After 20th League Title, Is It Time for Liverpool to Overhaul the Squad?

Liverpool has secured the title of the English Premier League for the 2024-2025 season. By only adding a loan player from Juventus, Federico Chiesa, Liverpool's Manager Arne Slot has successfully elevated "The Reds" from a third-place finish in the 2023-2024 edition to trophy winners.

In a press conference following the match against Tottenham Hotspur, Sunday (27/4/2025), at Anfield Stadium, Slot has already warned Liverpool's competitors in England and Europe. Liverpool's ambitions will grow even larger during the 2025-2026 competition campaign.

I don't want to lower our expectations for next season, because we will fight for every trophy.

They are not only thinking about defending the English League trophy. Slot emphasized that Liverpool will play matches to compete for five trophies in the upcoming season.

"There are many great teams in this league (England) and the Champions League, so it will not be easy, but we will continue to strive to compete with them. I do not want to lower our expectations for next season, as we will fight for every trophy," said Slot.

In addition to dominating the English League, Liverpool has indeed performed impressively in the early stages of the Champions League. They advanced to the knockout stage by finishing at the top of their group. Unfortunately, Liverpool's journey came to an end in the round of 16 at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.

Then, Si Merah unexpectedly fell in the fourth round of the FA Cup after being defeated by Plymouth Argyle. In the English League Cup, they were defeated by Newcastle United in the final match.

The failure to secure trophies in three competitions outside the English League serves as a signal that the Liverpool squad is not sufficiently capable of sharing focus across multiple competitions. They lack alternative players to maintain consistent performance, especially after the turn of the year.

The statement indicates that Slot demands reinforcement of the squad for the upcoming season. At the very least, Liverpool needs significantly better squad depth, particularly in the center-back, wing-back, and center-forward positions.

Liverpool no longer has any issues in providing a challenge to Alisson Becker for the position in goal. Valencia goalkeeper and the national team of Georgia, Giorgi Mamardashvili, will serve as both a backup and a competitor to Alisson.

At 32 years old this year, Alisson is still in his prime as a goalkeeper. Alisson has demonstrated his central role for the Reds with a collection of 14 clean sheets and an average of 0.8 goals conceded per game. This represents an improvement compared to his performance in the 2023-2024 season.

Mamardashvili has the potential to motivate Alisson to perform better in the upcoming season. On the other hand, Liverpool's goalkeeper position will be more secure compared to the presence of Caoimhin Kelleher, who is likely to be released in the upcoming summer.

Not to be outdone, Mamardashvili has the potential to continue the baton of Liverpool's main goalkeeper in the future. He is only 24 years old.

Together with Valencia this season, Mamardashvili has recorded over 75 saves. He has also saved two penalty kicks out of five faced against opponents.

Liverpool also needs to seek a backup for the center-back position. Virgil van Dijk, who has just extended his contract, and Ibrahima Konate require a suitable replacement. Indeed, there are still Jarell Quansah and Joe Gomez, but neither is yet qualified to regularly displace the duo of Konate and Van Dijk.

Dean Huijsen, the central defender of Bournemouth, is also on Liverpool's radar. The Spanish national team player has the potential to enhance the quality of the Reds' defense both currently and in the future.

However, Huijsen, who became a hot commodity in England during the summer transfer market, does not come at a low price. He certainly seeks a guarantee of regular playing time and a salary increase compared to his time with Bournemouth.

"The limited minutes for Gomez and Quansah show Slot needs players who can build on his confidence. He needs players who can provide better rotation opportunities for Van Dijk and Konate, and be available in case they get injured," former Liverpool and England midfielder Danny Murphy told the BBC.

The wing-back and central forward positions are essential to introduce new faces for Liverpool in order to enhance performance for the upcoming season.

The increasing proximity of Trent Alexander-Arnold to the exit of Anfield Stadium has led to the need for a suitable replacement. The Slot already has Conor Bradley, who has appeared in 25 games this season.

Nevertheless, Bradley needs a more senior figure to help elevate his quality. Right-back of Crystal Palace, Marc Guehi, and Jarrad Branthwaite from Everton are rumored to be options for Slot to replace the role of Alexander-Arnold, who wishes to move to Real Madrid.

Guehi and Brantwaite are younger than Alexander-Arnold. Both have already earned caps for England.

As for the left wing-back position, Andrew Robertson will indeed not be leaving. However, the performance of the 31-year-old Robertson is not as stellar as in previous seasons.

In this season of the English Premier League, Liverpool has recorded only one mistake that resulted in a goal. The sole blunder was made by Robertson when the Reds were defeated by Fulham 2-3.

It is not surprising that Liverpool is reportedly targeting Bournemouth's left-back, Milos Kerkez. The former AC Milan youth player has contributed five assists and two goals for "The Cherries" in 34 appearances in the Premier League this season.

Kerkez is a modern full-back who loves to fight one-on-one with opposing attackers. With speed and accurate crosses. He is also good at playing a role in the fast-break scheme which is also favored by Liverpool. His one goal against Newcastle came from his role in a quick counter-attack.

"Kerkez was outstanding at Bournemouth. The man who brought him to Bournemouth (Richard Hughes) is now Liverpool's sporting director," former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher was quoted as saying by the Liverpool Echo.

Another option to strengthen Liverpool's left-back position comes from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Rayan Ait-Nouri. Ait-Nouri has been indispensable for Wolves for two seasons.

Meanwhile, Darwin Nunez is highly likely to no longer wear the Liverpool jersey in the 2025-2026 season. Nunez was previously offered by Cristiano Ronaldo's club, Al-Nassr, during the last winter transfer window. However, Slot is not yet willing to let go of the Uruguayan striker amid the limited time to find a replacement.

Slot's penchant for using a highly mobile attacking trident makes the role of Nunez, a poacher, less than ideal. Should Nunez leave, Liverpool could join the hunt for Lille's Canadian striker Jonathan David.

In the last three seasons, David has contributed more than 25 goals for Lille. David has also etched his name as the top scorer in Lille's history in European club competitions.

In order to dominate across all competitions next season, including the Community Shield, Premier League, Champions League, League Cup, and FA Cup, Slot must no longer operate in a frugal mode during the upcoming transfer window.

This is because competitors such as Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester United are already prepared to spend tens to hundreds of millions of pounds to seize the English championship title from Liverpool in the upcoming season.