Liverpool do not have what it takes to take the Premier League title from Manchester City – unless they sign players for two key positions.
That’s the opinion of former Reds midfielder and The Pitch Prospect pundit Danny Murphy, who has spoken out about his former club’s prospects for the coming season.
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Liverpool were in contention for the title last season until a crucial 2-0 defeat to Merseyside rivals Everton in April all but dashed their hopes.
Now they hope to be able to fight for the title again when their 2024/25 Premier League season starts on Saturday.
They travel to the game against newly promoted Ipswich Town at 12:30 p.m., live on The Pitch Prospect.
For new coach Arne Slot, it will be the first competitive test, as he wants to repeat the good form that the team showed during the pre-season friendlies.
Even though the team made an impressive impression on the pitch in the summer, their transfer window was certainly not quite as exciting.
Liverpool remains the only club to have signed players in the summer transfer window.
And although there is still time until the August 30 deadline, Murphy warned that with the existing personnel, the club does not appear to be able to wrest the title from defending champions City.
“The transfer window is not closed yet,” said The Pitch Prospect. “And the reality is that Liverpool’s transfer business has been excellent over the last five to six years. I expect them to be in the top four but I don’t think they will overtake City.”
“They can’t win with this team, can they? I don’t think so.”
“They will be better, of course. Important signings – yes, I think a centre-back and a defensive midfielder.”
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“If you look at the two best teams in the country last year, with Rodri and [Declan] Rice, Liverpool doesn’t have that.
“And although [Wataru] Endo and [Alexis] MacAllister has performed well in certain games and phases. Liverpool don’t really have that consistent person in midfield who is physically dominant and can control games like those two.”
Liverpool’s reticence in signing new players was not entirely intentional, as the club had already planned to sign a midfielder this summer.
However, it was a heavy blow for them when Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad decided against a move to the Premier League.
And while Murphy does not believe Liverpool’s general lack of signings is a major problem in itself, he did acknowledge that the Zubimendi affair may have damaged the club.
“You can’t judge a team’s signings until the transfer window closes,” he noted. “Big signings and really quality players sometimes take a while to come through.”
“You know what the domino effect does in the transfer market, we have seen it many, many times.
“If a big mistake happens somewhere, they will be very disappointed that they didn’t get Zubimendi because I think they thought it was too much.
“They lost against [Romeo] Lavia and [Moises] Last year they lost to Caicedo and now they’ve lost to Zubimendi. It’s not great, especially because they need a player in that position.”
Liverpool actually suffered a double blow when midfield duo Caicedo and Lavia both ultimately signed for Chelsea, despite hopes they would be the newest members at Anfield.
The former later explained in an interview with Sky Sports that this was because the Reds contacted him “too late” in the day for him to change his mind.
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According to sources, Lavia has since changed his mind because Liverpool made him feel like he was not a priority for them.
As things stand, Liverpool will now have to look elsewhere for a new number 6 – and they don’t have much time to do so.
But it’s not all bad news for Reds fans.
Although Murphy believes that Liverpool are unlikely to win the league title this season with their current squad, he predicts significant progress within their own ranks.
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“Even if they don’t sign anyone, I think they will improve because so many of these young players are getting better,” he admitted.
“You would expect Darwin Nunez to get better and convert more chances. You would expect the young players like Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones, [Conor] Bradley, [Jarell] Quansah has improved overall from the experiences of last season. All those little things.
“So hopefully, yes. And keeping players, I mean [Luis] Diaz has missed half the season. Diaz is a super talent. Keeping him fit will be a big deal.”