Liverpool 2-0 Porto: Put Some Respect on The Name

On Tuesday night, Liverpool triumphed 2-0 in the first leg of their quarter-final match against Porto. The fixture, a repeat of last year’s round of sixteen tie, was considered by many to be a formality – no team reaches the last eight in Europe’s elite competition by accident, however, and the Portuguese champions threatened on multiple occasions. A mixture of profligacy on the part of Marega and some important saves by Alisson kept Liverpool’s clean sheet intact, but wasted chances at the other end mean that Klopp’s men cannot go into the second leg with progression as assured as it was last season. Nonetheless, they have put themselves in a strong position to make it to the semi-final; this is a notable accomplishment in any campaign, but to do so while sustaining a challenge for the league title shows just how far this team has come in a short space of time.

The Porto faithful had a haunted look about them when Liverpool took the lead after just five minutes. They had been here before – superior opposition turning up with both skill and luck on their side is a deadly cocktail, one that resulted in a 5-0 humiliation in their own back yard just fourteen months ago. When Keita’s positive drive forward was not tracked and his subsequent shot evaded Casillas courtesy of a huge deflection, there was a feeling that it might be a similarly long night. The players in red appeared to be gripped by a similar vision – at any rate, the waves of pressure remained relentless after going in front.  This made for an entertaining contest, but it exhibited the sort of naivety that is more closely associated with the Liverpool of a year ago. It was the kind of performance that can produce 5-0 wins, but is just as capable of resulting in the squandering of comfortable leads. The second leg of the Roma tie in the semi-final stage of this competition last season come to mind. On this occasion, however, the advantage did grow rather than evaporate: Porto had created and wasted a number of reasonable opportunities, but a glorious sweeping move up the pitch was finished off by Roberto Firmino to double the home side’s lead.

Alexander-Arnold chalked up the assist, but it was Jordan Henderson who truly made the goal. His delightful ball to the full-back gave the youngster the freedom of Anfield in which to pick out Firmino, who was left with the simplest task of the lot. The only surprise was that the Brazilian deigned to look at the ball when steering it in from a matter of yards. Liverpool’s captain has been enjoying himself of late in a more advanced position: Klopp’s growing faith in Fabinho as the sole man in a deeper role has allowed Henderson to move into more natural territory, and Liverpool are reaping the rewards in attack. The ease with which Porto created chances of their own might tempt Klopp into shackling his number fourteen with defensive duties once more when it comes to the Chelsea game at the weekend, but Henderson will feel that he has proved that he can be the answer to Liverpool’s problem of lack of creativity from the midfield.

He was not the only one making his case.

Naby Keita has been steadily growing in influence after a very stuttering start to his Anfield career. The season has been littered with the odd promising cameo, but there has often been a sense that he is playing within himself. The vital equaliser against Southampton, and the evident delight and relief it caused him, looked as though it might prove to be a turning point – even this goal, though, a header at the back post, was not exactly a realisation of the dynamic, all-action Keita that Liverpool fans had been promised. That player arrived against Porto. Per @DanKennett, the Guinean made six tackles, ten recoveries, six dribbles and two key passes – this is before his goal is even mentioned. This array of qualities, the sense that he is doing the job of two men, is what was so eagerly anticipated when Liverpool secured his signature; the recapturing of such form just as Jurgen Klopp’s side reaches the business end of its push for two of the biggest trophies in the sport could not be more well-timed.

Let’s consider that for a moment. It’s April, and the Premier League and Champions League are still very much up for grabs. This is a remarkable feat: on one level it is exactly where Liverpool Football Club belongs, but equally it is essentially unchartered territory in the context of the past two decades. Fans have generally had to content themselves with a push for one or the other, and often neither, and yet some supporters still have the temerity to bemoan the fact that the margin of victory was not so large as to allow players to be rested in the second leg. Of a Champions League last eight clash. That this team is now at the point where a 2-0 triumph in the business end of the European Cup is not a universal source of euphoria, and can even draw criticism, demonstrates the astonishing progress that has been made under Jurgen Klopp. For what it is worth, Liverpool fans should know more than most how fickle fortunes can be in football – there are real reasons to hope that this period of challenging will blossom into a genuine era of great success, but in the mean-time everyone should be consciously striving to enjoy the journey. Nonetheless, the fact that the bar has been so substantially raised is as clear an indication as any that this is a team back amongst the European elite. There is true quality from front to back: enough to dispatch of the likes of Bayern Munich, and to pile pressure on a City side that broke records for fun last season. Henderson’s defiant celebration against Southampton delivered a message to everyone doubting him as an individual, but also to those who doubt the team: it is time to put some respect on the name.

Of course, nothing is won yet, and with opposition of such elite calibre there are no guarantees that the campaign will end with silverware on either front. However, the belief within the team is tangible; not only tangible, but justified. It is hard to deny that the team is one of the best in Europe at the moment - Liverpool will not fear a potential semi-final meeting with Barcelona in the Champions League. On the domestic front, Klopp has nearly steered his side through the toughest spell of the season unscathed – a succession of potentially tricky fixtures while City’s run was favourable could have spelled the end for the title race, but through talent and tenacity Liverpool have relentlessly kept up the pressure. Victory over Chelsea at the weekend in the final against a side from the top six this season would be a massive psychological triumph ahead of Manchester City’s games against Tottenham and Manchester United in the space of a week, but thanks to the efforts of the challengers up to this point the match against Sarri’s men is not make or break in this regard. Whatever happens, the overwhelming feeling towards this team amongst fans must be pride: every last one of the supporters is dreaming of clearing the final hurdle that has proved a stumbling block since 1 

990, but even if it proves too high once more there can be no denying that every single member of the team has given absolutely everything they have. There is no more that can be asked.

- Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

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PSG 2-1 Liverpool: Post-Match Thoughts

Liverpool travelled to Paris knowing that a win would secure their qualification from a very tough Champions League group. An admittedly formidable opponent stood in their way, but it might have been expected that Klopp’s men could have mustered more than one shot on target in their pursuit of the win that would be so vital. As it was, even that one shot came from the penalty spot. The first half in particular was lacklustre beyond belief; the spot kick at the death gave the visitors a lifeline that was frankly undeserved. There were some signs of improvement in the second period, but the penetration from midfield remained all but non-existent and Liverpool could not force the breakthrough.

There was a quiet pre-match optimism amongst the away fans. PSG are on a remarkable run, but it is not as if they have faced hugely stern challenge in Ligue 1; Liverpool deservedly won the reverse fixture, and knew they were at least in with a realistic chance of getting a result at the Parc des Princes. However, some of this hope was dented before a ball had been kicked – the team sheet revealed a midfield three of Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Gini Wjjnaldum. None of these players are bad: each of them has put in dominant performances in the past that can be brought to mind. Wijnaldum in particular was the heartbeat of the side that overcame Manchester City in last season’s Champions League. However, as a midfield unit, the three of them simply do not work. There is a big question mark over where the creativity will come from, and yet nor is there an out-and-out defensive presence in the mix. Each can keep things ticking over nicely, but with nobody to play the killer ball the entire front three might as well be taken out of the game.

This is essentially how it panned out. For the first forty-five minutes, PSG walked through Liverpool’s midfield as though it were not there: all it took was a string of two or three quick passes before Neymar and Mbappe were bearing down on the defence. This was admittedly not helped by a referee undoubtedly influenced by the home crowd – Liverpool could hardly make a tackle without going in the book – but it would be wrong to blame the officials entirely. Klopp must shoulder a proportion of the criticism; he chose to go with what might generously be called an ‘industrious’ midfield, but all of this industry provided essentially no protection to the back four. If the defence were to be left all but unprotected, the manager may as well have utilised his more creative forces in the shape of Shaqiri and Keita from the outset. Milner was probably the best of a bad bunch, and he coolly converted his penalty when called upon at the end of the half, but frankly none of them played at all well. The match was won and lost in the midfield battle, which in reality was more of a massacre than a fight – even if Verratti had got the red card which his horror-challenge warranted it is doubtful that Liverpool would have claimed the ascendency.

It cannot even be said that the problems were limited to the midfield. Both of PSG’s goals can be traced back to Virgil van Dijk – he can be afforded somewhat more slack given that he has been a colossus all season, but he looked as though he was playing with a hangover during arguably Liverpool’s biggest game of the campaign. The attempted clearance prior to Bernat’s opener was unacceptable at any level; he half-heartedly floated a foot at the ball, which looped up into an even more dangerous position than where it started. His role in Neymar’s goal was just as bad; the whole defence had been drawn out of position as a result of Gomez venturing forwards, but the Dutch centre-back was caught in two minds as to whether to go to the ball or stay with his man and ended up taking himself out of the game altogether. Alisson nearly bailed him out with a remarkable save, one of many that he made on the night, but his compatriot was on hand to tuck home the rebound.

The performance by Alisson was really the only significant positive. He simply had no right to make some of the saves he pulled off, most notably a remarkable reaction stop from a corner – it easy to see why Claudio Taffarel has marked him out as a potential world-beater. On another day, his immense showing would have opened the door for the front three to dig out an undeserved result; the lack of any kind of penetration from midfield did not make their lives easy, but such is their quality that more could reasonably have been expected of them. Mane was at least putting in the graft, and he was rewarded by winning the penalty, but the other two were very much off the boil. Firmino produced a few sharp turns here and there, but his passing was frankly awful in places; Liverpool fans could only watch on, frustrated, as some of their few promising positions were squandered with absurd cheapness. Salah was largely anonymous, and on the one occasion where he managed his trademark cut inside he dragged his shot wide at the near post. That proved to be largely indicative of the evening: chances were few and far between, and when they came they were wasted.

Klopp and his players can take some comfort in the fact that qualification remains in their hands. The permutations regarding the final game against Napoli are a little complex, but essentially either a 1-0 win or any victory by two goals or more will see Liverpool through to the knockout rounds. This is a tough ask, and Ancelotti is a shrewd operator when it comes to protecting an advantage – Istanbul of course stands out as a stark exception, and Anfield will be looking to draw on some of that spirit to will the team on against the Italian side. Liverpool’s home and away form stand in marked contrast so far this campaign: two wins out of two at Anfield, three straight losses on the road in Europe. Klopp has called upon the Kop to make a difference once again. Ultimately, despite the uninspiring Champions League performances so far, this is a side that deserves to be in the last 16. Hopefully the players and manager take a pragmatic approach to this loss, learn from it, and use it to ensure qualification on Matchday 6.

- Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

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Liverpool 4-0 West Ham: Here We Go Again

Strap yourselves in. Liverpool are back, and in some style; West Ham United were put to the sword on the opening day at Anfield. Klopp’s men picked up where they left off during an impressive pre-season, dismantling the Hammers just as they had done to Napoli a week previously. It was an assured performance from front to back, and gave even the most cautious fan reason for optimism.

There is only one place to start, and that is with Naby Keita. The Guinean midfielder was outstanding on his competitive debut for Liverpool, immediately showcasing exactly what he can bring to a midfield that was in need of an injection of dynamism. There will be sterner tests than Pellegrini’s West Ham, whose half-baked high line was only ever going to end one way, but Keita was ruthless in exploiting it. Time and time again he drove at the defence, sprung a pass at exactly the right moment and set a runner free. It was in this manner that the deadlock was broken, just before the twenty-minute mark: Keita released Robertson in space down the left, and the Scot produced an inch-perfect ball across the face of the goal for Salah to turn home. It was a satisfying goal to score – the best teams have got creating unmissable opportunities down to an art form, and Liverpool certainly seem to be improving in this regard.

The chances, already fairly free-flowing, came thicker and faster after the opening goal. Firmino’s selfless square ball could not be turned home by Salah from close range, but it looked a matter of time before Fabianski was beaten again. Sure enough, moments before half time, Milner did excellently to salvage a cross that looked too deep – the defence had switched off, and Sadio Mane was on hand to turn the ball home for Liverpool’s second. This was just one of many excellent contributions from the headband-sporting Milner, who was clearly not experiencing any adverse effects following his fifteen stitches; his renaissance of late has been truly remarkable, and Fabinho may be wondering just how he’s going to break into the team! Gini Wijnaldum, another player who could have shied away in the face of increased midfield competition, put in a typically tidy performance while also posing a little of the added attacking threat he has shown throughout pre-season.

The front three have little to fear in the way of starting status, and they showcased their brilliance once again for the third goal. Firmino embarked upon a typically industrious run before slipping the ball through for Sadio Mane – there was a huge slice of fortune in that the flag should clearly have been raised for offside, but Mane capitalised on the officiating error and slotted the ball away to totally kill off the game. This brace for the Senegalese winger could be a sign of things to come; he has definitely adapted to a more central role in the past few months, a move formalised by his adoption of the number 10 shirt for the new season, and he will be hoping to get on the end of many more moves over the course of the campaign.

Henderson and Shaqiri were soon introduced, a mark of the increased quality of depth that Liverpool now boast. The former Stoke man looked lively on his competitive debut, although with the match already wrapped up the tempo was understandably fairly relaxed. The captain was tidy as ever, keeping things ticking over as Klopp’s side moved towards a near-perfect opening day result. As it happened, things were about to get even better. Daniel Sturridge was introduced for the last five minutes – he has had an astonishingly good pre-season, reminding everyone exactly what he is capable of when he remains fit for a sustained period, and it took just twenty seconds for him to find the net in this cameo. He showed his familiar poacher’s instinct to get on the end of a cross from a corner and turn the ball home, in doing so sending Liverpool to the top of the table.

Now it’s just a small task of staying there for the next thirty-seven weeks. A tough ask, certainly, but one that for the first time in years the squad will feel is not beyond them. Keita looks all set to prove a truly transformative signing in the middle of the park, while Alisson will win points on his own if he even comes close to his form at Roma. Already, his cool distribution is handing Liverpool more control over games. Shaqiri provides much-needed quality cover for the front three, as well as possessing the versatility to drop into midfield when the team really needs to go for it. This amounts to nearly all of last season’s key weaknesses being addressed – and last season wasn’t half bad! In a league of fine margins, these additions could make a big difference. One thing’s for sure: we are in for an exciting season.

See my round-up of all the week's football action over on Colossus Bets:
https://blog.colossusbets.com/shaw-on-the-mend-its-7-points-in-7-days/

Watford 3-3 Liverpool: Now or Never For FSG

Last season ended on a relatively optimistic note. Liverpool finished fourth, securing a place in the Champions League playoff round. The squad looked happy together. Names of multiple top-level targets were emerging. Fast forward to the first day of the new campaign, and the picture is much less pretty. Mohamed Salah is roundly acknowledged as a good addition, and the left-back deficiency of last season has been partially addressed through the signing of Andrew Robertson, but the same old flaws were undeniably present as Liverpool limped to a 3-3 draw with Watford. Two set piece goals only reiterated the desperate need for an aerially dominant central defender, and yet no progress has been made on bringing Virgil Van Dijk to Anfield. FSG told Klopp that the funds would be made available for his key targets, and yet blunders in the approach have seen Southampton stubbornly double down on their stance not to sell to us. Similarly, RB Leipzig have remained unmoved in the face of the club’s attempts to get priority target Naby Keita. This issue is only exacerbated by Coutinho’s desire to leave – despite their statement to the contrary, some emerging reports suggest that FSG are preparing to sell the Brazilian talisman. Klopp’s post-game comments could be seen to echo this sentiment. Coupled with Lallana’s absence through injury, the loss of Coutinho equates to a horrendous dearth of creativity in the middle of the park – this was clear for all to see at Vicarage Road. I have been a staunch backer of the owners for some time, but anything short of keeping Coutinho and bringing in at least one of Klopp’s two preferred players would be a clear indication that they do not have the requisite ambition to take this club forward.

A common argument in favour of FSG is that it is not lack of funds that is leading to transfer failures. This is probably true to an extent; it would be naïve to assume that the situation is black and white. However, in the vast majority of cases, there will come a point where an offer is simply too big to be turned down. Particularly in the case of Keita, it appears as though FSG have been unprepared to find that point – they made funds available up to what they considered reasonable, but not beyond that. Had Klopp identified a variety of targets, this would be fair enough. As it is, only a few quality targets have been lined up: given this, FSG can reasonably be expected to spend as much as it takes to get the manager the personnel he seeks. Furthermore, it would be wrong to assume that FSG are only responsible for finances – they cannot escape all criticism that does not relate to the availability of funds. As such, even though the Van Dijk move has been jeopardised more by tapping-up blunders than by costings, FSG cannot come out of it with no blame attached. By and large, they decide the club staffing structure – they have consistently decided against a dedicated Director of Football, and the lack of specialisation with regard to player acquisition has repeatedly led to big names slipping through the club’s fingers. In this instance, it has led to the shambolic apology purporting to end all interest in Van Dijk in order to avoid investigation by the Premier League. Fans cannot be expected to watch two set-piece goals fly in against them on the opening day of a new campaign and still unquestioningly cheer the team on: they have a right to demand that the obvious deficiencies are rectified, and at the moment it looks as though FSG’s ownership is jeopardising that rectification process.   

The situation with Coutinho raises just as many questions about what is going on behind the scenes. Again, it would be wrong to place all of the blame at FSG’s door – Coutinho himself has clearly made things difficult with the timing of his transfer request, and Barcelona are probably also guilty of a bit of tapping-up. Nonetheless, there is clearly something odd going on: FSG’s definitive statement that Coutinho is not for sale actually preceded his formal transfer request. The natural inference is that there was a horrible breakdown in communication between owners, club and player: it seems likely that the hard stance was not adequately relayed to Coutinho himself, who duly took matters into his own hands following the release of the statement. Now there is the question of whether the request changes that stance; it would be a significant climbdown from FSG if the Brazilian was sold, but some reports are suggesting that this is exactly what they intend to do. Klopp’s cryptic comments about certain things being beyond his control reinforced this idea. There is no point attacking FSG for something they may not be guilty of, but if Coutinho does end up leaving then their position as owners becomes untenable. He is the best player at the club, and the lethal front line that has been assembled is crying out for creative service from deep: Coutinho is the man to provide that service, and if he leaves now it will undo all the good work that has gone into the front three.

It would be grossly unfair not to acknowledge this good work – Salah, Firmino and Mane are a trio all signed under FSG’s tenure, and they are up there with the best in the league. As the latest addition, Salah is the biggest pro-FSG argument out there at the moment: they parted with a fair amount of money to bring him in, and he fits the profile of what the club needed. For this, they deserve credit. That said, it is worth noting that Salah represented something of a bargain in the current inflated market – his goal and assist returns in one of Europe’s top leagues could easily have warranted a price tag far beyond the £35 million paid. This is obviously a good thing, and the club should of course look to be prudent, but the reality is that sometimes an astronomical sum has to be spent to bring in what is needed. It would be a cruel irony if FSG’s failures to strengthen the defence and midfield rendered the excellent attacking recruitment pointless. They have three weeks to ensure that this does not happen.

It is clear what needs to be done. Good as they are, the front three can only carve out so many chances for themselves – they need a creative midfielder behind them, and it is therefore of paramount importance that FSG do not sanction the sale of Coutinho. Equally, the defensive record of the last few seasons, particularly on set pieces, is not acceptable: Virgil Van Dijk must be signed, or we will keep on shipping stupid amounts of goals to teams such as Watford. Finally, as Klopp’s number one target, Naby Keita must be pursued with even greater determination –  if it is what the manager wants, FSG effectively need to go to Leipzig with a blank cheque. Achieving two of these three things would be enough to stave off my growing concerns about the owners; anything less, and I can no longer view their time in charge as acceptable.

- James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

Five Players Liverpool Should Look to Sign

Reports started emerging as early as April that FSG were ready to splash the cash in this window. With fourth place secured and Champions League football on the horizon, this must surely be truer than ever – it looks as though Klopp will be backed to the hilt, and it is vital that he spends the money wisely. The squad is not in bad shape, but they were probably operating at close to full potential to finish where they did last time out: three to five astute signings could transform Liverpool into title challengers.

1. Benjamin Mendy

It is inevitable that a lot of these sort of articles are floating around at the moment – it is the off-season, after all, meaning all we have to go on is transfer rumours! However, not one of them seems to list a left-back as the number one target. For me, replacing Milner should be the top priority. Although he has been relatively solid defensively, any genuinely gifted winger has caused him serious problems. Even more problematically, he has been ineffectual as an outlet going forward: his lack of attacking instinct combined with the fact he is right-footed meant that many a promising attack was brought to a grinding halt when the ball reached Milner on the left. It doesn’t take a genius to assess the first eleven and mark out the central midfielder filling in at left-back as the one that most needs replacing. Benjamin Mendy fits the bill. He would undoubtedly be costly, but Monaco have already shown that they are not totally unwilling to sell their assets: Bernardo Silva recently moved to Manchester City. If he could be lured to Anfield, he would be worth the money; his defensive contributions would undoubtedly be an upgrade on Milner, but the biggest impact may well be in the attacking third. He returned a solid five league assists last campaign, as well as four in the Champions League – if anything, these numbers sell short what he brings to the attack. He is fast, direct, strong and has one of the best deliveries in Europe. I can’t see it happening, but if I were in charge of Liverpool’s transfers then this is where I’d be throwing the money.

2. Virgil Van Dijk

This one might be dead in the water, but I’m holding out some hope on it. As discussed in a previous article (http://jamesmartinblogs.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/van-dijk-dutch-ado-about-nothing.html), there are viable alternatives if the deal has indeed fallen through – nonetheless, he was identified as the prime target for a reason. His aerial prowess is extraordinary, he is strong in the tackle, and he is very comfortable with the ball at his feet. In short, he possesses all of the key attributes to perform well in Liverpool’s back line; parallels have inevitably been drawn with the Lovren deal, but this would be different. There is a reason so many of the top clubs are after Van Dijk: at Celtic and then at Southampton, he has consistently shown his class. To be honest, the list could end here and I would consider it a pretty successful transfer window – the attack is already one of the most potent in the league, and with Van Dijk and Mendy shoring up the defence the team would look very strong indeed.

3. Mohamed Salah

As good as the current attack is, it could still use some reinforcement. It would be fair to say that Mane was the most consistent threat in Liverpool’s front line during the last campaign: when he was absent through injury or the African Cup of Nations, the team looked significantly worse-off. What made Mane so dangerous? His pace and directness, combined with his unpredictability. There is nothing worse for a full-back than a skilful player sprinting out you, who could at any given moment dart infield or accelerate past you down the line. Liverpool could do with such a player on both sides of the pitch. In some ways, Salah is not the obvious choice: he too occupies the right flank, and he too is at risk of being absent for the AFCON once every two years. However, his attributes as a winger fit the bill perfectly. He loves to cut inside, which is almost a prerequisite for Liverpool’s fluid front three, and he certainly has the necessary raw pace. In any case, Mane played off the left at Salzburg: he could take Coutinho’s place, with the playmaker dropping back into the midfield three where he briefly showcased his talents at the end of last season. The Brazilian feeding through-balls for one of Mane or Salah to run on to is a tantalising thought, and one which will surely make opposition defences terrified. Salah actually functioned as a striker for some of his time at Roma, contributing in part to his hugely impressive goal and assist returns: if he is provided with the chances, there is little doubt that he will take them.

4. Alexandre Lacazette

The hypothetical money is certainly starting to run out by the time we reach this far down on the list, but as it’s hypothetical I’m going to go right ahead and keep on spending it. In fairness, Lacazette might represent fairly good value – he said his farewells at the end of the season and the club seems resigned to selling him, and in recent times Ligue 1 does seem to have offered some of the best value from the top five leagues. He would of course still be costly; he has some of the best attacking returns of any striker over the past few seasons, and is an established forward. France’s staggering crop of talent coming through at the moment means that Lacazette is currently very much on the fringes of the national setup, however: with the upcoming World Cup he needs to impress on a bigger stage in order to force his way into the squad. Liverpool could offer him that stage – there are already good options up front, hence why Lacazette finds himself fourth on the wish-list, but the Frenchman would represent an improvement on all of them. Of our existing squad, only Sturridge can match him for natural finishing talent and striker’s instinct: his pace is sadly not what it once was, however, and Lacazette offers speed in abundance. It would be a wrench to demote Firmino and Sturridge to the bench, but depth is what is needed to compete effectively in both the league and the Champions League.

5. Naby Keita

I know, I know, I’m getting greedy at this point! Naby Keita was one of the best central midfielders in Europe last season, truly establishing himself amongst the elite with his performances for RB Leipzig. Why, then, is he down in fifth on the list? Essentially, it’s just a matter of where the squad needs to strengthen. Liverpool already have an array of central midfielders; the team would benefit from an upgrade, but it can’t be considered the top priority. Can, Wijnaldum, Henderson and Coutinho (if the long-term plan is indeed to drop him deeper) are all good established players in that position, and that’s before mentioning upcoming talents such as Grujic and, further down the line, the likes of Pedro Chirivella. Of course, none of these players function in the exact same role as Keita – indeed, that ‘role’ is extremely hard to define as the Guinean is something of a unique talent. Nonetheless, it illustrates that the big cash might be better spent elsewhere for the time being. If money is going spare, however, then he would undoubtedly be a huge asset to the team!

It would be frankly miraculous if the club pulled off all of these transfers – it would represent by far and away the best window in the club’s history. Just two from the list would be very good business: for me the defenders have to be prioritised, but any one of the players mentioned would be a very welcome addition to the squad. The Salah deal looks like it might be done soon – this is a promising sign that the club is very much moving in the right direction.