Liverpool Goes All Out, An Anomaly for the Defending Premier League Champions

Typically, after winning a trophy, the defending champions of the Premier League tend to be more passive in the summer transfer window. However, this is not the case for Liverpool. As they approach the second season under coach Arne Slot, following their league victory, they are actually making significant investments in player acquisitions.

Liverpool has been very aggressive in the transfer market. After breaking the club record with the purchase of midfielder Florian Wirtz, they continue to shop. Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike will soon join for a total fee of £79 million (Rp 1.73 trillion).

According to Sky Sports, if Ekitike officially moves, Liverpool will further cement their status as the Premier League's biggest spender. They have already spent around £295 million in this transfer window. That figure includes potential additional payments depending on the player's performance.

As a context, Liverpool has never spent more than 200 million pounds in a single season during the tenure of legendary coach Juergen Klopp (2015-2024). The expenditures of rival teams, such as Arsenal and Manchester City, have not even reached 150 million pounds.

Before Ekitike, Liverpool had already brought in four players. They are Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, and Armin Pecsi. All of them were acquired before the first preseason match began. Meanwhile, Liverpool has only sold four players for a total value of 66 million pounds.

Transfer records have made Liverpool's financial strength appear increasingly formidable. "The Reds" recorded the highest expenditure deficit at 229.5 million pounds. Chelsea, in second place, recorded nearly half of that amount (126 million pounds).

Klopp's statement regarding the financial disparity between Liverpool and wealthy teams like Manchester City has suddenly become irrelevant. "No one can compete with City in that regard. What can Liverpool do? We cannot be like that. It is impossible," he stated in 2022.

Regardless of that, Liverpool has displayed something unusual for a defending champion team. Over the past decade, champion teams tend to be more passive during the summer transfer window. They are already confident with their existing squad, only striving to make minor improvements.

City, after winning the league in the 2020-21 season, only purchased one player in the subsequent transfer window. They brought in winger Jack Grealish to enhance their attack on the left side. They had previously acquired six players after losing the title to Liverpool in the 2019-20 season.

Liverpool was also very passive after winning their first league title since 1990. The team coached by Klopp only brought in three players projected for the main squad, including Diogo Jota and Thiago Alcantara. The total purchase value in that summer did not exceed 100 million pounds sterling.

Slot seems to be trying to be wise. Instead of repeating Klopp's mistakes, he learns from his predecessor. The coach does not want Liverpool to fail in defending the title and only be able to win again after many years. Slot believes that City and Arsenal will rise from the downturn of last season.

"City will strengthen the squad again (after the winter window). Arsenal will also do the same. Therefore, it would be foolish if we do not strive to strengthen the squad as well. It is certainly not easy to strengthen a team that has already won the league," said Slot last May.

Liverpool entered the transfer market with a full awareness of the need to strengthen their squad. When there are players that meet their criteria, they do not hesitate to spend money. Wirtz, for example, was immediately purchased from Bayer Leverkusen and became the most expensive player in the history of the Premier League (116 million pounds sterling).

Slot stated that there are many great players available in the market. However, they may not necessarily want to move. There is also the factor of competition with other big teams. "That presents its own difficulties. If they want to come, that would be great. We will try as long as there is a possibility," he said.

It should be acknowledged that the current Liverpool squad was not designed solely by Slot. It is a legacy from Klopp. In addition to possibly not aligning with Slot's preferences, many star players are also at the end of their golden phase. Mohamed Salah (33) and Virgil van Dijk (34).

The need for regeneration is reinforced by data from Transfermarkt. The average age of Liverpool's starting XI last season was 27.2 years, the fifth-oldest in the league. The addition of young players like Wirtz (22) and Ekitike (23) would freshen up the Reds' squad.

So, why can Liverpool spend a significant amount of money without balanced sales? This may be due to their frugality in Slot's first season. They are recorded as the second team with the lowest expenditure in the league (£36.4 million).

Liverpool has only brought in two players. One of them, goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, has just joined from Valencia this summer after a one-season loan. As a result, financial issues have not been a primary concern thus far.

Certainly, Liverpool will continue to balance the team's financial statements. They are in the process of negotiating the sale of several players, such as Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz. The principle of aggressive spending at the beginning of the transfer window is implemented merely to keep pace with competing teams.

Ekitike, the third most expensive purchase in Liverpool's history, will soon be officially announced in the coming days. Interestingly, Ekitike is likely not the last player to become part of Anfield Stadium. Liverpool appears to be far from finished with their shopping. (AP/AFP)