Jamie Carragher has been picking apart Liverpool’s summer transfer business on the back of the Reds’ latest defeat.
Liverpool lost for the fourth game in a row in all competitions on Sunday afternoon, going down 2-1 against arch rivals Manchester United as their startling slump continued at Anfield.
It followed defeats by Crystal Palace, Galatasaray and Chelsea, and has represented the sharp decline of Slot’s side since they lifted the Premier League title in the Dutchman’s first season in charge last term.
In the summer, the Reds splashed out well over £400million on new talent, with Alexander Isak (£125m) and Florian Wirtz (£116m) costing over £100m each and the likes of Hugo Ekitike (£79m) and Milos Kerkez (£40m) also coming through the door.
Slot, though, has found his new squad hard to balance, and that isn’t necessarily his fault, according to Carragher. He does, though, need to find a way to fix it.
Carragher has called the Reds’ recruitment into question, querying the signing of one player in particular, and compared it to Madrid’s usual summer spending.
Jamie Carragher has branded Liverpool’s summer transfer window ‘Real Madrid-like’ following their heavy spend
The former Reds defender also gave Arne Slot advice on how to get his big-money signings into his team
He highlighted the importance of trying to get Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike on the pitch together
Carragher’s idea included Florian Wirtz playing on the left and Ekitike off of Isak
‘Every Liverpool supporter has been having sleepless nights trying to work out what system they should play and players they should use,’ Carragher began, speaking on Sky Sports. ‘Liverpool’s business didn’t feel Liverpool-like, it felt Real Madrid-like in terms of buying the most expensive players.
‘Ekitike has been Liverpool’s best signing, on the bench. And Wirtz, on the bench. When you spend that type of money, the people who spent it want to see them on the pitch.
‘I was one of the few who wasn’t big on Isak coming in. It is not good for Isak having Ekitike on the bench – he knows if he doesn’t do something in the first 60 minutes then he could be off.’
Slot has experimented with the likes of Isak and Ekitike leading the line, while former Bayer Leverkusen man Wirtz has been in and out of the side.
It has been tough for the Dutchman to keep everyone happy so far, but Carragher came up with his own way of getting the big money signings on the pitch.
‘I think Slot has to find a way of getting both of them on the pitch,’ he continued of Isak and Ekitike. ‘I am trying to wrack my brain.
‘At some stage he has to try and make that work. It was a real Madrid summer – I think he now has to be a Madrid manager.
‘Wirtz cold play left tucked in, it is about getting the money on the pitch. Ekitike at times and Isak off him, could that get Kerkez higher? The game is now about getting the front five up there. When you have spent big money, you have to find a way of getting these players on the pitch. Carlo Ancelotti was the master of that.
‘Liverpool’s summer has always been about planning. When you look on paper at the end of the game yesterday, it was a mess.’
