Liverpool have come a very long way in recent years and most of the credit goes to their former manager.

Jurgen Klopp took the Reds from a team regularly pushing for top four to a side capable of toppling Europe’s best.

He may only have one Champions League and Premier League to his name during his nine-year stay, but if it were not for the dominance of Manchester City and Real Madrid, his tally would be significantly higher.

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Achieving what he did on a rather modest budget – compared to the other top teams that is – showed just how good a manager Klopp was, with the German laying down the foundations for Arne Slot’s success.

However, it appears owners FSG are backing Slot a little more in the transfer market after giving him over £100m to spend on one player, something Klopp never got.

Whether this is by choice or due to matters outside his control isn’t fully known, but his opinion on the matter is, and it is likely he won’t be best pleased to see Florian Wirtz arrive at Anfield.



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It is more than fair to say that no player is worth £100m but, unfortunately, that is the way the current market is going.

Signing any half-decent player nowadays comes at a hefty cost, so when they are one of Europe’s hottest talents, clubs can expect to pay a premium.

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However, based on Klopp’s previous comments, he would not want to sign Wirtz if he was still Liverpool manager, suggesting he may be very unhappy with this move.

“If you bring one player in for £100m and he gets injured, then it all goes through the chimney,” Klopp told ESPN back in 2016.

“The day that this is football, I’m not in a job anymore, because the game is about playing together.

You always want to have the best, but building the group is necessary to be successful.

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“Other clubs can go out and spend more money and collect top players.

I would even do it differently if I could spend that money.”

Whether this is true will likely never be proven unless Klopp returns to management, but unfortunately, times have significantly changed and spending £100m now is nowhere near as extreme as it was nine years ago.

Strictly speaking, Virgil van Dijk is Klopp and Liverpool’s most expensive signing as his initial fee – before add-ons – was £75m, although Darwin Nunez is classed as their club-record transfer costing £85m altogether.

However, Liverpool very rarely paid premium prices for players and if they did, it often came at the sacrifice of other players.

For example, it was only possible for the Reds to sign Alisson and Van Dijk for a combined £140m after selling Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona for £2m more.

Liverpool’s net spend is something they have prided themselves on over recent years and if they are to keep it relatively balanced this summer, then big outgoings are needed.


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