Grading Liverpool on Their 2015 Summer Transfer Window Dealings
At the end of the 2014/15 season, Brendan Rodgers gave a frank assessment of his position as Liverpool manager and where he would like the club to go—though at the time it seemed unlikely that he would be the man to take the Reds forward, after guiding the perennial top-four hopefuls to a sixth-placed finish, finishing the season with a 6-1 loss at the hands of Stoke City.
"We've finished the season in sixth, it's where we deserve to finish, and we have to start the climb today to get back on [track]," he told the Press Association (h/t This is Anfield) in May, before turning to the future:
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"Our job is now to go away and reflect on this season. There's an awful lot of work to do, and the job is to go and fix that, and make sure we come back with the motivation greater than ever to push on next season.
There are areas that we will address in the summer that will hopefully help us to be more competitive, more consistent, and to be up there from the beginning of the season.
And we as a club will work very hard to make that happen.
"
After a thorough end-of-season review with the club's owners, Fenway Sports Group, it was decided that Rodgers would remain as Liverpool manager, but the 42-year-old had a clear vision of how he could address the problems of his previous campaign.
Shaking up his backroom staff with the departures of assistant manager Colin Pascoe and first-team coach Mike Marsh and the arrivals of replacements Sean O'Driscoll and Gary McAllister, Rodgers set in motion a different approach on the training field. That "awful lot of work to do" was as much for the players as it was for the manager.
Making Liverpool "more competitive, more consistent, and to be up there from the beginning of the season" meant that Rodgers would need to dip into the transfer market once again—and he did so with great frequency, with seven new signings made before the start of the season.
After two wins, a draw, a loss and three clean sheets this term so far, Liverpool look in a much healthier position than at the climax of 2014/15. But how has Rodgers fared in the transfer market, and how much has this impacted his side's progress?
Here, Liverpool's summer transfer dealings—both incoming and outgoing—are subjectively graded on value and quality, with the objectives set out in Rodgers' end-of-season assessment in mind.
Incomings
Two major flaws hindered Liverpool's challenge for the top four in 2014/15: They didn't score enough, and they conceded too many. With this in mind, Rodgers and FSG had a major task on their hands in terms of overhauling a squad that was still reeling from the sale of Luis Suarez to Barcelona in 2014.
With Suarez having settled nicely in Catalonia and Daniel Sturridge missing most of the season through injury, Liverpool needed to sign a new first-choice centre-forward if they were to mount a renewed challenge in 2015/16.
It may have cost the club £32.5 million, but the signing of Christian Benteke from Aston Villa has gone some way to filling this void. Though a questionable fit within Rodgers' previous attractive, possession-heavy tactical philosophy, Benteke's first four games in Liverpool colours—including a goal in the 1-0 win over AFC Bournemouth in August—suggest he can be an effective focal attacking point on Merseyside.
The Belgian's chemistry with key player Philippe Coutinho is particularly encouraging, and while it will take time for Benteke to truly adapt—and for his team-mates to adapt to him—the early signs are that he will be a successful signing for Rodgers.
To further supplement his attack, Rodgers sanctioned the signings of Danny Ings from Burnley and Roberto Firmino from 1899 Hoffenheim—the latter joining in a deal worth up to £29 million. Ings and Divock Origi, a £10 million purchase from Lille last summer, have fleshed out Liverpool's substitute options, while Firmino—despite a slow start—possesses the potential to become a leading attacking midfielder in the Premier League.
In 2014/15, Benteke scored 13 league goals for Villa; Ings scored 11 goals for Burnley; and Firmino scored seven for Hoffenheim. In theory, Rodgers has addressed one of his two key issues this summer.
Furthermore, the additions of Nathaniel Clyne, James Milner and Adam Bogdan are clear upgrades on their predecessors, with the lethargic Glen Johnson, an ailing Steven Gerrard and League One-level Brad Jones all leaving on free transfers at the end of 2014/15.
Clyne and Milner have so far played every minute of every game for Liverpool this season and have been two of Rodgers' most consistent performers—moreover, Milner's experience and winning mentality has made him an ideal vice-captain as Rodgers continues to mould Gerrard's heir, Jordan Henderson, into a formidable leader.
Perhaps the most surprising addition of the summer was £3.5 million former Charlton Athletic defender Joe Gomez, who has transitioned effortlessly into the demands of the Premier League. The 18-year-old has been one of the most effective defenders in the top flight so far this season.
However, Gomez's prodigious rise does not go the full length to address Liverpool's major defensive deficiencies in 2014/15, and with Rodgers looking to become "more competitive," this is a worrying reality.
A 3-0 loss at home to West Ham United on Saturday underlined one key position that Rodgers has failed to address this summer—that being the centre of defence. Persisting with last summer's £20 million signing Dejan Lovren was an admirable move by the manager, but the Croatian's partnership with Martin Skrtel lasted three games before it capitulated and the desperate, hesitant Lovren of last season reemerged.
The failure to add another centre-back and a recognised defensive midfielder to his ranks could prove a costly mistake by Rodgers, while new contracts for the subpar defensive duo of Skrtel and Kolo Toure further highlights this weakness.
Nevertheless, Liverpool's summer incomings look more suited to Rodgers' demands—in particular Clyne and Milner, whose experience in the Premier League have allowed Liverpool to satisfy his objective of being "up there from the beginning of the season"—so overall it can be deemed a solid window for Liverpool.
Incomings Grade: B-
Outgoings
After an ultimately disastrous influx of signings in both 2013 and 2014, this summer was a significant one for Rodgers in overhauling his squad. For him to "go and fix" the misfortunes of the 2014/15 campaign, Liverpool would need to engineer the departures of a host of big-name failures.
Happily, barring a single deadline-day albatross—that of Jose Enrique—Liverpool's list of outgoings is encouragingly comprehensive.
Along with the over-the-hill trio of Jones, Johnson and Gerrard, Sebastian Coates, Iago Aspas, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini all left the club on permanent deals. In particular, Liverpool's success in selling Borini to Sunderland, in a deal worth up to £10 million, according to BBC Sport, represents great business.
Furthermore, the at-any-cost ousting of Mario Balotelli sealed a major renovation of Rodgers' attacking ranks, with the controversial Italian rejoining AC Milan on loan following revelations, via Simon Hughes of the Independent, of his toxic training-ground antics.
Balotelli scored just one goal in 16 Premier League appearances in 2014/15—a major factor in Liverpool's misfortune in front of goal, along with the overall lack of quality from Lambert and Borini.
While the circumstances of his departure are wholly regrettable, Liverpool's success in receiving £49 million for wantaway forward Raheem Sterling is similarly impressive.
With the 20-year-old ensuring, with the help of his Machiavellian representative, that his position on Merseyside was made untenable, that FSG held firm and demanded their full asking price from Manchester City ensured that it wasn't both Liverpool's squad and their coffers that suffered from the former Queens Park Rangers forward's transgression.
Another major positive in terms of Liverpool's outgoings this summer are the promising developmental loans put in place for the Reds' many high-potential academy stars. Danny Ward (Aberdeen), Sheyi Ojo (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Harry Wilson (Crewe Alexandra) and Sergi Canos (Brentford) all joined clubs that are well suited to their develop, with an eye to progress into Rodgers' first team in the near future.
However, elsewhere on the loan market emerged two moves that detracted from the overall success of Liverpool's summer transfer dealings: Lazar Markovic, who joined Fenerbahce on a season-long loan and Tiago Ilori, who made the temporary move to Aston Villa, as reported by Sky Sports.
Markovic and Ilori are both useful squad players for Rodgers at present, with the potential to develop into leading Premier League stars for their respective positions.
Liverpool allowing their temporary departures effectively weakens Rodgers' squad early into a season in which they will be hoping to contend on four fronts—in the Premier League, the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Europa League. Similarly, the decision to terminate Javier Manquillo's two-season loan leaves Clyne pitifully short of cover at right-back.
This is a major oversight by the club, foreshadowed by the current injury problems of Adam Lallana and the worrying form of Lovren. This element of risk detracts from what has been an otherwise positive transfer window for Liverpool ahead of what could be a defining campaign for the under-pressure Rodgers.
Outgoings Grade: B
Overall Transfer Window Grade: B-
Statistics via WhoScored.com.
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