Duncan Oldham: We better be smiling come the 31st

When last season came to a conclusion, I was told that Liverpool would be more likely to do the majority of their transfer business towards the end of the summer transfer window. Originally, I thought that was probably going to be due to EURO 2020, but the penny eventually dropped that it was actually to do with moving players out to generate additional funds for the manager and to get the dead wood off the wage bill.

Naturally, supporters are growing frustrated with the lack of activity in the window so far and the anti-FSG vibe is doing the rounds once again. I understand those fans who are somewhat unhappy at the moment, but I personally think we should wait until the window slams shut before we stick the knives in. I remain fairly confident that we will see new blood added to Jürgen Klopp’s squad before the end of the month and to be honest, I really can’t be bothered shouting ‘FSG OUT’ when there is nobody else willing to come ‘IN’! While there is interest in the club from the Saudis, I can’t see many fans warming to that idea due to human rights issues.

I was having a look around bet365 earlier and Liverpool are joint 2nd favourites with Chelsea to win the title. City are obviously favourites due to the depth of their squad and the fact they always invest heavily each summer. Supporters have been fed the line that there’s not much money available due to the Coronavirus pandemic yet this hasn’t stopped our rivals from spending and spending well. Players returning from long-term injuries are described as new signings as too have players that have been tied down on new lucractive deals. We know how the current owners work. We know how it all gets spun. It is, of course, great to see our best players extending their stays, but supporters don’t want to hear that such developments affect what money is available to spend on new players. Our rivals also extend the contracts of their players, but equally they invest heavily into their squads at the same time.

I don’t think that we need to do a Man City and spunk £100million up the wall for Jack Grealish or £160m+ on Harry Kane. I don’t think Liverpool fans think like that at all. We rejected Grealish when he was offered to us for around £24million a few years back and we rejected him again a summer or two later when he was offered to us for around £50million. He’s a great player and one I would love at Anfield, but I don’t want us to spend silly money on anyone, I just don’t like hearing that we have to sell to buy all of the time.

It is claimed that Klopp wanted to sign Donyell Malen but was blocked from doing so because neither Divock Origi or Xherdan Shaqiri were sold first. That’s a really worrying suggestion and one that just deflates me as it’s the kind of policy you just know rings true under Fenway Sports Group (FSG). Borussia Dortmund snapped Malen up for a reported £26million and apparently that couldn’t be advanced to the boss. Throw in the fact that we’ve lost Gini Wijnaldum and the depressing news that the skipper is being mucked around over an extension and you can see why supporters are a bit fed up.

Having really enjoyed EURO 2020 as the fans were back in the stadiums, I couldn’t wait for the new campaign to come around. I have missed watching Liverpool play in front of capacity crowds. In fact, those that follow my content will know that I’ve hardly watched any football since the fans were locked out. It just does nothing for me without an atmosphere and I know that many of you can relate. At a time when we as supporters should be buzzing with excitement, we’ve had to deal with quite a bit of negativity this summer and there’s no wonder that our fan base are locking horns over the owners once again.

I don’t know what the outcome will be this summer, but I’m remaining hopeful that we will do further business. I gave my thoughts on the members’ website last week about where I think we’re at in the market. I think there are offers sitting on the tables at a couple of clubs and that Liverpool’s Michael Edwards is just patiently waiting to see if those clubs bottle it and accept what we’re offering. I honestly don’t think there’s a lot of players that we’re looking at. I think we have identified who we want and if they can’t happen, then there will be no fallback options this summer, where as usually we have someone else lined up should something go t*ts up (think back to Jamal Lewis and Kostas Tsimikas).

I really do think it is imperative that we get shot of Origi and Shaq as quickly as possible. In fairness to Shaq, he wants to move on, he wants to be playing football. Origi on the otherhand is quite happy to collect his handsome salary so he won’t be bullied into a move that doesn’t work for him.

The transfer window closes on 31st August so there’s plenty of time for Michael Edwards to get a couple of deals over the line. I really hope he does because although we have a good squad, we do need replacements and we should always be looking at putting existing players under pressure. I can’t bear the thought of months of ‘FSG OUT’ topics and having to listen to the other side telling us how the Americans ‘saved’ us. All I want to do is watch football and see fair investment from the owners who have seen the value of the club explode thanks to the success delivered by Jürgen Klopp.

Just back the man.

Duncan Oldham
KopTalk Editor