Jamie Carragher – what now for Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp after transfer window closes without midfield signing

Liverpool only signed Dutch striker Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven in January for a fee between £35m and £45m; The Reds languish in ninth place in the Premier League and will miss the Champions League next season

It’s easy to see why Liverpool fans are unhappy with their club’s low spending in January, but they should trust Fenway Sports Group (FSG) who have been a role model in the transfer market of late, says Jamie Carragher .

Liverpool have struggled all season, currently sit ninth in the Premier League and are at serious risk of not qualifying for the Champions League next season.

Despite a long injury list and 10 points behind fourth place, the Reds have only landed Dutch striker Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven in the January transfer window for a fee between 35 and 45 million. pound sterling.

While Carragher sympathizes with Liverpool fans’ frustration over the club’s indolence in January, he is also keen to point out that FSG are owners who are happy to wait for a specific target to become available, in a model that is the envy of Europe.

“From a medical point of view, they had a very bad season in terms of injuries,” Carragher said. “Sometimes it can be bad luck, sometimes it’s the way injuries are handled, who’s involved. They didn’t replace a doctor (Jim Moxon) who left over the summer, whether that was a problem or not. , i’m not sure but they were really unlucky and they have to sort this medical service out somehow.

“In terms of transfers, I can understand the frustration of Liverpool fans when they see other clubs spending left, right and centre, and with Liverpool not signing anyone, it almost looks like they have this fight for find out who dropped out of the top four.

“But what I never wanted my club to be the way it was when I was a player is a bit of a scattergun that repeatedly freaks out as Liverpool have been a role model for other clubs in the world. over the past four or five years, it was across Europe wanted to follow. “And what they don’t do is freak out in the transfer market and I think Jurgen Klopp has shown that before, when he’s had some really successful purchases, he’s picked up like Virgil van Dijk. he was waiting for before going to look for it.

Liverpool have been a role model for four or five years that other clubs across Europe hope to follow Jamie Carragher

“If Liverpool don’t bring players in now because they don’t have the money or the player Klopp wants isn’t there, that’s a completely different argument that we don’t know, we’re not. unaware of this information.”

However, Carragher says it is unfair to criticize FSG for not strengthening in midfield when they tried to bring in Aurelien Tchouameni from Monaco and that they would have changed to Jude Bellingham if Borussia Dortmund had expressed interest last summer in selling the England international.

As a result, the former Liverpool defender believes the Americans will make up for their recent lack of spending by pumping in some cash this summer, with the Reds still pushing to sign Bellingham.

“I’m confident Liverpool are going to have a great summer, I’m sure a lot of fans want them to have a great January, but I don’t want Liverpool going back to what they were doing when I was playing there. , where you would buy players and hope it works,” he added.

“Most Liverpool signings have worked because Klopp gets the man he wants and they bide their time and don’t panic.

“It doesn’t mean I’m right or the club is right about Klopp, but I think it happened last summer and they knew exactly what they needed to do in midfield and they tried to sign Tchouameni and he left for Real Madrid. “I think Liverpool were on the scene last summer, they almost won four trophies and they were in the Champions League final, so they probably thought they had to be special for us to have a player and they felt that Tchouameni was the player and he is going to Real Madrid.

“Obviously they’ve been working on Jude Bellingham’s transfer for a long time. They [Dortmund] didn’t want to sell him last summer, so maybe they thought they’d wait until this summer and mid-term. terrain will allow us to pass.”

“And I’ve said it before, it just blew them up and yeah, it’s their job to see these things before they happen and they were wrong, there’s no doubt about it. But I can understand , so I’m not going to blame them massively for not bringing in a midfielder this summer because the two players they wanted weren’t available. “And that goes back to my view that throughout his time at Liverpool, Liverpool and Klopp want to get the player they want and not just bring in a body. Listen, a body can work, a player can come in and change things. . ” , I do not deny it.

“But their track record over the last five or six years and the way they’ve handled that has worked out more often than not, so I’m willing to wait until summer for now.”

That being said, if you lose your sporting director there are other people doing similar work, just look at what’s going on at Brighton right now in terms of the scouting system.

“But what I think Liverpool have done over the years is not just look for good players and get value for money, don’t panic, don’t make mistakes, don’t play for money. stupid for players to spend and they have to keep doing that and they’re going to need someone to fill the role of head of recruiting, I think they’re on the verge of doing that.

“But again I go back to the fact that it’s easy to sign players, then it’s difficult to get them to play well on the pitch. So I always come back to it, Klopp is the most important man in Liverpool and for the success Liverpool had, it wasn’t someone who was a head scout picking players. It is the coach who chooses them and regularly gets the best out of them.”

As for Klopp’s future at Anfield, Carragher believes that while results should improve markedly next season following this transitional period, the German’s position is secure as he is the architect of the club’s recent renaissance.

“It will be a difficult season for Liverpool. Klopp has already tried a few things. He’s not just sitting there, he’s brought in younger players at the moment. Liverpool stopped pushing, he dropped out,” said the ex-Liverpool player. captain. “At one point they played 4-4-2 at the start of the season and they did something similar over the weekend in Brighton to try and do something different.

“Klopp is trying to find answers to the problems he has now, but try playing Klopp football without Klopp players, they don’t have the energy or the legs to do it at the moment.

“So Klopp tries different things, it doesn’t quite work and in terms of Klopp’s influence at Liverpool going forward, as a manager you can’t have bad seasons all the time, everyone knows that. “But for me, the success Liverpool has had, I’ve said it from the day it came, I’d rather lose a player at that club than Klopp as a Liverpool fan, and I don’t think that’s ever going to change.” “