B/R Football Ranks: How Liverpool Keep Making Better Signings Than Man United

Sunday brings us one of domestic football's biggest fixtures, as the most successful teams in English football go head-to-head.

Liverpool's trip to Manchester United has a different feel to it this time, though. Fortunes have turned, and it is Jurgen Klopp's side that are the pre-game favourites—and could go on to claim their first Premier League title.

Their success stems from great business in recent seasons. Impressive transfer dealings have been a huge part of building the European champions. Now they have their sights on domestic success—while United simply look set to suffer.

The success levels of their signings in recent years has been disappointing. Even after a pretty good summer transfer window, there is still a feeling the club has plenty to do in January.

With Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men in disarray on and off the pitch, and with Liverpool thriving in every area, we take a look at how United ended up in the upside down.

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5. Big-Money Transfer Success

When Liverpool go big, they seem to get it right. Take a glance at Liverpool's five most expensive signings: Virgil van Dijk, £75 million; Alisson, £66.8 million; Naby Keita, £48 million; Fabinho, £40 million; and Mo Salah, £36.9 million.

Five major deals, all made since 2017. All successful.

Now compare it to United's biggest deals over the past three years: Paul Pogba, £89.3 million; Harry Maguire, £80 million; Romelu Lukaku, £75 million; Fred, £52 million; and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, £50 million.

Not quite as impressive.

When it comes to the big moves, the ones that should define how successful your team will be, United just haven't got it right.

4. Clear Planning

Liverpool do not panic in the transfer window. The trait traces back to 2016, when they needed a new left-back but couldn't get their main target. The solution was to play James Milner in the position and wait for a priority target to become attainable. That happened—they signed Andy Robertson from Hull City in 2017 and now have one of the best full-backs in the game.

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

This summer, when Philippe Coutinho was looking to leave Barcelona, Liverpool were touted as a destination. Sources claim they were offered Ousmane Dembele from Barca too. But neither got off the ground. The club is not interested in hasty business deals.

United have been less inclined to show patience, and it is the panic signing of Alexis Sanchez in January 2018 that is still causing the biggest problem because of the extortionate wages they signed him up to.

The summer just gone was the first time in years that a clear strategy was applied; young, hungry, British players were primarily targeted. There are already whispers that a different type of player will be brought in during the next window.

3. Adjustment Periods

Fabinho and Fred are good examples of how big deals have gone differently for the two clubs, as both made significant moves in the summer of 2018.

United had tracked both Brazilian players, but Liverpool stole a march on them by agreeing terms for Fabinho quickly—it left United worried about a gap they had in midfield.

Most insiders expected Fred to join Manchester City, but former United manager Jose Mourinho had made it clear he needed a new body in the middle of the park, so they pushed the boat out to land the Brazil international from Shakhtar Donetsk.

At the time, the transfer seemed pretty smart—he seemed an intelligent player who had UEFA Champions League pedigree. He started last season in the United team but was soon dropped regularly and never built any momentum. 

He has never settled, and sources close to United say a knock-on effect of this is that he lacks drive on the field and is not showing enough bravery on the ball. They largely put this down the fact that he is playing in a team lacking in confidence.

Meanwhile, Fabinho was given time to settle. He was eased into Klopp's style of play and then made his presence known in the second half of last season to great effect.

2. Club Philosophy

Liverpool decided on a philosophy they wanted to follow and chose Jurgen Klopp as the man to lead them forward. Since then, he has instilled strong character values and a clear playing style.

Everyone knows Liverpool love a high press and counter-attack with speed. It's been a constant since Klopp's appointment in 2015. And that has made life easy for staff working in scouting and recruitment because the identity of the side and Liverpool's players is so obvious. Even when results dip, there has been no temptation to change the model.

That has not been the same at United—far from it. Since Sir Alex Ferguson left in 2013, they have tried four permanent managers: David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Solskjaer. 

Each boss had different ideas, different preferences and different ideologies. And it has left United in a mess when it comes to recruiting. The lack of consistency in playing style on the field and personalities within the team has meant that United squad comprises individuals with little chemistry.

1. Sporting Director

Michael Edwards joined Liverpool in November 2016 as part of a restructure behind the scenes, with his main role to identify and recruit new players.

His decision-making has been hugely impressive in his time at the club, and his relationship with Klopp has allowed the boss to focus on dealing with his squad while having confidence that Edwards is getting other pieces of the jigsaw in place.

United have looked into getting someone in a similar role for the past couple of seasons—yet no one has been appointed. It means executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has taken on most major recruitment decisions, and a lot has gone wrong.

According to sources, various people linked with the director of football role—which is what United have looked at—are not confident they would have full control over the process. That is a large reason nothing has changed.

United need to get with the times and change the structure of the club if they are to stand any chance of keeping up with forward-thinking clubs like Liverpool in the transfer stakes.