Liverpool chairman Tom Werner explains FSG transfer decision and addresses Marc Guehi deal
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Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has explained why owners Fenway Sports Group sanctioned a record-breaking squad rebuild this summer as he lifted the lid on the pursuit of Alexander Isak.
The Reds splashed out a British record £450million this summer on new players, the centrepiece of which was the £125m arrival of Isak from Newcastle United on deadline day at the start of this month.
Isak made his debut in the 3-2 Champions League home win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, where he was joined by £116m Florian Wirtz and £29m Jeremie Frimpong with £79m Hugo Ekitike and £40m Milos Kerkez coming on as substitutes and £29m Giorgi Mamardashvili and £26m Giovanni Leoni also on the bench.
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And while pointing out Liverpool recouped more than half of their outlay through sales, Werner admits previous experience meant the Reds were keen to overhaul their playing staff to give themselves a better chance of retaining the Premier League title this season.
"The fact of the matter is it's going to be very difficult," he said.
We have been resilient, we have been fortunate.
"The one thing I have learned, and we are relatively humble and modest about this, is we were very enthusiastic about changing the squad because it's very difficult to repeat.
"There was a great intention to bring in new players, obviously to get better.
As much as it has been talked about how much our spend was this year, we have been able to spend to the degree that we did so because we also sold a lot of players.
"One of the most encouraging things about that is we haven't clicked yet and I don't expect us to click right now.
You need to bring in a new energy and new ideas."
Liverpool's spending could have increased further only for a £35m deal for England international centre-back Marc Guehi to fall through at the last minute with Crystal Palace having been unable to recruit a suitable successor in time.
And reflecting on the pursuits of Isak and Guehi, Werner added to the It's Called Soccer podcast: "In the Newcastle situation, obviously their club needed to find a replacement.
"We thought we had a terrific financial offer for them.
I think Isak will be terrific but he's not the only striker in the world."
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And when asked on whether Guehi could move to Liverpool in January, Werner declined to answer the question and joked to host Rebecca Lowe: "I'm sorry Rebecca, you went cloudy on me there!"