The final knockings of the 2024/25 campaign are drawing close, and Liverpool are on the brink of celebrating a Premier League title in front of their fans after 35 years.
Jurgen Klopp put the club back on their perch when he ended the interminable drought in 2020, one year after incredibly winning the Champions League, but they were denied the merriment from reaching its deserved level, intermingling reduced due to government restrictions.
But now, with Arne Slot at the helm, the Red sea will be out in force this weekend, with just one point needed against struggling Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield to seal the title.
It’s remarkable, and the city will lap it up. Liverpool have been brilliant this season, solid at the back, dogged in midfield, and slick in offence.
Mohamed Salah has been the architect of so much attacking play, posting 32 goals and 23 assists across all competitions in a year that will surely see him crowned the Premier League’s Player of the Season for the second time.
However, the output has been somewhat lopsided, and it’s no surprise FSG are looking to enrich the frontline in the transfer market this summer.
Why Liverpool need to improve their attack
Firstly, Liverpool’s ‘star’ striker, Darwin Nunez, is expected to be sold at the end of the season after failing to adapt to Slot’s tactics. He’s started just one Premier League game since Boxing Day, yielding a measly seven-goal haul under the Dutchman’s wing.
Liverpool need more impetus from their focal frontmen, with Diogo Jota also flattering to deceive at times this season, injured at others, while Luis Diaz performs dutifully in a dynamic central berth when called upon but lacks that innate goalscoring instinct.
Cody Gakpo has looked far sharper in a more structured left flanking role under Slot, arcing inward to strike on goal, but it’s clear that Liverpool could do with a bit more snap in attack to take them to the next level next year and compete for titles across multiple fronts.
Mohamed Salah
47
32
23
Cody Gakpo
44
16
6
Luis Diaz
46
15
8
Diogo Jota
33
9
4
Darwin Nunez
42
7
7
Federico Chiesa
11
1
2
Liverpool’s sky-high pedigree, the balmy conditions Slot and Klopp before him have created, suggest that the world’s finest would be tempted with a move to Merseyside this summer.
And one of the best out there might just be on FSG’s radar.
Liverpool chasing marquee signing
According to Caught Offside, Barcelona have set their asking price for Raphinha at €90m (equating to about £77m) ahead of the summer market.
Though La Blaugrana won’t necessarily want to force their high-flying forward out the door, ongoing financial bother could prove to be enough to hold sway, with their decision to set a price at this early stage indicative of their stance.
Liverpool could do with a dynamic, balanced attacker such as the Brazilian, but they aren’t the only club in the race, with Arsenal and Chelsea both keen too.
It feels like sporting director Richard Hughes will need to start putting in the groundwork swiftly if the Merseysiders are to prevail.
Why Raphinha would thrive at Liverpool
With Diaz, 28, about to enter the penultimate year of his contract, Liverpool are currently working out whether to renew his terms and take the Colombian’s deal into his 30s or to cash in while his stock is high.
Barcelona, by the by, have a long-standing interest in the player. Some food for thought.
Raphinha would almost be a shoo-in for the Ballon d’Or this year were Salah not in such almighty fettle, the 28-year-old having scored 30 goals and added 23 assists across 49 matches since the campaign’s opening.
As per FBref, he ranks among the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for goal involvements and the top 8% for shot-creating actions per 90, so you can see how he’d improve Liverpool’s frontline, enhancing Gakpo, Salah and that new centre-forward who is as yet undetermined.
Given that 40 of Raphinha’s 53 contributions have come when positioned on the left, he could be the perfect Diaz replacement, maybe even emulating a former Liverpool superstar in Sadio Mane.
Deadly in front of goal and electric up and down the field, Mane really was a one-of-a-kind player, never reaching the same numerical heights as Salah in Klopp’s team but still establishing himself as one of the best players in the world.
The Senegal legend won the lot, and while Diaz has been a worthy successor, he’s never reached that same ridiculous level. Raphinha, however, is proving himself to be a cut above Liverpool’s man and could indeed take Slot’s project to new heights.
He’s actually been described as the “best player in the world” this season by Statman Dave, so threatening and incisive in a way that is done with a flourish.
Raphinha also has Premier League experience with Leeds United, similar to Mane, who plied his trade with Southampton before transferring to Liverpool for £34m in 2016, one year into the Klopp era.
Hailed as a “magician” of a footballer by his former Whites teammate Dan James, Raphinha would be the perfect player to join a title-winning cause.
His sweeping skill set is exactly what Liverpool need, adding a goalscoring dimension while raising the playmaking level too.
With 19 goal contributions across 12 matches, the fleet-footed winger has probably been the standout force in the Champions League this season and may yet play an even bigger part in the narrative, with Barcelona preparing for a two-legged showdown with Inter Milan for a place in the final.
His potency on the left flank denotes a Mane-esque quality that could ease Salah’s burden and create a healthier and more poised approach next season.
It really does feel like a no-brainer for a Liverpool side looking to leap even higher in Slot’s second season, finances, of course, permitting.
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