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Pep Guardiola has claimed that winning the Champions League is similar to a spin of a roulette wheel at a casino and he much prefers the success of a title winning campaign.In a clear attempt to downplay the achievement of his closest rivals Liverpool ahead of their first meeting in the community shield this afternoon, Guardiola left no one in doubt to where his priority lies.The Mirror reports Guardiola as saying:" The Premier League is always the most important thing, the stand-out competition, because it is every weekend.“I think we will be closer to achieving in Europe when we have more Premier League titles. That is the right process at Manchester City. The furthest that City have gone in Europe's elite competition in a semi final in 2015/6 when they lost to Real Madrid 1-0 over two legs. City are always one of the favourites with online betting sites but despite their domestic dominance they have under-achieved in Europe. The manager who won the competition twice in his time with his time with Barcelona admits that his team has to do better in the competition but it is not his number one priority."Of course we have to win in Europe because it’s an important tournament and difficult to win."But I am not going to go to the casino and gamble everything I have in my pocket on just seven games.“From my point of view, that’s too risky. "To maintain the health and focus of the team, it always has to be the Premier League." Why am I going to wait until February for seven games and put everything on black? Guardiola who clearly wanted to get a few things of his chest before the season started, felt that his players have been under appreciated as not one City player made the cut for the FIFA Best Football awards.In comparison the Reds had three nominations in Virgil Van Dijk, Mo Salah and Sadio Mane due to their outstanding triumph in Europe." Of course we would like to win the Champions League - so big respect to Liverpool.“But is why is that a higher (achievement) than what we did in 11 months?" I am pretty sure Liverpool would have liked to have won the Premier League, because it is 29 years since they last did."It’s incredibly good what they did in the Champions League, but we were better in the league."What we did (domestic treble) has never been achieved before. "It was awesome – and I think my colleagues and football players worldwide know how difficult it is." It doesn’t matter if the people who consider the UEFA awards or FIFA awards don’t select one of our players."But I don’t think one player had a better season that Bernardo Silva, for example, who also won the Nations League with Portugal."And the year we won the title with 100 points, there was huge respect for Mohamed Salah – but come on, guys!“Kevin De Bruyne, that season, was above and beyond any normal situation."Of course, it is about opinions – and of course we accept it if our players don’t deserve to win."Maybe we have to win five titles - or maybe Bernardo has to win six"Or maybe we have to get 250 points next season – but we are going to try"The fuse has been lit for another fascinating battle between the two current powerhouses in English (and quite possibly world football.)Let's hope come this time next year, the Spaniard has plenty to whinge about courtesy of an empty trophy cabinet from this season.

Trent Alexander Arnold has poured cold water on any possibility of a late transfer signing as the deadline approaches.Metro reports the right-back as saying that Jurgen Klopp is content with who is has at his disposal. " I think the manager has said this is the team that’s going to get us through the next season."So we need to embrace it and buy into the idea of what the manager tells us about how he wants us to play."I am sure we’ll try to go out there every game, put in performances and I am sure we will stay in and around winning things and keep pushing other teams to do well as well.’Alexander Arnold said in addition to the confidence that the squad has following their Champions League triumph, that winning culture has spread into the off-season. "Obviously we’ve all come in off the back of winning the Champions League, but Sadio [Mane] getting to the Africa Cup of Nations final [and] the Brazilians (Alisson and Roberto Firmino) winning the Copa America was good around the team with our countries and also as a team, we’re getting close to winning things and we are winning things. "It’s important to have that mentality and to keep building on it. I think the club is in a really good place for that. Despite being only 20 himself, Alexander-Arnold sees himself as a mentor to the younger brigade such as Ki-Jana Hoever and new signing Sepp van den Berg."I think I understand that I have a responsibility for the young players; I try to make sure I am there for them and they know they can come and speak to me. "Hopefully they know I have been in their situation and I know what they’re going through – coming in and out of teams, being rotated, not getting the minutes you want, finding it a little bit too hard or intense, or struggling with fitness and whatnot. "I have been through it all. I hope they understand that I have, that I am always here for them and that I am always available for them to come and talk."It is refreshing to have the young lads around. "When we’re travelling throughout the season, I’m normally the youngest lad – the other youngest is maybe Robbo and people who are like 24 or 25 – so I am always around [players] that are a bit older than me."So it’s refreshing to have young lads in and around, to be able to be a bit silly around them, take a little bit of weight off and not think about what I am saying and stuff like that a little bit too."While there is a fair bit to live up to, the next generation of Liverpool stars couldn't ask for a better person to look up to than Trent.

Saturday Jul 27: Arsenal are paying £70m for a winger. That’s the most Arsenal transfer move of all time. Everyone knows they have no defenders worthy of the name and that their midfield is shite, but as usual they just disregard that to get some random French speaking flair player in. They can’t blame Wenger anymore either. What this does do though, is leave Wilf Zaha hanging in the wind. Arsenal looked to be his best hope of joining a top six club. Now the only team in for him is Everton, and they’re not even serious about it based on the derisory offers they’ve made so far. £50m is the latest one. So let’s get this straight. Palace sell their right back for £50m, and Everton think they can get their most important player and fan favourite for the same price? Whatever Zaha’s worth is, you can probably add another £30m on top of that to get what his worth to Palace is. Besides, why the fuck would Zaha leave Palace to join Everton? It’s a sideways move and he’d be leaving a place where he’s happy, comfortable and loved. I think he’ll stay at Palace…. …until Chelsea are allowed to sign players again. Harvey Elliot has no officially signed and will be in the squad tomorrow. Saw another old tweet of his from a few years ago, he’s dressed head to toe in club swag and he’s stood next to the Shankly statue. Apparently every single tweet he ever made back then was about the Reds. I like this kid, he’s absolutely fucking obsessed with this club. Had to laugh though when I saw this quote from him. “To have joined the club I supported as a boy is a dream come true”. As a boy? He’s only fucking sixteen now! He’s scrapped that original account and started a new one. Just had a look now and his twitter header is a picture of him and his girlfriend. It’s funny as fuck, he looks like an East 17 tribute act. In fact no, it's like East 17 have had kids and the kids have formed a new band and he's the frontman. Seriously, look at this pic and tell me that isn’t Brian Harvey and Daniella Westbrook’s kid…. Stay now (stay now).... Baby if you've got to go away, don't think I can take the pain.... won't you stay another day. Sunday Jul 28: L 0 Napoli 3. Well that was fucking shit. Most of pre-season has been fucking shit actually. I’m not worried at this point and I don’t think it means anything in terms of the season itself, but fuck me, it’s been a chore even bringing myself to watch these games. I watched this as it was at a civilised hour, unlike the US tour games. I really wish I hadn’t though, as there was nothing to take from this at all. In fairness, I almost swerved it when I saw that Gini and Ox were in the front three. That was never going to end well. Ox is almost as useless in the front three as Lallana is. He’s a midfield player, simple as that. Don’t play him anywhere else as he’s shite. Wilson would have been a better option, but then you have to take into account that it’s pre-season and it’s all about fitness. Ox getting a load of minutes under his belt is far more beneficial than the shape of the team looking marginally better because Wilson is in there. That’s what this is about. Klopp is trying to get his main players as fit as possible, and if it means results suffer then so be it. There are also suggestions that players are doing double sessions on the day of games. That might be exaggerated but the legs are definitely heavy in these games and it’s going to have a negative impact. Really, the sensible thing is to just not watch these games at all. My mate John never watches them. Not even a minute of them. Just avoids them entirely and then checks back in when the real stuff starts again. I need to pay attention as it’s my job, but if it wasn’t and I could get away with paying no attention then I think I’d take that route. Especially when there are no new signings to watch. We did see young Harvey for a few minutes today and he looked good. Lots of confidence and swagger about him. He’s going to be a player I think. Meanwhile, strange goings on in Madrid where Real have now pulled the plug on Bale’s move to China. I’d be seething if I was him. They’ve been trying to force him out ever since Zidane came back and now that he’s lined himself up a move for crazy wages, they pull the rug out on him as they want a higher transfer fee. Bale is reportedly on 600k at Madrid though (I had no idea, I thought he was on half that). No-one else in Europe is giving him that, and he’s not going to take a pay cut so Madrid are going to be on the hook for some of that salary no matter what. If I was him now, I’d just refuse all offers and stay put, just to spite the fuckers. Besides, they’re going to be shite under that bald fraud so it won’t be long until he’s back in the team. Yeah that’s right, I called Zidane a bald fraud (again) and I’m not arsed about his Champions League trophies. I’ll say it one more time... in fact I’ll spell it. B.A.L.D. F.R.A.U.D. What’s his playing style? All the best coaches have an identity, a way of playing that their teams are identifiable by. We know Klopp’s style. We know Guardiola’s. And Pochettino’s. And Simeone’s. What’s Zidane’s though? It used to be “shithouse as much as possible lads, and then give it to Ronaldo”. Can’t do that now though, can he? They’ll do well to finish in the top three this year, despite the hundreds of millions he’s spent. He’s even more over rated as a manager as he was as a player and that’s saying something. So yeah, sit tight Gareth as this egg head might be out of a job even before Solkskjaer. Monday Jul 29: Robbo says the players aren’t happy with themselves and that Hendo and Milner got them together on the pitch after the game and gave out some home truths about how they were playing. This kind of negates what I was saying about the mitigating circumstances for how they are playing and tells me that there's a little more to it and they aren’t happy about it. I’m still not worried, but this did cause me to half raise an eyebrow. It’’s easy to overlook that we’re playing without six regular contributors, including the entire forward line. Things will be better when we’ve got our full team available. It’s just a shame that won’t be in time for Sunday, as I really want to see us flying at those pricks to lay down an early marker. I'm not even arsed about the Charity Shield itself. I mean obviously I'd rather win it than not win it, but it's basically just about beating them. I want the Super Cup and I want the World Club Cup, but this is about who we're playing rather than the actual prize itself. I want to see some Keegan and Bremner style shit on Sunday. This ain't no friendly. Klopp should have that video of the City players singing on the plane on a fucking loop in the dressing room before the game. The club have agreed the sale of Melwood to an 'affordable housing' company. I don't know enough about this to comment really, but it seems that the local residents are pretty unhappy about it. I read somewhere that they lobbied the club to make a commitment that the land could be used for something to benefit the community. Not an unreasonable request considering how long West Derby has been home to the club's training facility and the inconvenience that must have caused to residents over the years. It still made me laugh when I saw it though. It's like they haven't been paying any attention at all. They'll sell to whoever gives them the most money, and they won't give a fuck what the land is used for. It's about the bottom line, like everything else in modern football. How many owners genuinely give a shit about the fans and try to look out for them? Very few, and certainly not ours, although they do talk a good game. Tuesday Jul 30: Ben Woodburn joins League One Oxford. There’s two ways of looking at this. One is that a 19 year old going on loan to a League Two side isn’t anything especially concerning and shouldn’t necessarily be a reflection of where he’s at in his development. After all, if he’s spent the last two years in the under 18s and was now making this move, it would probably be seen as a logical next step on the ladder. If this was Adam Lewis for example, it wouldn't be seen as anything negative. The problem is, Ben was playing games for our first team when he was 17 and he became our youngest ever goalscorer. The future looked bright but he’s not progressed at all since. This time last year he was being loaned to a Championship side. Now it’s League One. This is why it's so hard to make predictions on most young players. Great at 17 doesn't always translate to great at 19. Great at 19 doesn't always mean great at 21 (Dom Solanke for example). I hope I’m wrong, but I reckon we’ve got another Phil Charnock on our hands. He was once our youngest ever player but he would spend his career in the lower leagues. There’s a chance Woodburn could take the Conor Coady route and end up back in the big league when he’s in his mid 20s and at this point, both of those scenarios seem much more likely than him coming back and making it here unfortunately. Meanwhile, Fulham want £9m compensation from us for Elliot. That seems a lot in relation to other similar deals, but it’s not that unreasonable when you weigh everything up. Fulham put all the work in to him, developing him and even giving him a chance in their first team. He looks like a special talent, and while there are no guarantees, if he becomes the player they think he can be, £9m will seem like peanuts, especially in today's mental market where Harry Maguire could go for close to £90m. I mean, in theory, Elliot could spend a few years with us and then move to Madrid for £200m. How would that be fair to Fulham? I don’t know what the answer to this problem is, but big clubs keep signing youth players from smaller clubs and it’s not really right. All you have to do is tap the player up and tell him not to sign pro terms with his current club and you can sign young stars on the cheap. What I’m not sure about though is how come we didn’t have to pay compensation for Bobby Duncan? That was the same situation, was it not? I dunno, the whole world of signing youth players is murky as fuck, and it’s cost Chelsea a transfer ban. I reckon we'll end up with a big bill for Elliot, but hopefully it will be incentive based as that way everyone wins. In other news today, Ronaldo guarantees that Juve will win the Champions League. “Juve are going to win, if not this year, I hope it will be the next or in two years”. Nah, not having it. We’d twat them, City would twat them, Spurs would probably beat them, and that’s before we even get to the rest of the big teams around Europe. Ronaldo is still great but he’s on the decline. That’s fine for Serie A, he can probably play in that league until he’s 50, but playing against Premier League sides is a whole different ball game. Last time Ronaldo faced a Premier League side he was marked out of the game by Dejan Lovren. Speaking of big Dejan, I’ve written before about how I wouldn’t sell him because he’s such an integral part of what goes on in the dressing room and he’s great for the spirit of the squad. Well today is a classic case in point, and seemingly it’s not just his club mates who buzz off taking the piss out of him. He posted a message about being ready to get his revenge on Mo after losing to him at table tennis, and Luka Modric weighed in and said “You can’t win against anyone! Stop wasting your time.” Salah also taunted him by pointing out the score was 7-0 before Gini patronisingly told him “Never give up!”. Seriously, Lovren is great for the morale of the squad because everyone enjoys hammering on him and he doesn’t give a fuck, he just takes it all. Keep him around, there’d be a huge “whipping boy shaped hole” to fill if he left. Wednesday Jul 31: L 3 Lyon 1 Much better. As I said the other day, playing shit in pre-season isn’t really cause for any alarm, but it feels much better when we play well and win doesn’t it? Alisson started the game looking like he’d just stepped off that parade bus, hammered. I just laughed at that mistake, it was so ridiculous. If you’re going to do that, do it now when it doesn’t matter. Bobby was back with a goal, Mo was back and in that erratic form we saw from him in chunks of last year (shooting ten yards off target and standing on the ball when dribbling etc) and Naby was back and looking in surprisingly sharp form. For all the positive press Lallana is getting for how he played, the player who caught my eye the most was Hoever. It’s quite rare that you see a kid and have no doubt whatsoever that they’ll be a star. Sometimes you can be fairly sure they’ll make it and be a good top level player, but it hardly ever happens that you look at a young player and KNOW 100% that he’s special. Probably the last one I saw who I had absolute confidence in was Michael Owen. Hoever is different to Owen in that he isn’t banging in hat-tricks every game, but he’s similar in that I watch him and I’m convinced he’s not just going to be good, but he’ll be great. Honestly, he’s fucking brilliant. I like the cut of Elliot’s jib too. He’s got that swagger about him and looks like he could be special. It’s too soon for me to be making bold proclamations about him though, so for now I’ll just stick with my “Hoever is going to be a superstar” call. Wilson is an interesting one though. Klopp has apparently ruled out a loan so he either stays or he'll be sold. In pretty much any other year in the modern era I reckon he’d be getting games. Not necessarily starting, but he’d be in the squad. Now, he’s got no chance of getting a game because he’s basically the exact same player as Shaqiri, only not as good and less experienced. If Shaq can’t get much of a game, what chance has Harry got? I’d like to see him stay until January at least though, because it’s really hard to judge a fringe player when most of the action he gets is when he’s surrounded by other fringe players. Wilson played with the big boys tonight and he looked good. Keep him around in case we get injuries early doors. With the forward lads not having much of a pre-season we need to be careful with them, so let's keep Harry for now. Thursday Aug 1: I know I shouldn’t laugh, but hahahaha fucking hell. That Harvey Elliot video where he’s ripping Harry Kane. There’s so much wrong with it and yet I can’t help but laugh when I watch it. He’ll probably get in trouble for it, which I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, he’s 16 and there are far worse things he could be doing than that. On the other, he’s a footballer with what is expected to be a very bright future ahead of him. He has to know better than that, 16 or not. Someone needs to sit him down and tell him three things. One, do not let your mates video you doing ANYTHING. Two, you can’t use the word ‘mong’ (when it comes to Kane, I'd recommend ‘slobbering goon’ as the go to insult). Three, Kane is England captain, you’re an England youth star and might be playing in the same team as him in a couple of years. That’s going to be awkward as fuck. While I'm critiquing his social media habits, someone might also want to tell him that ‘thank you’ is not spelt ‘thankq’. Kids eh? Also today, the Lovren table tennis thing is still rumbling on, as half the squad have taken to instagram to tear him to shreds. He won a game and was all chesty about it, until Mo pointed out that he’d lost 11 games in two days. Robbo weighed in and said “wow what a terrible player” and Trent took a shot at him as well, or in Trent speak, “aswell” (if you haven’t got on to that, listen the next time he does an interview). Hendo caught some flak too after giving it the big ‘un when he beat Trent. Apparently he’s been shite so the lads didn’t take kindly to him making out he was the fucking king. The best bit though is Mo somehow managed to use an attack on Henderson as an excuse to boot the boot in on Lovren again. This whole exchange is great, especially when Lallana predictably weighs in to support his boy….. Big Dejan eventually posted a picture of a broken bat, as it all became a bit too much for him. All this on the day that the Italian press report he’s close to joining Roma. Fuck that, don’t you dare let him go as it will break Mo’s heart, and a happy Salah is a prolific Salah. I don’t like moody Salah, so if Dejan makes him happy then give him a new contract. It’s not about the production we get from Lovren, it’s about the extra production we get from Mo. It’s kind of like how we kept Albert the Moron around to keep the Brazilians entertained, only he couldn’t even fucking do that and we lost Coutinho. Dejan is a much better court jester. 100k a week to keep the whole squad smiling is a small price to pay in this current climate. Friday Aug 2: Harry Maguire £80m hahahahaha fucking hell. It’s gonna be hilarious when Leicester use that cash to find someone better than him and add another player or two and then finish above the Mancs. Meanwhile, Arsenal supposedly want Coutinho on loan. My first reaction was what the fuck are they doing trying to sign another little attacking player. My second thought was did they offer “loan deal plus one pound”. And my third thought was that this is exactly how it would need to play out if we were going to have any chance of getting him. Think about it. Barca want to sell him. A loan is an absolute last resort. The only thing worse than a loan would be them having to bend over and loan him to us. So, if we were to approach them and say “any chance of taking Phil on loan?” they’d tell us to fuck right off. What if other teams are laying the groundwork and planting the seed though? Other teams that Coutinho doesn’t want to join. Like Arsenal, for example. Of course, he’d have to let them think he was up for it, which is where his agent comes in. We know that Joorabchian is a sneaky fuck who knows how to get what he wants. So bear with me here. What if Joorabchian gets Arsenal interested and leads them on a bit. Arsenal have blown their budget on that Nicolas Pepe lad so they can’t buy Phil. They test the water with a loan. Initially Barca aren’t interested, but they know their only real chance of selling him is to PSG or the Premier League (and Coutinho has reportedly told them he doesn’t want to go to Paris). So, the PL transfer deadline approaches and the only offer is Arsenal’s cheeky loan bid. Suddenly Barca have to think about it. Carry on paying his wages or let Arsenal do it, hope that Phil regains his form and then sell him in a year. Only problem is, Coutinho is now saying “weeeeelllllll I don’t really fancy Arsenal if I’m honest. I might just stay here and fight for my place”. All of a sudden, a loan offer from us doesn’t look quite so unappealing from Barca’s point of view does it? Telling’ yers, this is how Joorabchian operates. He knows his shit, he gets his clients what they want which is why Coutinho hired him about a year before he ended up leaving us. This is happening people, all of this is just part of the dance as Brendan always used to say. Damn, I’m really heading for a massive disappointment when this doesn’t happen, aren’t I? ….and that was the week that was

It is fair to say that the summer transfer window has been a quiet one for the Reds. There has been no shortage of speculation, but there has been little to report on in terms of incoming talent. Youngsters Sepp van den Berg and Harvey Elliott have been the only two arrivals to walk through the doors at Melwood so far.Depending on which camp you sit in, the measured approach that the club have undertaken this off-season will have either frustrated you greatly, or you feel similar to Jurgen Klopp and have full faith in the squad that did so superbly and exceeded all expectations last season .In terms of a players point of view, Andy Robertson is more than content with the way things currently stand.The Mirror reported the left-back as saying:"The same got said about Tottenham last season, that they wouldn’t kick on without signings, but they went on and had a more successful season."For us, the most important thing was keeping all our players, and we’ve managed to do that. have all stayed together, and that’s a big thing."It’s about sticking together and getting even more familiar with each other. "We’ve had players that have been in their first seasons - Keita and Fabinho their first season is over now and they’ve settled in, so I’m sure they will be looking to kick on and so will everyone else.”Robertson said the overall depth of the squad was there for everyone to see last season, and with key members returning after off-season international duty, they will be well and truly ready for the challenge of the new campaign."Look, we’ve still got 5-6 players to come back who are crucial to this squad, and that will be make a big difference. "Then this season, I am sure it will be a good one…it’s about showing it now."So this is a competitive squad. You look and we have options all over. It’s about needing them - we’ll need them this season and we’ll need to use all of them, and then we will be fine. We are not worried at all."We will look forward, next week is the start of the season against Man City and we know how hard this season is going to be, but it’s one we really look forward to.” Before Wednesday night's 3-1 win against Lyon, Liverpool had gone four games without victory in the pre-season.However, the Scottish captain said this time is perfect for preparation for the long season ahead, and overall results are secondary.“It’s pre-season. "It’s about trying to get ready. We need to cram a lot in, in a short space of time. We have been doing double sessions before games, our legs are maybe a wee bit heavy.Robertson is certainly looking forward to the reunion of Roberto Firmino, Mo Salah and Sadio Mane with the Senegal star due to return to the club on Monday after enjoying a break following the African Cup of Nations tournament.“The forwards, the three of them are massive characters, not only world class footballers, but massive characters in the squad."It will make a big difference having them around, we’ll welcome them back with open arms. You’ll see the difference.”

Adam Lallana says a change in position during the pre-season has been a enjoyable learning curve.Jurgen Klopp has been playing the veteran in a deeper role and while the move may have raised some eyebrows, Lallana says that is a challenge that he has taken on board.The England international spoke on the matter to the Official site after Liverpool's 3-1 victory over Lyon in Geneva on Wednesday evening." It’s nice. I found myself playing there a few times this pre-season and I’m happy to play anywhere. I’ve enjoyed it, obviously getting on the ball."There are still aspects of the game I need to improve on and I’m sure I’ll learn the more I play there. I’m delighted to get some more minutes and build my fitness.Lallana doesn't need to look too far for support with the manager being a true believer in his qualities that he can bring to the position. "(The manager) has mentioned I can play there, that I’ve got the ability to play there. "There’s not been any formal chat but I’m happy playing there. "I see a lot of the ball and I’m the type of player that wants to be on the ball; I feel I can get us moving, get us out of tight situations and bring a different aspect to Liverpool."As long as I can stay fit – and I’ve been working hard on my fitness – then I think I can bring quality to this Liverpool team.”The work out against Lyon was just what Klopp's side needed ahead of this weekend's Community Shield clash with Manchester City, a game so close to call it's a real challenge for anyone who likes a football bet. The pre-season form of the Reds had been patchy to say the least, and it didn't look it was going to take a turn for the better in the early stages of this contest against the French side.In his first outing for the Reds during the pre-season Alisson conceded a early penalty due to an uncharacteristic error which the manager referred to as 'slapstick.'However the early deficit was overturned through goals to Roberto Firmino, an own-goal to Joachim Anderson and another stunner by Harry Wilson. Lallana said it was nice to get back on a winning track and solid preparation for the season ahead."It’s not the be all and end all in pre-season but it’s good to get into good habits. I thought all round everyone played a good part and it was a good runout for us."A little bit of a dodgy start but a good reaction. We’re going to go behind in games this season, I’m sure, so I thought the boys showed good character to get back into it against a good Lyon side."The manager said he wanted to use this game to get everyone up to scratch and give everyone the minutes they needed to have depending on what level they’re at, and I thought we coped with that really well.” Lallana is unlikely to start against City due to the wealth of other options available to Klopp, but his pre-season displays may have at least given the boss another option to consider.

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has urged the Reds to break the bank in order to sign former playmaker Philippe Coutinho from Barcelona. The Brazilian left in January 2018 after declaring his intention to win major trophies alongside Lionel Messi at the Nou Camp. Yet Liverpool dumped his Barcelona side out of the Champions League on a stirring night at Anfield last season and went on to clinch Europe’s most coveted prize. Now Barca want to cut their losses on Coutinho and Carragher reckons Liverpool should welcome him back with open arms. “I still think they could add a creative player,” said the former centre-back. “I’d love to see Liverpool bring back Coutinho if that was possible in any way. Obviously, it hasn’t worked out for him at Barcelona. I just think he would be a great addition. You’ve got Lallana and Shaqiri in those positions, but they’re not Coutinho. He would give something that they don’t have compared to City.” The bookmakers are anticipating another two-horsed Premier League title race between Liverpool and Man City next season. Pep Guardiola’s men won their final 14 games of the 2018/19 campaign to overhaul the Reds and win the title by a single point. Now they are bidding for a third Premier League triumph in a row and the leading betting websites make them the odds-on favourites to pull it off. Liverpool are out at around 5/2, while Tottenham are 16/1, Chelsea are 25/1, Man Utd are 30/1 and Arsenal are 50/1. It is hard to see any of the other so-called Big Six sides threatening the duopoly of Liverpool and Man City next season. They were all well off the pace last term, and none have significantly improved this summer. Man City secured 98 points last season, the second highest tally in Premier League history, and they still felt the need to invest in their squad this summer. Rodri has joined in a club record deal from Atletico Madrid, and more signings are likely. Liverpool have been inactive in the transfer window, and that is beginning to cause consternation among fans. They say that if you stand still you go backwards. Bringing in fresh faces during the summer can galvanise a squad by injecting an exciting new dynamic into proceedings and increasing the competition for places. There is an argument that Liverpool do not need much in the way of reinforcements, as their key players are all the right side of 30, they have the energy to adhere to Jurgen Klopp’s Gegenpressing style, and they also have the experience to grind out important results. It is true that there are no obvious gaps in the Liverpool first team, but scratch beneath the surface and the picture is not quite so rosy. Klopp has a number of midfield options at his disposal, while Joe Gomez provides strong competition for Joel Matip and Trent Alexander-Arnold. But Liverpool could do with another forward to cover for Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino. It might seem ludicrous to splash the cash on Coutinho if he is not guaranteed a starting berth, but that is the enviable position Liverpool are in. He is versatile enough to play out wide in a front three, while he could also operate at the point of a three-man midfield when more creativity is required. Liverpool ultimately lost out to Man City last season because they drew too many games in which they dominated possession but struggled to make a breakthrough. We all know that Coutinho’s has the ability to unlock the tightest defences around, while his ability to shoot from long range would add another dimension to Liverpool’s attack next season. He is proven in the Premier League and he could walk straight into the team in the opening week if Mané is still tired from the Africa Cup of Nations. He has played alongside Coutinho for Brazil in their successful Copa America campaign this summer, but his legs should be reasonably fresh after a light schedule in May. He would certainly be a controversial signing, and many fans would not welcome him back, but Coutinho would soon be forgiven if he fired Liverpool to the title.

In the summer of 2017 we decided on the four founding members of the TLW Hall of Fame and then added four more inductees as the ‘Class of 2017’. Another four went in a year later and every summer four more legends will be inducted. However, we need your help to do it. HOW IT WORKS The voting panel consists of representatives from TLW, the media, the former players association and also a popular fan vote, which is where YOU come in, by voting below. Each year there will be a group of ten nominees, from which four will be voted in. The six who don’t get in will remain on the ballot for the following year and beyond, until they are eventually selected. Those voted in will be replaced by four new names for the following year. In 2017 Ian Rush, John Barnes, Billy Liddell and Ian Callaghan were voted in to join the four founding members; Bill Shankly Bob Paisley, Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard. Last year saw Emlyn Hughes, Roger Hunt, Alan Hansen and Graeme Souness selected. There will be a separate category for managers & coaches (with one inductee every four years), but for now we’re just concentrating on the players. The six remaining candidates who did not get in last year will now be joined by four new nominees this year. Those four are Terry McDermott, Steve Nicol, Ian St John and Phil Thompson. As explained in previous years, it was not just a case of picking the ten greatest players, which in itself would also have been incredibly difficult. Other factors come into it, although only great players will be considered. For example, few would claim that Phil Neal was one of Liverpool’s ten most talented players of all time, but nobody can match his medal haul or achievements. We also felt that it was important to have a mix of players from across several eras rather than just selecting the greats of the 70s and 80s for example. None of us saw Elisha Scott play but excluding him on that basis wouldn't be right. His career record speaks for itself. Some missed out on the initial ten as a result of the decision to spread it across all eras, but over the coming years they’ll all be added to the mix, usually when someone from their generation has just been voted in (Roger Hunt went in last year so has been replaced by Ian St John in this year's list). We would really appreciate your support and participation, both in terms of voting and spreading the word by telling your friends and sharing on social media. Hopefully this can pick up momentum and grow each year. So without further ado, here are this year's nominees... JAMIE CARRAGHER Second on the appearance list behind Callaghan, Bootle's finest represented the Reds 737 times over a 16 year first team career, winning everything except the league title. Brave, loyal, committed and talented, Carragher's finest hour was his courageous display in Istanbul when he fought through severe cramp in both legs to help keep AC Milan at bay and secure number five. ROBBIE FOWLER The most natural goalscorer to pull on the famous red shirt. Toxteth born Fowler burst onto the scene as an 18 year old and for the next few seasons took English football by storm, becoming the quickest Liverpool striker to reach 100 goals when he achieved the milestone in only his 165th game. A succession of injuries prevented him from sustaining that blistering form, but in two spells with the club Fowler amassed 183 goals and is one of the most loved players in club history. IAN ST JOHN The man known affectionately as 'the Saint' is one of the most important signings Liverpool ever made. Bill Shankly would later describe the arrival of St John and fellow Scot Ron Yeats as 'the turning point' in the club's history. The Reds were languishing in the second division when St John arrived, but promotion was secured soon after and St John's prolific partnership with Roger Hunt fired the Reds to the league title two years later, and St John was on the scoresheet when the club won the FA Cup for the first time in it's history in 1965. KEVIN KEEGAN When Bill Shankly paid fourth division Scunthorpe £33,000 for an unknown 20 year old in 1971, no-one could have foreseen that within a few years Keegan would be one of the biggest stars in world football. Described by some as Liverpool's answer to George Best, Keegan became the club's first superstar and helped inspire the Reds to their first European Cup win in 1977 before departing for Hamburg, where he was twice named European Footballer of the Year. PHIL NEAL Phil Neal was a Liverpool player for 11 years, making 650 appearances and chipping in with 59 goals, many of them vitally important penalty kicks. A solid, dependable right back who rarely missed a game and even played with broken bones, Neal is the most decorated player in club history, having won eight league titles, four European Cups, one FA Cup, one UEFA Cup and four League Cups. PHIL THOMPSON A boyhood Kopite who lived the dream, 'Thommo' spent 13 years as a player and many more on the coaching staff and is an undoubted Anfield legend. Handed his debut by Bill Shankly as an 18 year old, Thompson went on to make 340 appearances for the club over the next decade and more, forming almost impregnable defensive pairings with Emlyn Hughes and then Alan Hansen. Thompson skippered the Reds to European Cup success in 1981, becoming one of only five Liverpool captains to lift the trophy. STEVE NICOL Regarded by many fans as the club's best ever full back, Nicol enjoyed a stellar 13 year career at Anfield where he excelled in a variety of positions. He took over from the ageing Phil Neal at right back during the 1985/86 season and helped the Reds win the league and FA Cup double, but it was on the opposite flank where he enjoyed his best form, combining with John Barnes to wreak havoc during the 1987/88 season when he was named Player of the Year by the football writers. TERRY McDERMOTT The scorer of one of the most iconic goals in club history when he headed in at the Anfield Road end in a 7-0 win over Spurs in 1987. Terry Mac was a local lad who had to make his name elsewhere before getting his chance to shine with the Reds. He started at Bury and moved to Newcastle, where he was part of the side that lost to Liverpool in the 1974 FA Cup final. A few months later he was signed by Bob Paisley. He won five league titles, three European Cups and a host of other trophies, as well as being named PFA and Football Writers Player of the Year in 1979/80. ELISHA SCOTT The Ulsterman joined Liverpool in 1912 and left in 1934, meaning he was between the sticks for an incredible 22 years. In that time he won two league titles but, more importantly, he captured the hearts of those on the Kop. Scott was idolised by the fans, so much so that when the club attempted to sell him (to Everton!) it was the reaction of the supporters that forced them into changing their mind. Legendary Everton striker Dixie Dean described him as the best keeper in the world, and a fan poll in 1939 saw him voted Liverpool's greatest ever player. TOMMY SMITH The Anfield Iron. The man who according to Shanks "was not born, he was quarried". Smith was the hardest man in an era of hard men but he was also a terrific footballer who excelled in a number of positions. He made his debut in 1963 and his final appearance came 15 years later. In that time he won everything there was to win, with his finest hour coming in Rome in 1977 when he found the net with a thumping header in the European Cup Final. Tommy played 638 times for the club and paid a heavy price for that in later life with numerous ailments including severe arthritis and dementia. He passed away in April of this year, aged 74. Loading…

Saturday Jul 20: Robbo discusses what happened with the spider bite that caused him to come back with a big bandage on his hand. He got bitten on holiday and it ballooned up. Stuff like that terrifies me as I’ve seen so many of those horror stories when a bite turns into a big lump, and then out of the blue a load of fucking baby spiders burst out and start running around. If that happened to me I might have to end it all, simply because I couldn’t cope with the post traumatic stress of it all. I’d be having nightmares for the rest of my life. I’m not that bad with spiders. I never kill them and most types I find in the house I’ll just pick them up with my bare hands and put them outside. So I’m not a massive shithouse like I am with wasps, for example. I don’t like those big common house spiders though. They give me the fucking hereby jeebies. I’ll pick them up, but only with a bit of tissue. Anyway, I’ve gotten sidetracked here. Back to Robbo. He reckons some of the lads have been making spiderman gags and calling him Peter Parker. By ‘some of the lads’ I assume he means Milner, as it’s defo gonna be him isn’t it? Here’s the thing though, imagine this was a Peter Parker situation and Robbo got these powers that made him a super hero. How would we even be able to tell the difference? Speaking of left backs, we’re meant to be after one from Augsburg. I’m all in on that, as the last player we got from Augsburg was arl Ragnar, and he was boss. Actually it may have been Manninger, I can’t remember. Anyway, this lad is called Phillip Max and he’s a former Bayern and Schalke player. He’s 25, so not sure how reliable this story is. I mean, it’s basically like a back up goalie situation. Any left back who comes here knows he ain’t gonna play because Robbo is the best in the business. The other team that want him are Barca though, so it’s a similar situation there as you’d have to assume he’s not getting much game time ahead of Alba. They had Digne there and he couldn’t get a game. Look at him now, he’s thriving at the Pit and he’s their best player. It’s not going to be easy signing a specialist left back, so it’s either go with Milner and the kids or bring in someone who can play more than one spot. Sessegnon would have been someone who might fit that bill but we’ve shown zero interest in him since we tried to buy him two years ago. Weird one that. He’s close to joining Spurs apparently, and such is the confidence I’ve now got in our transfers, that immediately makes me think he can’t be as good as everyone thought he was going to be. It’s a great place to be, considering it wasn’t that long ago I was putting a curse on them all and their children after the Deli All debacle. Sunday Jul 21: So we had a ‘friendly’ with Sevilla tonight. Who’s fucking bright idea was it to play these cunts? Actually it was Jurgen’s. He ought to know better than that. These are dirty bastards. Horrible, cheating, diving, dirty, snide bastards. They were like that in the Europa Final. They were like that in both Champions League group games, and they were even like that when we played them in the kids version of the Champions League. That was one of the occasions when Brewster was racially abused, and both games against them were proper bad tempered, nasty affairs. They’re a fucking horrible club, and tonight proved it behind all doubt. It wasn’t just the horror ‘tackle’ on poor Larouci. Even before that they were kicking us off the park. Their centre half spent the entire first half trying to Funes Mori big Divock. They were surrounding the ref at every opportunity and celebrated their goals like this was a proper match. Everyone is kicking off about the lad who booted Larouci, but he’s not the problem here. He’s a symptom of it. He’s basically just the spot, while Sevilla themselves are the measles. That assault on Larouci was a result of how their whole team (and presumably coach) approached the game. He doesn’t do that if they aren’t all completely fucking hyped up and looking for a war. The most telling aspect of the whole thing was after the assault, with Larouci on the floor in agony, their players didn't check on him to see if he was alright, they surrounded the fucking ref to complain about a decision he hadn't given seconds before. One of the cunts even yelled in Yasser's face as he lay on the ground. The challenge was scandalous though, and although he at least had the good grace to issue what was actually a pretty decent apology as these things go, it doesn’t make up for what happened. Don’t fucking play these twats in a friendly ever again, Jurgen. Meanwhile, Zidane says of Bale “we hope he leaves soon. If tomorrow it’d be better”. Disrespectful bald fuck. I’ve got no love for Gareth Bale but I do respect him, because how can you not? Great player who has done remarkable things for Madrid that would be enough to make him a legend literally anywhere else. Yet they’re running him out of town and Zidane is saying shite like that? Hair envy is a terrible thing. Also today, a new six year contract for De Gea that will earn him £112m in wages. See, he boxed himself in with the last deal he signed, because in the meantime all of the big clubs that could have afforded him have all filled their keeper position and he was literally left with nowhere to go, so he’s just taken the dough and stayed at United. I reckon he’s lost his motivation now, which is why he was shite last year. Monday Jul 22: Oh that Ljinders / Klopp video on LFCTV. Fucking hell, how good was that? One of the best bits of content they’ve ever put out, and there’s been lots of good stuff lately. This was just great. I think my favourite bit was them laughing like schoolboys at how we started the Barca game, “chasing them everywhere”. The whole thing was boss though, with Klopp talking about Alisson’s boozing another highlight. Jurgen likes a bevvy, but the admiration he had for Alisson was hilarious “what a guy! He was unstoppable”. No word yet on Larouci, who’s having a scan today. It didn’t look good for him last night though as his knee looked like it gave out on him when he tried to stand up. Speaking of fucked up knees, Nabil Fekir signs for Betis. Jesus, that poor lad’s knee must be hanging on by a thread if that’s the best he can do. Is that even a step up from Lyon? I don’t think it is. He’s gonna be playing with Joaquin for fucks sake. Tuesday Jul 23: Sam Allardyce appears on the Alan Brazil sports breakfast and says Harry Maguire is as good as Van Dijk and that moving to United will allow him to show it. Jesus Christ, where to even start with that? Fair play to Allardyce, it takes some doing to appear on Alan Brazil’s show and not be the one who sounds most intelligent. Here's an interesting one. Sakho is suing the drug testers for £13m. Don’t know how they arrive at that particular figure but that drug test was fairly fucking catastrophic for him. He missed a Europa League Final, he missed a World Cup in his home country and it may have contributed to Klopp’s decision to jib him off (although I think his card was already marked on that). Can’t believe I ever thought he was good though. Fucking shame on me. One the worst player misjudgements I’ve ever been guilty of that one. I mean yeah, we all get it wrong from time to time, but it's usually where we think someone is going to be good and he turns out shit, or the other way around. It's unusual to have the wool completely pulled over our eyes when a player is here, only for it to become clear that he's actually shite when he leaves. Those who rated Sakho (myself included, although I wasn't one of the really hard core Mama acolytes) got duped big time. Wednesday Jul 24: Larouci will be out for a few weeks with bad bruising on his shin. Lucky escape really, but the lad who did it shouldn’t be allowed to play until he’s fit again. We had another game tonight. We drew 2-2 with Sporting. Divock scored again and Gini got one. I haven’t bothered watching any of this though, I’m really struggling to be arsed about this pre-season. It’s a real chore bringing myself to watch the games. No new signings and half the squad still not here. The sooner the real stuff starts the better. Meanwhile, Klopp says there’ll be no move for Coutinho. "In general, Phil Coutinho helps each team in the world, still - 100%," Klopp said. "It's not about that. I like Phil, I think he's a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it's not our year for that. "It's just not possible. As I said, having him would make each team better -- us included -- but I really hope that he finds his luck at Barcelona. Or maybe he found it there. We have contact, but not that close contact that I know exactly how he is doing, but the rest is only newspaper talk and stuff like that." "If everything was true what newspapers write about me -- wow! If it's similar to what they write about me, I would say he's completely happy at Barcelona and wants to sign a new six-year contract or whatever." Here's how I reacted to those quotes.... Dumb And Dumber Lloyd GIF from Dumbanddumber GIFs Seriously, I’m not having it. If he wanted him, this is EXACTLY how he’d play it. One way of interpreting that is to say he has ruled out signing him. Another way, is that this is just part of the dance. Think about it. “It would cost millions and millions”. “This is not the summer for us to be doing that”. So, the message is, we can’t pay what Barca would want for him this year. But maybe next year we could, so perhaps a loan this year… The other message is that he’s probably happy to stay at Barca anyway. The one thing they don’t want, and can’t really afford to do. So yeah, none of that makes me think there’s less chance of us signing him. If anything, it’s given me more reason to suspect that games are afoot. I still think the odds are against it, but I’m not ruling it out. Thursday Jul 25: Clyne is probably done for the season after rupturing his ACL the other night. Terrible for him as he would probably have gotten a decent move in the next week or so. I expected him to go back to Palace to replace Wan Bissaka. He’s from that neck of the woods so it would have been good for him. Now he’s going to be in the treatment room for the next six months. Doesn’t really affect us either way. Ok, we’re missing out on the £12m fee he’d probably fetch, and we’re having to pay his wages for another year, but it’s not like we’re planning on buying anybody anyway so who cares about transfer funds? Harry Wilson might be off though, if either Villa or Newcastle come up with the £20m asking price. Reports suggest he’s either off permanently or he’ll stay, as another loan won’t be sanctioned. Not sure that’s wise, as if he stays he’ll be lucky to play five games as he’s in direct competition with Shaqiri for a place on the bench, so it’s not really fair to the lad. That being said, fuck Villa and Newcastle. Going to either of those won’t do him any good as they’ll both be fighting relegation. Meanwhile, the plans for Everton’s new ground are revealed. File this under ‘not gonna happen’. At no point have I ever thought for a second they were getting a new ground and this changes nothing. I’m sure it’s just a co-incidence that they announced this on the day the news broke that they were selling Gana Guaye to PSG and Lookman to Leipzig. Classic deflection tactics that. Friday Jul 26: Big Virg is on the cover of the new FIFA game. Nice. Not many centre backs will get that honour but to be honest he should probably be on the front cover of every game, footy related or not. Big cool handsome bastard. Thing is though, playing for the Reds gives you a decent shot at making the FIFA cover because we’ve got so many fans around the world. Hendo was on the cover recently wasn’t he? I’d imagine Mo would be on the cover when they market it in the middle east, and maybe Bobby in South America. People are just really impressionable about shit like that. It does nothing for me, I’m not influenced by that type of thing at all. Unless they put Robbo on there, then all bets are off. Interesting events over in Madrid, where Real fans are already calling for Zidane’s bald head after they conceded seven against Atletico in a friendly. I say friendly, but it’s a Madrid derby and Diego Costa was on the field so there was always going to be needle. I love Diego Costa, the mad, shithousing, panto villain. Him and Suarez are just in a league of their own. Ramos too, but he’s more of a thug. Suarez and Costa are hilarious. Staying with Madrid, or in this case not, Bale now looks like he’s going to China. Ordinarily I’d frown upon this kind of thing. Millionaire footballers chasing more money while sacrificing the prime years of their careers to go and play in a pub league doesn’t sit well with me, but this has me more conflicted. A million quid a week is hard to turn down no matter how well off you are. If it’s a choice of 300k a week to play for Bayern, or £1m a week in China, I dunno, I think I’m going to China. If it’s £400k a week at United or £1m in China, I’m defo going to China. Wherever he goes he’s going to see it as a step down as he’s reached what most footballers see as the pinnacle. So the if he’s having to ‘settle’ for another club, it depends on what his options are. As I said, if one of the only options is United then fuck that. Why would you go there when you can see what their immediate future holds? Bayern would be a good move, but I suspect his options are probably quite limited. And a million quid a week?!?!?! Fucking hell. Bale obviously has more money than he’ll ever need anyway, he’s earned millions at Spurs and Madrid, but this contract is next level. He could play three years in China and then quite literally buy his own club over here. He’d have the money to go and buy him home town club Cardiff if he wanted to. He might not want to, but the point is that although footballers are millionaires, very few are in the same bracket as owners when it comes to personal wealth. Three years playing in China and Bale could be. If this does happen though it’s a little alarming. I mean, what if one of the rival clubs decides they want to pay someone a million a week? What if someone came in and offered that to Sadio, Mo or Big Virg? I’m assuming FFP doesn’t apply over there? If that’s the case, can we send Man City to play over there and leave the rest of us to just play by the rules? Speaking of City, Raheem Sterling says he was really happy for us when we won the Champions League. He also said that for City winning the Premier League is more important as it’s “their bread and butter”. A career in politics awaits when he’s done, because that’s some Boris Johnson style lying through the teeth right there. I wouldn’t have thought any less of him if he’d said “I didn’t want them to win it because they’re our rivals and I really want to win it myself”. As for the league meaning more than the European Cup, tell that to your manager and owners. ...and that was the week that was

Liverpool's search for a reserve goalkeeper has taken them to Burnley as they eye a deal for Tom Heaton according to reports.The former Man United junior has been a stalwart for the Clarets playing close to 200 games since joining them from Bristol City in 2013.The 33 year-old has also represented England from U/16s through to senior level where he has won three caps.Heaton missed much of the 2017/8 season with a shoulder injury and then last season was replaced by new signing Joe Hart for the first half of the campaign.The clamour was high among the fanbase for the popular custodian to take back the No 1 shirt after Burnley's horror home display against Everton on Boxing Day which saw them three points from safety at the midway point of the season.Heaton was soon reinstalled and his astute performances help guide Burnley out of troubled waters. The Mirror reports that the veteran gloveman is entering the last year of his current deal, and Liverpool are looking to add his vast experience to the keeping ranks.The Reds have mainly relied on Simon Mignolet during the pre-season with Alisson on international duty with Brazil for Copa America.While veteran Andy Lonergan was drafted in for the tour of America.Southampton's Alex McCarthy was linked with a move to the club a few weeks ago, but nothing has developed on that front. There have been differing reports whether Mignolet who is highly regarded within the club for his top class attitude, will remain for the current season.Jurgen Klopp has often spoken about his wish for the Belgian to stay on, while Mignolet's agent said that he needs to start looking for first team opportunities.So, it seems like this is another case of watch this space as we edge towards the transfer deadline.

In Football there are many sliding door moments and Divock Origi is a true illustration of that.The striker could easily be a current member of the Wolves squad, who were very keen on his services on a couple of occasions.And who could have blamed the Belgian international if he had decided to join the ambitious newly promoted side, especially as he was well aware that regular minutes would be at a premium if he stayed at the Reds.Despite having to bide his time early in the last campaign , (not even making the bench until early November), Origi did not have any regrets in his decision to stay at the Reds.The Liverpool Echo reported Origi as saying:" It was a gut feeling. For me, I just sat down and I felt like I wanted to stay and help this team.“I felt good, I just had to keep performing in training and I knew my chance would come."I felt like we could do something special and just had to block everything out on the outside and focus on the right things. Reflecting on his 12 month journey from a peripheral figure to a player who could produce on the biggest of stages, Origi says his career has changed forever.“It is a lot to happen in a year,” “And that’s the beauty of football. "You can see that I am back focusing on performing again. It’s good to come here (to the U.S) and connect with the supporters again."Has Madrid changed the direction of my career? Yes definitely, it was a great experience. Winning the Champions League is a boy’s dream so it changes a lot in a player’s career."However, Origi knows all too well about the ups downs of football.In Jurgen Klopp's first season he was given a great deal of responsibility in a number of big games and the young striker certainly was not afraid of the moment leading the line superbly and it appeared for all intents and purposes that a star was born.However a serious ankle injury against Everton cruelly put paid to his campaign and in the managers mind, led to a crisis of confidence which he feels Origi has only recently overcome. Origi was not keen to compare both situations and only wants to focus on the present moment of time."I wouldn’t compare those moments. "I am not someone to make declarations that I am better than then or not. "I feel positive, I feel good on the pitch and I am just trying to show it every time."Then (in 2015/6) I was in very good form, I finished last season very well and again in training I feel well. It is on me to show it on the pitch."Whatever is next for the 24 year-old who recently signed a long term contract to stay at the club, he has got a terrific outlook on things and is ready for whatever may eventuate."It might be a good season, it might be more difficult. These are things you have to deal with but I am ready for whatever, I have confidence in this team and myself.”

Jurgen Klopp has ruled out making any approaches for Gareth Bale and a emotional return for Philippe Coutinho.There has been a growing school of thought that the Reds need someone with that extra bit of dynamism coming from midfield.It's not that the middle three did not do their role last season in fact far from it, their workrate was unparalleled, continuously outworking their opponents.But with the absence of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in particular, a creative touch was occasionally lacking, leading to the front three carrying much of the scoring load. While Klopp may have heard the outside noise, he has stayed true to his beliefs that his current squad have what it takes to take that extra step in the title race.Firstly, Sky Sports reported Klopp speaking about the current Real Madrid man."These fantastic football players have some strange ideas. "I respect them all so much, but they probably only say these things because somebody asked them."Bale is a Real Madrid player and if he leaves it will be outstandingly expensive and big wages."He is an outstanding player, I like him a lot but it is not about him. You have to create a team. A team is not a collection of the best individual players, they have to work together."Liverpool is a long-term project. The team is really good. Will there be difficult situations? Probably. "There would be if we bring in a new player, or two or three. "I didn't say we won't do anything, it is going to be a big window for sure but people don't think about the people who are already in."Sometimes you have to calm the situation down, pay your bills, have a normal life and live in the house before you build a new one."While the Bale rumour came from the clouds and never seemed likely, there was a growing hope that the club may look at bringing Coutinho 'home' after he has had what can only be described as a extremely tough 18 months at Barcelona. However ESPN reports that Klopp putting a big red line through that possibility."In general, Phil Coutinho helps each team in the world, still -- 100%," "It's not about that. I like Phil, I think he's a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it's not our year for that."It's just not possible. "As I said, having him would make each team better -- us included -- but I really hope that he finds his luck at Barcelona."Or maybe he found it there. We have contact, but not that close contact that I know exactly how he is doing, but the rest is only newspaper talk and stuff like that."If everything was true what newspapers write about me -- wow! "If it's similar to what they write about me, I would say he's completely happy at Barcelona and wants to sign a new six-year contract or whatever."Say what you like about what has transpired this summer, but Klopp has not deviated one inch from his overall view of the current squad and what he feels he may require or in this case doesn't need.

Jurgen Klopp has spoken about Liverpool's exceptionally quiet transfer dealings to date saying the club is still looking for additions to the squad as we edge ever closer to the new season. However, he has also stated that if no further players come in, it will mean that there is no-one available to improve what he currently has at his disposal.Young Dutch defender Sepp van den Berg is the only Liverpool signing to date in the summer window, while Fulham youngster Harvey Elliott is expected to join him in the near future.But apart from those youthful prospects, there has been precious little activity even in terms of speculation of new additions joining the club.Some managers are well known to openly show their frustration when they have missed out on targets, or not been given the green light to sign who they want.However, Klopp is someone who seemingly seems very content with who he has available going into the new campaign.The Mirror (via the Echo) reported the manager as saying:"We are still looking, but it will not be the (biggest) transfer window of all time." It will just be a transfer window."It's about using this team. In the transfer window, you have to build a team that you think you want to go into the season with. "But I have that team already.“If we can bring somebody else in that makes it even better, we will see. But if not, this team is already there. "And again we will have to find solutions at different moments.”While this patient and measured strategy may frustrate some within the fanbase, Klopp said there is a clear method behind it and he is certainly not after what you would deem as a 'quick fix.' "Transfer strategy has to be long-term."Short term covers the problem, but doesn't solve it. "If someone gets an injury, and you buy someone to fill the position and three weeks later the injured player is back, then you have double quality in the same position."Having too much quality doesn't help with the development of players. "It's good for everybody on the outside, because they can say 'well if he can't play, then he can play or he could play'.“If you're working together all week and then three of the players (of the same quality in the same position) can't play, they won't get any better. "It's not just about them staying confident in that kind of situation."You have to create a situation where you NEED the player, you need the boys. That's what we try. "We have 100% always long-term plans. That's what is really good about this football club.”When Klopp puts it in those terms, he makes an excellent point.You need to strike a balance between developing your own, and looking at the market for what you may need like he has done with the signings of Virgil Van Dijk, Fabinho, and Alisson in more recent times.Klopp has continually spoken during the off-season that there have been 'new additions' to the squad in the shape of fit-again squad members Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Rhian Brewster and Adam Lallana.And if our Champions League manager is content with how things currently look, then who are we to argue with that?