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Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz.(Image: Pau Barrena/Getty Images)

Liverpool will head into next season's Premier League campaign as the team to beat after clinching a record-equalling 20th championship last time out.

The Reds secured a second Premier League title in five years with four games to spare when they thrashed Tottenham Hotspur 5-1 at Anfield on April 27 before finally lifting the trophy on home soil after the season finale against Crystal Palace last month.

Since then, Liverpool have moved fast in the transfer market to ensure they are well equipped to retain the crown next season, having already signed Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen while negotiations over a deal for Florian Wirtz continue with the Bundesliga outfit.



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On the other hand, Luis Diaz's future at Anfield continues to be speculated about, with the forward being linked with moves to Barcelona and the Saudi Pro League as he enters the final two years of his deal.

Indeed, such a busy start to the transfer window means Liverpool's forward line on the opening day of the 2025/26 Premier League season could look significantly different to the one that ended the previous campaign: Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo.

Salah, we know now, will remain at Anfield next season after the long-running saga surrounding his future was finally put to bed in April as he put pen to paper on a new two-year contract with the Reds.

Of course, after winning both the Premier League Golden Boot and Playmaker of the Year award this season, the Egyptian remains an irreplaceable member of the Reds' squad.

However, he could find himself lining up alongside either Wirtz or Hugo Ekitike on the opening day of the Premier League season if reports are believed to be true.

On Friday, the ECHO revealed Liverpool had submitted a bid worth roughly £109m for Wirtz as they look to strike a deal with Leverkusen for the German international.

The 22-year-old had previously been pursued by Manchester City and Bayern Munich but last month made it clear that he preferred a move to Anfield.

Ekitike, meanwhile, is a little bit less straightforward with reports in the national press over the weekend claiming that Liverpool are one of several Premier League sides interested in the Frenchman.

But the Mirror claims Conference League winners Chelsea will begin talks with the player's agent in the coming days in the hope of striking a deal for the Eintracht Frankfurt forward.

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If the Reds were able to fend off interest from Chelsea and Manchester United in the £80m-rated Ekitike, he could line up either side of Wirtz and Salah in Liverpool's next Premier League outing.

If that wasn't to be the case, however, then it could be Gakpo, Wirtz and Salah who lead the line for Liverpool next term.
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