the transfer market, squad composition, squad management, etc...