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New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Liverpool stand accused of double standards on transfers, but their spending is nothing new
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Liverpool have already spent more than £200million ($268m) on new players in this summer transfer window if you include the deal for Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, who arrived on Merseyside earlier this month but agreed to join last year. Advertisement Now, they are preparing to go further, after making contact with Eintracht Frankfurt over Hugo Ekitike (a signing that would probably take their outlay to around £300m), 24 hours after it was revealed that they had approached Newcastle over a proposed £120m deal for Alexander Isak. If either deal is done, it would make this the second-highest single-window spend in English football (behind Chelsea's 2023-24 summer, which nudged over £400m). It is, by any metric, a mind-boggling sum. For context, Liverpool could have signed a starting XI of Sadio Manes — who became the game's most expensive African footballer in 2016 for £30m — for such a figure and still have change left over. Mane arrived shortly before a pre-season tour in the United States, where Jurgen Klopp infamously reacted to the possibility of Paul Pogba re-signing for rivals Manchester United for a fee that was reported to be pushing £100m by implying he would rather do something else with his life than manage a football team if such a sum became the norm. 'The day that this is football, I'm not in a job anymore, because the game is about playing together,' he insisted. By the time Klopp left Liverpool in 2024, he would have the lowest net spend of English football's 'Big Six', yet he — and, by extension, the Liverpool supporters who believed in pretty much everything he said — have been reminded of this quote, as well as a few of the others he directed at Manchester City, Newcastle United and Chelsea, on each occasion the club has subsequently pushed boundaries. Maybe Liverpool would be guilty of double standards if the frenzied summer of 2025 was a departure from an old strategy, ignoring years of careful financial management at every operational level and submitting to the whims of on-pitch success by launching into the marketplace like Saudi Arabia's finest. Advertisement The slightly more boring reality, however, is that this really isn't the case. Liverpool's owners, Fenway Sports Group, may be risk-averse — a source of continual frustration for a section of the club's fanbase — but it has also been prepared for the club to spend its own money freely, both on transfer fees and salaries, when the resources have been there and the situation demands it. One of the reasons Klopp was so successful at Liverpool was that, originally, he was largely on the same page as the owners when it came to buying and selling. The aim was clear: buy small or buy big, but sell even bigger and then try to recycle. Under Klopp, Liverpool achieved great success because of the record fees that brought Virgil van Dijk (£75m) and Alisson Becker (£66.8m), but those deals were only possible because Liverpool sold Philippe Coutinho for roughly the same overall cost. With Champions League and Premier League titles following, Liverpool could work the market better, and with the right guidance at executive level, they could command more money than ever for their assets. Meanwhile, the club's commercial horizons broadened and, steadily, Anfield became bigger, driving more revenues to the extent that they are now England's most profitable club. Under Klopp, the club played Champions League football in six out of seven seasons (reaching the final again in 2022), and more recently, led by a different coach in Arne Slot, they have become English champions again despite a very quiet transfer market last summer, a decision which now looks like either a masterstroke or a slice of good fortune. When the club filed its accounts at the end of May, it showed the highest central payments ever received from the Premier League, and, unlike in 2020, FSG has not had to scale back any of its plans due to the uncertainty of a pandemic. Meanwhile, although Slot's team were knocked out of last season's Champions League in the round of 16 to the eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain on penalties, their almost unblemished record in an expanded group stage brought in around £90m. Advertisement It is true that vast sums have been committed to securing Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah to new contracts, but there have also been incoming funds. Already this summer, sporting director Richard Hughes has sold two players from the club's academy for around £45m of pure profit, with others likely to follow. That is all before you consider the futures of Darwin Nunez (another record buy who ultimately has not justified his price tag but appears to still have a reasonable market value) and Luis Diaz, who seems as determined to leave as Liverpool are to keep him. Even after Florian Wirtz was bought from Bayer Leverkusen for a record £100m plus add-ons at the start of June, Liverpool were exploring their forward options. This was considered a moment of opportunity: champions can attack the market with more confidence and command better money for their own players. It feels awkward connecting the tragic death of Diogo Jota and any transfer activity, but his passing has given the pursuit of a new striker added urgency and clearly presents a challenge in terms of how and when is best to enter the market, for fear of being seen as insensitive. Ultimately, they were already spending big in the window and had room in their budget to bring in another key signing. Perhaps the only withdrawal from the norm is the timing of all this. In the past, FSG and Liverpool have invited criticism by not reacting to success and going big. Instead, they have done it to try to catch up with City. Now they are attempting to accelerate away from them.
The Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Liverpool's ambitious move for Isak can keep Man Utd off their perch once and for all… Fergie would have done the same
THREE decades of looking enviously at Manchester United's dominance clearly brought home the critical lessons to Liverpool. Having toppled the Anfield side off their 'perch', Sir Alex Ferguson set about establishing his own empire. 7 7 That meant never resting on their laurels — enjoy the moment, celebrate, then start again, making the changes needed to refresh and improve. If that means upsetting some of your players, so be it. The club comes first. And while Arne Slot won his first Prem crown by just tweaking the framework he had inherited from Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool's willingness to smash the British transfer record and bring Alexander Isak to Merseyside for £120million is the clearest signal that the Dutchman is looking to create something permanent. The move for Swedish star Isak, 25, is more than an isolated push in a summer of treading water. Instead, it is Slot laying out his cards. Winning the title was great. But it is only the beginning of his ambitions. With nearly a month to go before the start of the new season and Liverpool's team to face Bournemouth on August 15 could show four changes from Slot's first XI last term. Slot's fellow Dutchman Jeremie Frimpong was recruited from Bayer Leverkusen for £29.5m to fill the void left by Trent Alexander-Arnold's decision to move to Real Madrid. But the other transfer targets were about building something even better from a position of strength. Andy Robertson was a Klopp mainstay for seven trophy-stacked seasons but the Scot has started to look increasingly vulnerable. Slot suggested Robertson's disrupted pre-season last summer was a factor but appeared to have signed his immediate replacement, bagging Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth for £40m. And while the midfield trio of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai brought far more control and poise in the engine room than for much of the Klopp era, Slot wanted to upgrade his options. He did that when Liverpool saw off Bayern Munich to lure Frimpong's Leverkusen club-mate Florian Wirtz, with just a little matter of £100m up front, plus up to £16.5m in add-ons. Now, with many inside and outside the club still mourning the tragic loss of Diogo Jota — something that, naturally, will long cast a shadow over the dressing room — Slot is thinking ahead once more. His interest in Isak has never exactly been hidden, although it appeared Newcastle, desperate to hang on to their attacking talisman, had held off Liverpool's desire to land him. But by making a direct approach now, with Isak all too aware that Liverpool are serious about getting him on board, the Anfield chief is showing he believes the title win was just the beginning. 7 TRANSFER NEWS LIVE - KEEP UP WITH ALL THE LATEST FROM A BUSY SUMMER WINDOW It is exactly what Fergie would have done, too. Remember how back-to-back crowns were followed by the shock of losing the title to Blackburn in 1995. Out went stalwarts Paul Ince, Mark Hughes and Andrei Kanchelskis. In came Beckham, Scholes, Butt and the Neville brothers, the Class of 92. It was a pattern that continued. Win then refresh. A pattern that helped Ferguson secure 13 Prem titles in the space of 21 seasons. All while Liverpool, who had been the ones to beat for so long, were suffering a title drought and only managed to finish second twice. Now, with the boot firmly on the other foot, it is Liverpool who are utilising their advantages — just as they always did in those glory days of the 70s and 80s. There may be more to come, too. Slot's signings are eye-catching but he has brought in nearly £56m from the departures of Alexander-Arnold, Jarell Quansah, Caoimhin Kelleher and Nat Phillips, with more to come if Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz go. With Madrid eyeing a move next summer for potentially out-of-contract Ibrahima Konate, the Reds have not given up on Marc Guehi at Crystal Palace. Isak, though, would be the icing on their cake. A line-leader who would offer a constant goal threat, able to hold the ball up and run in behind, and still not even entering his prime years. Keeping hold of Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah was Slot, making them believe last term was the launchpad. What he has done since is already looking like he could finally put Liverpool right back on that perch. 7 7 7
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Jurgen Klopp raises major question over Liverpool's £116m move for Florian Wirtz - and a challenge for Arne Slot
Jurgen Klopp believes Florian Wirtz 's time at Liverpool will be defined by the answer to one major question. The legendary Reds boss is a vocal supporter of the club's swoop for the German superstar but knows success is no guarantee. Wirtz inked a five-year deal with Liverpool in June as he made a £100million switch from Bayer Leverkusen - and that could rise to £116m with add-ons. He was left out of the squad for their first pre-season game against Preston - a 3-1 win at Deepdale - despite other new faces in Giorgi Mamardashvili, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, and Freddie Woodman getting some minutes in. That exclusion was part of a deliberate fitness management strategy. And the major question for Klopp is: where will Wirtz fit in? 'Yes (he will establish himself), although of course I don't know exactly which position Arne has in mind for Florian,' said Klopp. There are an array of options open to Slot. Arguably Wirtz's best position is as a central attacking midfielder. He played there most freqently for Bayer Leverkusen and that frees him up to impact play majorly - last season he scored 16 goals and assisted a further 15. Alternatively, Slot could look to deploy Wirtz as a false nine, dragging defenders out and making more space for Liverpool's wide players to cut in - something Mohamed Salah loves to do especially. Another idea would be to shove Wirtz out wide, perhaps to the left wing. This is not a position he is overly accustomed with, but given how Luis Diaz's future is up in the air amid interest from Barcelona and Bayern Munich, he could be asked to play there sometimes. Alternately, Wirtz could be asked to play in a deeper role as a number eight. This could make sense if Slot wanted to deploy a midfield three with Dominik Szoboszlai still given some free reign as an eight alongside him, with one star - likely either Ryan Gravenberch or Alexis Mac Allister - sitting in as a number six. There is no doubt about Wirtz's destructive ability and as such Slot will likely want to maximise chances of getting him into dangerous areas. But he will also be weighing up what suits the rest of the team. If Wirtz plays in attacking midfield, for example, then Liverpool would likely have two more defensive central midfielders, and that would raise questions for Szoboszlai. After Wirtz signed for Liverpool, Klopp told RTL/NTV: 'This is going to be absolutely fantastic, I'm sure of it. 'It's very hard to strengthen a team when you're champions. But Liverpool have managed it. 'They've signed an exceptional talent in Florian Wirtz. I'm looking forward to seeing it. It's going to be great.'
Associated Press
6 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Club World Cup marked by empty seats, searing heat, weather-delayed matches and Chelsea victory
An expanded Club World Cup marked by empty seats, slashed ticket prices, searing heat, weather-delayed matches and a criticized field surface ended in a surprise victory by Chelsea, the fourth-best team in the Premier League. Among the lasting lessons was FIFA's decision to dramatically drop ticket costs as some kickoff times approached, which could impact decisions by fans thinking of attending next year's World Cup. FIFA lowered the cost to attend the Chelsea-Fluminense semifinal at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, to $13.40 from $473.90, then dropped the Chelsea-Paris Saint-Germain final from $330 to $199.60. There will be 104 matches at next year's expanded 48-nation World Cup and many are likely to be on weekday afternoons. FIFA has not said whether it will use dynamic pricing and refused to comment on discounting. The 63 matches drew 2.49 million, about 62% of the listed capacity. FIFA refused to disclose tournament capacities of venues, focusing on tickets sold rather than about 1.5 million unfilled seats, and would not address price cuts. FIFA president Gianni Infantino assessed the expanded tournament he championed, saying: 'it is already most successful club competition in the world.' Former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp was less enthusiastic, telling the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag it was 'the worst idea ever implemented in football' because of demands on players as a result of the extended season. PSG played its 65th competitive match and Chelsea its 64th since starting in mid-August. Each team will have 33-35 days off before 2025-26 openers. 'I told my players that I had the feeling that this competition will become just as important or even more important than the Champions League,' Chelsea manager Enzo Maresco said. Maresca called the heat dangerous. Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovač said the grass at MetLife Stadium, site of next year's World Cup final, was so short 'it's more a golf green, so you can putt here.' Tiny U.S. television audience The streaming service DAZN bought world rights and sublicensed 24 of the 63 matches to TNT Sports, which averaged 418,000 viewers for the first 23 matches with English-language commentary on TNT, TBS and truTV. Seventeen matches sublicensed to TelevisaUnivision with Spanish commentary averaged 551,000. By comparison, NBC's networks averaged 510,000 viewers per match window for the Premier League in 2024-25, regular-season Major League Baseball is averaging 1,841,000 this year on Fox and 1.74 million on the cable network ESPN. The NFL averaged 17.5 million during the 2024 regular season. DAZN has not yet released figures but says it will during the week. Hot seat Temperature was over 90 degrees (32 Celsius) for many matches, with humidity that made it feel more than 100 (38). 'Honestly, the heat is incredible,' Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez said. 'Playing in this temperature is very dangerous.' Six games were delayed by weather for a total of 8 hours, 29 minutes, raising questions over the suitability of the U.S. for next year's World Cup during a time of global warming. Only four of the 11 U.S. World Cup venues have roofs, and including one that isn't temperature controlled. 'Players have played in these conditions before, but I think it doesn't make it easy and it doesn't make it as enjoyable, for sure,' said former Wales captain Gareth Bale, who attended the semifinals and final. 'It's one of those things and there's no real way around it.' At the 1994 World Cup in the U.S., just seven of 52 games had night local time starts in order to broadcast matches during evenings for Europe television. Missing champions While FIFA hyped the tournament as a competition of the best teams in the world, it didn't include the current champions of England (Liverpool), Spain (Barcelona), Italy (Napoli), Portugal (Sporting Lisbon) and Austria (Sturm Graz) among the dozen European clubs in the 32-nation field. Lionel Messi's Inter Miami got an invite even though it has never won the MLS title. Player welfare For the top players, the Club World Cup meant they likely faced three consecutive years of summer tournaments, following the European Championship and Copa America last year and leading to the World Cup for national teams in 2026. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said impact of the new tournament might not be known until midway through next season. 'I may say: 'So listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The World Cup destroyed us,'' he admitted. Bayern Munich and Germany star Jamal Musiala likely faces months out of action after sustaining a fractured fibula and broken and dislocated ankle in his team's quarterfinal defeat to PSG. A global game FIFA wanted the Club World Cup to help grow the sport globally and shine a light on teams outside of Europe's most popular leagues. Brazilian teams excelled, with all four entrants advancing to the knockout stage. Botafogo produced one of the upsets of the tournament by beating PSG in the group phase, while Fluminense reached the semifinals. Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal advanced to the quarterfinals and eliminated Manchester City. Lionel Messi led Inter Miami to the round of 16, including Major League Soccer's first competitive win against European opposition, defeating Porto in the group phase. Other U.S. teams Seattle Sounders and LA FC were less impressive — with both teams exiting at the group stage, winless. New Zealand's Auckland City lost 10-0 to Bayern, while a game between South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns and South Korea's Ulsan drew just 3,412 fans. A question of quality Messi produced moments of magic, but a bout of acute gastroenteritis limited Kylian Mbappe's involvement. While many matches in the group stage, in particular, were competitive, only a few games will be remembered for iconic moments. ___ AP soccer:
Straits Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Club World Cup proves it is imperfect but here to stay
US President Donald Trump looking at the Golden Glove trophy next to Fifa president Gianni Infantino after Chelsea beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup final on July 13. East Rutherford – The first edition of the expanded Club World Cup wraps up this weekend with Fifa president Gianni Infantino already hailing it as a huge success while the world of football faces up to the idea that an imperfect tournament is here to stay. Infantino's flagship competition – initially supposed to be launched in 2021 before the pandemic intervened – was derided by many, especially in Europe, before it kicked off. It was seen as an unnecessary addition to a crowded calendar, while there were also doubts as to whether it would win over the public. Even after it began former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp dismissed the competition as the 'worst idea ever implemented in football'. However, the last month in the United States has shown that such a viewpoint is surely an exaggeration. Fifa has earned criticism for the number of empty seats at many matches, but fans have turned out, with around 2.5 million attending games across the country. South American supporters in particular helped create vibrant and colourful atmospheres, and the average crowd of almost 39,000 before Chelsea beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the July 13 final was just below that of the English Premier League last season. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. 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'I don't share the opinion of Jurgen Klopp at all because I feel a real Club World Cup is needed and if you ask all the clubs who were here at this competition I am sure all of them would want to do it again.' What they would prefer not to have to deal with again is the kind of temperatures that come with playing during the afternoon in a North American summer. Many matches were impacted by the heat and several faced long delays due to thunderstorm warnings. That looks set to cause major headaches for Fifa at the 2026 World Cup in North America. 'Playing in these temperatures is very dangerous, and obviously for the spectacle... the pace of play is not the same, it slows everything down,' complained Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez. That can be looked at for future tournaments, but it will surely be harder for Fifa to do anything about the dominance of Europe's leading clubs. Europe provided both finalists but did not have things all its own way, with Fluminense of Brazil flying the flag for the rest of the world. They knocked out Inter Milan en route to reaching the semi-finals, while fellow Brazilians Palmeiras got to the last eight along with Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal. The majority of the tournament's huge US$1 billion (S$1.28 billion) prize fund still went to European teams, but the money distributed to competing clubs from around the world could give them a better chance of keeping their best players for longer. Infantino accepts that his tournament would be a greater draw if more of Europe's biggest names were involved but insists it will remain open to clubs from around the globe – even if that means mismatches like Auckland City losing 10-0 to Bayern Munich. 'Auckland represents to some extent 99.9 per cent of all players, who would like to be like them but will never have the chance – there must be a place for everyone,' he said. 'Of course, I would have liked to have Liverpool here, Arsenal, Manchester United, Barcelona, Tottenham (Hotspur), AC Milan, Napoli... but you have to qualify.' Adding more games – up to seven for the finalists – to an already crowded calendar is problematic. Nevertheless, the determination of PSG to go all the way following their Champions League triumph, or Manchester City's disappointment when they went out, suggests that they were fully invested. 'We are very used to not having holidays unfortunately because the schedule is crazy. But when we are in a competition we take it very seriously and we had a lot of ambition for this Club World Cup,' City's Bernardo Silva said after his team's quarter-final exit. And there will be another Club World Cup, even if Infantino has so far played down suggestions the tournament could be immediately expanded further, and staged more often. 'It will happen every four years, it is planned, and the next edition is in 2029,' said Wenger. AFP
