Yahoo News £13m failure, 'league's worst player' - Where Liverpool 2023 transfers are now after Jurgen Klopp decisions
The summer transfer window is coming to a close and Liverpool are set to go into September without any new signings. Arne Slot is the only manager in the Premier League without a fresh addition to the squad while the Reds' Premier League rivals have looked to strengthen their ranks.
This year has been a market that has seen the Reds offload some of their fringe players - in doing so, Fabio Carvalho and Sepp van den Berg have earned top-flight moves, signing for Brentford. Uncertainty still surroundings the futures of Nat Phillips, Stefan Bajcetic and Tyler Morton following the departures that saw a number of youth players Bobby Clark, Luca Stephenson, Luke Chambers, Calvin Ramsey and Harvey Blair leave.
Jurgen Klopp's final season saw a summer of turbulence following the shock exits of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson to Saudi Arabia. Mohamed Salah was the subject of interest from the Middle East but Liverpool rebuffed an eye-watering approach for his services, the German moved to bolster the midfielder in a much-needed move for the Reds to compete for top-four football again.
Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch joined the Reds as part of the midfield reshuffle. A season earlier, Liverpool toiled and slumped to a fifth-place finish after a difficult Premier League season. But how have the departures fared?
Fabinho
Fabinho completed a shock move to Saudi Arabia as he signed for reigning champions Al-Ittihad. Then-managed bid Nuno Espirito Santo, the Saudi Pro League side splashed out £40million on the midfielder as he opted against travelling with the squad for their training camp in Germany.
The 30-year-old, who will turn 31 in October, has two years remaining on his contract in the kingdom. He endured a mixed debut season making 30 appearances in all competitions, 19 in the league, scoring once and picking up two assists.
He has already had four managers since making the move to the Middle East, after a successful spell with Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp, as Espirito Santo was sacked, and replaced by Hassan Khalifa on a temporary basis, before Marcelo Gallardo was tasked with steering them to glory. Ultimately, he didn't succeed and was replaced by former France manager Laurent Blanc.
Jordan Henderson
Jordan Henderson made the controversial move to Saudi Arabia as he reunited with former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard.
The England midfielder was immediately installed as the captain at Al-Ettifaq but after just six months and 19 appearances, he returned to Europe as he made the much-publicised move to Ajax.
"I think a lot of people would like me to sit here and criticise the Saudi thing and everything that went with that but that certainly wasn't the case and not something that I'm going to do," he said.
"I've got full respect for the league and Al-Ettifaq the club and the people over there. They really made me feel welcome. Unfortunately sometimes these things in life just don't work out, in football and life in general.
"If you look at big players that are there and loving every second of it and staying there for a long time. You might get players who don't settle and don't stay for a long time, or whatever it might be, things can change quickly.
"I would definitely not sit here and speak badly of the league, the clubs or anything like that."
Ajax finished fifth in Eredivisie and qualified for the Europa League but they have made an indifferent start to the campaign winning and losing in their first two matches.
Roberto Firmino
Roberto Firmino was among the Liverpool players who left upon the expiry of their contracts at the end of the previous season.
The Brazilian joined the exodus to the Saudi Pro League, signing for Al-Ahli. However, it was a season without a trophy in the Middle East as they finished third in the league and were knocked out of the domestic cup in the Round of 16 stage.
Firmino finished with nine goals and six assists in 32 appearances. He will be looking for a better campaign this time around.
James Milner
James Milner remained in the Premier League as he joined Brighton & Hove Albion on a free transfer.
The Premier League veteran's experience was utilised as he was deployed in five different positions for the Seagulls under Roberto De Zerbi. The Italian left the AMEX Stadium at the end of the season and was replaced by Fabian Hurzeler.
Hurzeler won promotion to the Bundesliga with St Pauli and was immediately prised away from Hamburg. The move for the German tactician saw Brighton appoint a tactician seven years younger than Milner.
Naby Keïta
Naby Keita's time with Liverpool was plagued with injuries and upon the expiry of his contract, he made the return to Germany signing for Werder Bremen.
It was said that the Guinean took a 75 per cent pay cut to rejoin the Bundesliga. But the 29-year-old's time at the Weserstadion wasn't shy of controversy.
He was reduced to just five appearances, totalling 107 minutes, for Bremen after injuries and illness ravaged his debut season. Keita hit the headlines following reports that he was accused of refusing to play for the club against Bayer Leverkusen.
The negative headlines continued as he was voted the 'worst player in the Bundesliga' by his fellow professionals before being banished by the club at the beginning of August.
Leighton Clarkson
Following a successful loan spell at Aberdeen, Leighton Clarkson completed a permanent move to Pittodrie.
The 22-year-old made 49 appearances for the Dons in what was a difficult season for Aberdeen as they finished ninth and in the bottom half of the Scottish Premiership table.
Clarkson was ruled out for up to eight weeks with a shoulder injury at the beginning of August and missed the beginning of the league campaign, after four games in the League Cup.
Max Woltman
Max Woltman joined Oxford United for an undisclosed fee at the beginning of August 2023.
The 21-year-old didn't make a league appearance for the O's as he made just three appearances in the EFL Trophy. Woltman was billed as a development project by figures at the Yellows.
It was a successful season on the pitch for Des Buckingham's side as they won promotion to the Championship after winning the League One play-off final.
Layton Stewart
Layton Stewart was another youngster that left Liverpool on a permanent basis, last summer. The then-20-year-old made the move to the Championship, penning terms with Ryan Lowe's side Preston North End for an undisclosed fee.
"We'll take our time with him and build him up," Lowe said. "He'll need to get used to Championship football so I don't want to put too much pressure on him from the outset."
Last season, he made 16 appearances but failed to register a goal or an assist. So far this term, he has yet to feature as the Lillywhites have endured a difficult campaign which saw Lowe leave after just one match, he was subsequently replaced by Paul Heckingbottom this week.
Liam Hughes
Northern Irish goalkeeper Liam Hughes left the club after being released in June 2023. The shot-stopper spent time out in the wilderness as a free agent before signing for Finnish club Haka on a two-year deal.
He has made two appearances in the domestic cup, both coming in February, but has yet to make an appearance in the league.
Jack Bearne
Attacker Jack Bearne spent time on loan at Kidderminster Harriers during his final season at Liverpool, scoring three goals in 26 appearances.
Following the expiry of his contract, he signed for Greenock Morton scoring one goal in 31 outings, providing two assists.
He left Scotland in the summer and returned to English football as he signed for Hednesford Town in the Northern Premier League West - where he will visit Merseyside and the North West when they take on Bootle, City of Liverpool, Widnes and Runcorn Linnets.
Bearne has one goal so far this season, scoring the opener in a 2-0 win over Nantwich Town.
