It’s a comment Jurgen Klopp has made on a number of occasions in recent years. In the transfer market, Liverpool simply cannot compete with big-spending Premier League rivals. Specifically, Manchester City and Manchester United.
“Whoever we would buy, there is no guarantee that we would be ahead of Manchester City because they can obviously always strike back,” Klopp told Sky Sports a year ago, having been outspent by around £100 million by Pep Guardiola’s men that summer.
“It’s like you try something and the next moment they buy two or three (new players).”
Of course, Liverpool are no strangers to the odd big-money buy. Former Benfica marksman Darwin Nunez, should he fulfil a variety of add ons in his contract, may become the most expensive acquisition in the club’s entire history. But you can see Klopp’s point.
Liverpool have spent around £400 million in the last five seasons. Less than not only City and United but also Wolves, Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham, Arsenal and Chelsea too.
An example; The Telegraph say that Liverpool backed away from potentially signing Leicester City playmaker Youri Tielemans during the summer of 2021 because they thought he was too expensive. It’s hard to imagine United, for instance, accepting defeat so readily, even if the men from Old Trafford do have a tendency to ‘overpay’.
Did Liverpool make a mistake not signing top midfielder for just £18m?
Then again, as Liverpool have demonstrated time and again over the years, you don’t need to break the bank to bring in top quality talent. Luis Diaz, Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Andy Robertson, Fabinho and co all cost less than Man City paid for, say, Nathan Ake.
And when you look at the attributes Carlos Soler brings to the table – while considering the deficiencies in this Liverpool side – it’s tempting to wonder why the chance to sign a Spain international, and the captain of Valencia, for just £18 million was not one Klopp and co grasped. Especially when you look at the identity of the man they brought in instead.
Loan signing Arthur Melo, injury-prone and after a couple of middling years in Juventus, is far from the sort of considered, ahead-of-the-curve signing Liverpool made their trademark in the Michael Edwards era.
Soler, who eventually joined PSG for £18 million, would have felt like a more sensible, intelligent addition for a variety of reasons. He’s younger, fitter and more athletic than Arthur, for instance. A leader, too, and a natural goalscorer from midfield. He’s scored 24 in the last two seasons combined.
‘The complete midfielder’
“He is the complete midfielder and can act as a (number) six, eight or 10,” former Mestalla favourite Cuco Torres tells AS. “He has power, arrives in the box and can score. I know him and I know that he can still take his game to the next level. He has taken on responsibility in the team too.”
There remains serious doubts about whether Arthur can adapt to Klopp’s high-intensity style. Doubts that would not have existed if Soler – a man well-suited to fast-paced possession football – had joined instead.
“I like him most when he’s closer to the box,” Valencia fanatic Alvaro Benzal tells LaLigaLowdown. “He can get into the box and make movements that break defensive lines. You can’t forget that he started off as a forward and scored hundreds of goals (in the academy).
“With the under-16s he played more like a classic number 10,” adds reporter Paco Polit. “The needs of the team under (former Los Che caoch) Marcelino pushed him to right wing. He wasn’t uncomfortable. And he worked hard to improve his already impressive defensive work rate and physique when defending.
“His goalscoring abilities decreased, but he became a better footballer thanks to Marcelino.”
Klopp is right. Liverpool don’t have the spending power of a City or a United. But nor did they need it, when Valencia were willing to sell Carlos Soler for £18 million.
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