And breathe… the transfer window[1] is over.
After months of endless debating and nailbiting sagas, Liverpool[2] have made eight signings and spent £446million.
While Richard Hughes and Co may take a well-earned rest now, Liverpool Confidential is certainly not putting its feet up – and this week we are here to answer all your questions on the club, be it recapping the secrets behind this transfer window or already looking ahead to the next one!
In this column we answer a couple of queries every Thursday but, in the first column of every month this season, we will do a special question and answer with 10 of your requests. So let’s get going…
Alexander Isak is – at last – a Liverpool player after the biggest transfer saga of the summer
How will Alexander Isak’s lack of pre-season training affect him? Abiti.
In the short term, it may affect him a lot – but we will see how he gets on in the Sweden national team camp this week with games against Slovenia and Kosovo.
The day of Isak’s signing marked 100 days exactly since his last competitive match, the final game of the season for Newcastle. Since then he has skipped one international camp and trained alone at Real Sociedad and Newcastle’s facilities.
If you think how long it has taken Alexis Mac Allister, for example, to get back up to speed after missing most of pre-season, then it is fair to assume Isak may take a few weeks before he is fully fit and firing.
The plan is for him to train with his new Liverpool team-mates when they report back for duty at the AXA Training Centre next Thursday, though, and I would expect to see him on the bench at Turf Moor for the game against Burnley providing there are no issues.
Liverpool are not planning any personal fitness programmes for Isak as it stands but performance lead Ruben Peeters will be keeping a close eye on his levels and he may be eased into training sessions – and ultimately matches – step by step.
Isak is already back in full training for the first time since last season – with the Sweden national team
Anyone expecting Isak to come in and hit the ground running should remember how long it has taken Alexis Mac Allister to get up to speed this season after missing part of pre-season
What was the most fascinating transfer coverage you were part of (it can be this summer or in general)? Conor.
I really enjoyed covering the Florian Wirtz move.
The Reds had been first linked as an option one Wednesday evening – I remember as it was when I was walking to the pub for us Liverpool reporters’ end-of-season do (no more details shall be shared!). At that time, though, it sounded like a bit of a non-starter. Real Madrid, Manchester City and Bayern Munich were all further along with a move, it seemed.
But then the next week I woke up in a Brighton hotel (after a 3-2 defeat bythe Seagulls the night before) to two texts. One of them simply said ‘Keep an eye on Wirtz’ with the eyes emoji, the other said ‘I don’t think this is as clear-cut as many think’.
At that time, of course, Wirtz was heavily expected to go to Bayern and there had also been reports that he had met with Pep Guardiola and City, claims which the Etihad Stadium club strongly denied.
The noises kept ramping up and up that he wanted Liverpool. And so it was. I went out to Munich to find out more and it was abundantly clear he wanted to move to Merseyside – confirmed by a nod when I asked him as much (though I still think he could not hear me).
It was still a few weeks until anything was confirmed and I got the text to say it was a done deal while taking my dad on a tour of an abandoned train station as a Father’s Day present. Honestly, whenever I take a day off something big happens.
The Florian Wirtz deal looked very unlikely at the outset – but Liverpool pulled it off
Will Liverpool go back in for Marc Guehi in January or summer or just move on to other targets? I know he’s being linked to Bayern but do you think we’re still his favourites after everything that happened? Various.
Yes, I asked this question to many sources around Liverpool on Monday evening and the word back was that they still really like him and want him to play for them – this silly saga was never going to change that.
Signing Guehi this summer was always an opportunistic buy, one of Liverpool’s buzzphrases, and they plan to do so again in the future. As far as I am aware, the Reds are plotting another move for Guehi in the near future and they would probably get an even bigger discount.
As for what Guehi himself wants, sources close to the England international say he was genuinely gutted to not want the move. As of Sunday evening, his camp expected it to go through and he was excited. I feel sorry for him. Let’s see what happens next.
Liverpool are plotting another move for Marc Guehi in the near future and they would probably get an even bigger discount
Morgan Rogers for next summer? Michael Olise as well? Biplav Pokhrel.
A good source mentioned Morgan Rogers to me in June as a potential target but I was told ‘no’ by top Liverpool sources at the time.
Does that mean it is completely off the cards? No – and they would be open to a market opportunity if the price was right. But they are not directly planning for that at this stage.
As for Michael Olise, I certainly cannot rule that one out. They want a long-term Mohamed Salah replacement in the next summer or two and the early noises are that Bayern Munich’s former Crystal Palace star Olise could be right at the top of their shopping list.
We can’t say too much more than that yet but could be one to watch…
We cannot rule out a move for Bayern Munich’s former Crystal Palace star Michael Olise next summer
Champions League final tomorrow, what starting XI are you picking? Robert Nevitt.
Alisson; Szoboszlai, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Wirtz, Isak; Ekitike.
I am a big fan of Dominik Szoboszlai and even though it is unrealistic that he becomes a genuine right back, I just could not leave him out. And this XI is presuming everyone is fully fit. I am fascinated to see how Hugo Ekitike and Isak work together!
Had Guehi been added, would Arne Slot have considered a back three? With Kerkez and Frimpong as wing-backs? Might he still, now that Joe Gomez is healthy?
Arne Slot is wedded to the 4-3-3 or variations of it so I would be surprised even though it does make sense on paper. Until Ibrahima Konate’s solid performance against Arsenal, I was wondering whether Guehi was better than him.
If you watch Liverpool this season, though, Ryan Gravenberch often drops deep to form a back three anyway.
Dominik Szoboszlai has shone in his new right back role – and then popped up with a wonder strike to beat Arsenal on Sunday
How is Giovanni Leoni fitting in and when do you expect him to get game time? The Champions League or wait until the League Cup? Redordead.
He looks like Superman! When Arne Slot met him, I am told he joked about how he was told the Italian was tall but he did not realise quite how big he was.
As for game time, I think the Carabao Cup match against Southampton in three weeks is probably the best bet.
Liverpool definitely will not make wholesale changes for the first Champions League fixture against Atletico Madrid so we can rule that one out. As it stands, Gomez is the third-choice centre back anyway.
Which are the players Liverpool have let go this summer that you think are most likely to be bought back or do well? Ryan Kennedy.
Jarell Quansah. It can be revealed that Liverpool have a pre-existing agreement in place with Quansah over the terms of a future contract should they decide to use their buyback clause that was inserted when he was sold to Bayer Leverkusen for £35m this summer.
They like him a lot, as they do Harvey Elliott and Ben Doak, and only sold him because it seemed like good money and the Englishman wanted to play every week – something Slot could not promise him here.
But with Van Dijk most probably leaving in two years, Konate unsure about his future (more on that in a second) and Gomez very nearly departing two summers running, they will need more centre backs in the coming windows.
It is by no means set in stone but Quansah could be an option to return.
Jarell Quansah has already made a big impact at Bayer Leverkusen
Is Konate running his contract down to leave on a free at the end of the season? Paul.
Not necessarily but it is fair to say Konate’s future hangs in the balance at the time of writing.
It was November when Richard Hughes first opened talks with Konate’s representatives and, 10 months on, we are no closer to a resolution.
Confidential understands Liverpool remain in talks with Konate’s camp and want to wrap up a deal to ensure a position of strength for the future.
But there is nothing more to say than that: it is not signed yet and there has been no definite indication either way on the direction of travel. But it is a worry for Liverpool especially after the long-running sagas over contracts last year.
Liverpool are keen to resolve the Ibrahima Konate contract situation soon – with real interest from Real Madrid
With respect to Konate, he is not as high-profile as Salah or Van Dijk but it would still be a huge blow to lose him for nothing. Real Madrid’s interest is real.
Will we ever hear from Richard Hughes… Have you ever asked for an interview? I’m sure the fans would love to hear from him … or is he the Michael Edwards mould who just doesn’t like the fuss and media. Jordan Delurey.
I don’t think he would do an interview on the record at the moment – but who knows? He will have some great tales to tell from this transfer window, that is for sure.
But I like the sort of mythical element to Liverpool’s transfer team, it makes it more fun.
References
- ^ transfer window (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Liverpool (www.dailymail.co.uk)