'Not great,' Liverpool manager Arne Slot has been told he would make two summer signings to challenge for the Premier League title
Liverpool do not have what it takes to take the Premier League title from Manchester City unless they sign players in two key positions.
That's according to the former Reds midfielder and talkSPORT pundit Danny Murphywho has given his opinion on his former club's prospects for next season.
Liverpool They were in contention for the title last season until a decisive 2-0 defeat In April, Merseyside rivals Everton virtually ended their hopes.
They will now hope to get back into title contention when their 2024/25 Premier League campaign gets underway on Saturday.
They travel to face newly promoted Ipswich Town at 12:30pm. Live on talkSPORT.
It will be the first competitive test for the new coach Arne's Slotas he looks to repeat the good form the team has shown during their pre-season friendlies.
However, while the team has looked impressive on the pitch over the summer, their transfer window certainly hasn't been as exciting.
Liverpool remain the only club yet to make any signings during the summer transfer window.
And although there is still time before the August 30 deadline, Murphy has warned that the club do not look capable of taking the title from the reigning champions. City with your existing staff.
“Well, the window is not closed,” he told talkSPORT. “And the reality is that Liverpool's transfer business over the last five or six years has been excellent. I expect them to be in the top four, but I don't think they'll overtake City.
“They can't win with this team, right? I don't think so.”
“They will be better, of course they will be. New important signings: yes, I think a centre-back and a holding midfielder.
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“When you look at the two best teams in the country last year with Rodri and (Declan) Rice, Liverpool don't have that.
“And while (Wataru) Endo and (Alexis) MacAllister did well in certain games and certain periods, that consistent person in midfield who is physically dominant and able to control games like those two do, Liverpool don't really have that.”
Liverpool's lack of signings has not been entirely intentional, given that they were already planning to sign a midfielder this summer.
But they gave them A huge blow when Real Sociedad's Martín Zubimendi opted not to go ahead with a move to the Premier League.
And while Murphy does not believe Liverpool's lack of signings in general is a major concern in itself, he did admit the Zubimendi affair may have hurt the club.
“You can't judge a team by its signings until the transfer window closes,” he said. “Important signings and high-quality players sometimes take a while to come to fruition.”
“You know what happens in the transfer market: we have seen it many, many times.
“If there is a big shot coming from somewhere, they will be very disappointed that they didn't sign Zubimendi because I think they thought that was going too far.
“Last year they lost to (Romeo) Lavia and (Moisés) Caicedo and now they also lost to Zubimendi. It's not good at all, especially when they need a player in that position.”
Liverpool suffered a double blow when midfield duo… Caicedo and Lavia Both ended up signing for Chelsea, despite hopes that they would be the newest members of Anfield.
The former later explained in an interview with Sky sports that it was because the Reds had contacted him “too late” in the day for him to change his mind.
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Meanwhile, sources have reported that Lavia changed his mind because Liverpool had made him feel that he was not a priority for them.
As things stand, Liverpool will now have to look elsewhere for a new No.6, and they won't have much time to do so.
But it's not all bad news for the fans of the red team.
While Murphy believes Liverpool are unlikely to win the league title this season with their current squad, he did predict notable progress within their ranks.
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“If they don't sign anyone, I still think they will improve because a lot of those young players are improving,” he admitted.
“You'd expect Darwin Nunez to get better and convert more chances. You'd expect young players like Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones, (Conor) Bradley, (Jarell) Quansah to have gotten better with the experience they had last season. All those little things.
“So, hopefully, yes. And keeping the players, I mean, (Luis) Diaz missed half the season. Diaz is a great talent. Keeping him fit will be very important.”
