Liverpool cannot sanction transfer as scale of recruitment issue becomes clear
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And as highlighted by the reaction among Reds supporters to the news Andy Robertson will follow Mohamed Salah out the door at the end of the season, the leaving of Liverpool can be grieving for many.Much of that, of course, can be put down to timing. Nobody can dispute Salah has had a significant drop-off in form this term - although that he is departing on a free transfer continues to perplex - while Robertson has very much been second-string to Milos Kerkez at left-back.But Liverpool's disappointing campaign has prompted more than a touch of nostalgia to be attached to the prospect of both veterans stepping out for the club one final time on the closing weekend clash at home to Brentford on May 24.With Jordan Henderson and Caoimhin Kelleher returning in opposition, the ties with the Jurgen Klopp era will be impossible to ignore that afternoon.And given Liverpool are by no means guaranteed to have secured Champions League qualification by the final whistle, a failure to finish in the top five will only increase the pining for yesteryear when Robertson and Salah bid what are sure to be emotional farewells.However, there is already significant distance between now and Klopp's tenure, as there should be.
It's approaching two years since the German left, and his successor Arne Slot has won a Premier League crown in that time.Wistful thinking of the past completely ignores the reality of a present where Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Jarell Quansah have also long departed. Those old days are gone.Indeed, come the start of next season, at present there could only be two players in the squad who started the Champions League final of 2022, although Liverpool remain hopeful a deal can be thrashed out with Ibrahima Konate before his present contract expires in the summer.And there continues to be intrigue over the long-term future of Alisson Becker, despite the Reds having taken up their option to extend the Brazilian's stay by another 12 months.While 33 is by no means old for a goalkeeper, Alisson's injury record in recent years has started to impact his game if only with the ball at his feet rather his shot-stopping prowess.
A great player is only as good as, well, yours truly if they aren't fit.It was telling that 13 months after Alisson posted one of the greatest Liverpool goalkeeping performances in victory at Paris Saint-Germain, he was recovering from his latest hamstring setback when this week Giorgi Mamardashvili impressed in helping keep the score down at the Parc des Princes.Mamardashvili will surpass Alisson's number of minutes in the Champions League this season should he feature in the Anfield return against PSG on Tuesday, with the Brazilian now unlikely to break the 40-game barrier in a campaign for the third successive year.And while the Georgian has been solid and shown promise, the problem for Liverpool is Mamardashvili is not Alisson. The same could be said for Alexander-Arnold.In some respects, it is similar to the challenge Brendan Rodgers inherited in having to oversee the tail end of the careers of Anfield legends Jamie Carragher and then Steven Gerrard, ultimately with mixed results.Liverpool, though, weren't as good a squad then as the one Slot inherited and then tweaked to even greater success in his debut season before the difficulties of the current campaign in maintaining that level.Reports in Italy continue to claim Juventus will go strong with an attempt to lure Alisson back to Italy in the summer.But surely Liverpool and Slot cannot entertain the departure of another stalwart - even if it makes comparisons with Klopp's golden age all the more easy to make for those who are starting to take solace in looking back rather than setting sights on whatever the future might bring.