Liverpool supporters will welcome their team back to training ahead of the new season this Tuesday, with a number of key players still missing.
Big names such as Virgil van Dijk, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz will not return just yet after World Cup duty this summer, but Andoni Iraola will still have a good chunk of senior players to work with.
But while the majority are set to begin work under the new head coach, the quality of the group shows just how much Liverpool have left to do in the summer transfer market.
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Liverpool’s squad is far from being good enough
Though there are some top players still away, the reality is that Liverpool only had eight players competing at the World Cup, including new signing Victor Munoz.
At a club the size of Liverpool, that should still leave a quality group of players to work with, but in the Reds’ case this summer, that is not really the way things look.
Dominik Szoboszlai will at least be coming back, and the midfielder represents the best of those coming into work on Tuesday, along with countryman Milos Kerkez.
Other than the two Hungarians, though, none of those returning are necessarily starters for Liverpool, with the exception possibly being new signing Jeremy Jacquet.
Sadly for supporters, a look through the other names coming back will be enough to induce anxiety over the depth Iraola has available to him, and the reliance Liverpool still have on the likes of Van Dijk, Alisson Becker and the underperforming pair of Wirtz and Isak.
Jeremie Frimpong will be hoping he can shave his name from the list of players with question marks over them, but at the moment he does not fill fans with any kind of confidence.
Neither does the returning Kostas Tsimikas, while Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones will also make up part of the group despite the likelihood they will be sold.
Federico Chiesa and Joe Gomez are two more who are not certain to be at Anfield by the time the window closes, leaving Rio Ngumoha as the only other outfield player fans will be genuinely excited to see.
Goalkeepers Giorgi Mamardashvili and Freddie Woodman are also set to arrive at the AXA Training Centre on Tuesday, with Armin Pecsi there to support as well. Meanwhile, young midfielders Trey Nyoni and James McConnell will be hoping to catch Iraola’s eye while Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister have an extended break.
There are injuries, with Giovanni Leoni, Conor Bradley and Wataru Endo the three most notable players doing work behind the scenes – along with long-term absentee Hugo Ekitike – but, Ekitike aside, that trio are unlikely to move the needle too much. The fact is that this could simply be top-half Premier League team, not one aspiring to become champions.
Transfer failings laid bare by lack of depth
The first day of pre-season usually brings excitement about seeing new players take their first steps with Liverpool.
But with the World Cup clearly disrupting transfer plans across the whole of football, that won’t really be the case this time around.
Instead, fans are being shown just how many gaps there are within Iraola’s squad, and this will no doubt lead to real concern about the lack of action on the transfer front.
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- Sadio Mane
- Gini Wijnaldum
- Andy Robertson
- Mohamed Salah
- Virgil van Dijk
- Alisson Becker
- Fabinho
- Diogo Jota
- Thiago Alcantara
- Ibrahima Konate
The new season is edging ever closer, and yet, Liverpool do not appear to be anywhere even close to adding another player.
Given their history in the market, supporters are rightfully worried that the Reds will see the market as being in a difficult place and do no further business. As this list of players highlights, that would be a grave mistake.
Thankfully, there is still time to rectify this, but Liverpool really do need to start acting and bring in some more quality. Fans are beginning to get restless, and rather than assuage them, this week’s return to training could make things even more nervy.
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