05 May 2023 , 06:00
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Liverpool need a huge rebuild this summer after what has been a disappointing campaign at Anfield.
The Reds have struggled to put together a consistent challenge for a Champions League place and are set to end the season trophyless. Liverpool’s midfield is in dire need of some investment in particular.
Jurgen Klopp has already suggested that his side could be busy in the summer. The German might need a word of warning from Liverpool’s past though.
Some of their lucrative summer spends have really not gone to plan and actually ended up getting them in a worse position afterwards. Take a look at some of their biggest spends and what happened next:
2007/08 - £70m spent
At the time, a record spend for Liverpool in one window, the Reds were fresh off the back of a 3rd-placed finish in the Premier League. Manager Rafa Benitez spent heavily to improve the side and some of the signings were excellent.
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Spanish striker Fernando Torres arrived from Atletico Madrid, whilst Lucas Leiva was signed for a bargain fee. Some signings such as Anrdiy Voronin, Krisztián Németh and Sebastian Leto are best consigned to the history books though.
Big fees were also spent on Ryan Babel and Yossi Benayoun but that huge outlay did not appear to benefit Liverpool who despite losing just four league games throughout the season, ended up finishing fourth. They were also beaten by Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals.
Fernando Torres is one of Liverpool's most successful summer signings ever (Getty Images)Who do you think is Liverpool's best-ever signing? Share your suggestions in the comments below
2011/12 - £56.9m spent
It took a few seasons for Liverpool to spend so heavily in the summer transfer window once again but once they did, it appeared to go disastrously wrong. Stewart Downing was their most expensive arrival at £20m but the winger struggled to settle at Anfield.
Big fees were also spent on Charlie Adam and Sebastian Coates, whilst Craig Bellamy arrived on a free. None of the trio were good enough for the Reds at the time.
Liverpool’s summer was saved by the arrivals of eventual club captain Jordan Henderson and cult hero Jose Enrique. The Reds’ transfer policy was only enough to see them finish 8th in the league and win the League Cup under Kenny Dalglish.
Liverpool's 2011 summer transfer business ended up being infamous (Getty Images)2014/15 - £132.3m spent
Following their mistakes three years prior, Liverpool did not enter the summer market with as much gusto for a while - only for Brendan Rodgers to utterly smash the Reds’ record in the summer of 2014 after the exit of Luis Suarez.
After narrowly missing out on the title a season prior, the Northern Irishman went slightly crazy. The likes of Mario Balotelli, Lazar Markovic, Rickie Lambert and Alberto Moreno are amongst his more misguided signings.
Dejan Lovren, Emre Can, Divock Origi and Adam Lallana were all somewhat of a success but it could be argued that none really lived up to the fees paid for them. Liverpool endured a rotten season after their summer splurge as they slumped to sixth in the Premier League.
Mario Balotelli endured a rotten time at Anfield (Getty Images)2015/16 - £104m spent
The final summer under the stewardship of Rodgers, he had plenty to spend following the exit of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City. And spend he did.
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Liverpool got close to their transfer record to seal a deal for Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke but he left after just one season and ten goals to join Crystal Palace. Away from his signing, the summer of 2015 was relatively successful.
Club icon Roberto Firmino arrived from Hoffenheim, whilst Nathaniel Clyne proved to be a useful signing. Elsewhere, Danny Ings and Joe Gomez arrived for bargain fees, whilst James Milner was recruited on a free transfer.
Despite that, Rodgers was soon sacked to be replaced by Jurgen Klopp with the Reds falling further to eighth in the Premier League.
Christian Benteke proved to be a poor signing for Liverpool (Getty Images)2018/19 - £159.5m spent
Despite a vast array of big fees being spent on lucrative signings, by far and away Klopp’s biggest summer at Anfield was ahead of the 2018/19 campaign. The Reds made Roma stopper Alisson Becker the most expensive goalkeeper in football history for £67m. The Brazilian has proven to be worth every penny.
Liverpool also completed their long-running deal for Guinean midfielder Naby Keita, whilst Brazilian international Fabinho was a surprise recruit from Monaco. The latter has certainly been more successful as Keita prepares to leave Anfield on a free transfer.
Xherdan Shaqiri was also a shrewd recruit from Stoke. Liverpool’s huge spend almost powered them to the Premier League crown with an astounding haul of 97 points only to finish behind Manchester City.
One consolation however was the Reds’ sixth Champions League title as they edged Tottenham in the final.