Transfer Roundup: Wirtz, Frimpong, Kerkez, Ekitiké(?), and Those Leaving

A lot of ground to cover

These are heady days, as the season ends with Liverpool still ranked #1 on the Club Elo Index (despite the Reds wisely easing off for the final month), as the top 24 comprises 12 Premier League teams (once again underlining the quality of the league), while the Europa League winners, Spurs, rank 34th.

Winning the league early and allowing a decompression month could be vital, but also, this was a Liverpool team that played to its strengths and romped to the title, yet also has scope for maybe 30% improvement.

As things stand, this article is what I see the new players offering (if/when the deals are finalised), and how Slot may use his versatile players in versatile systems.

It seems that the Reds have done the smart thing by getting the Ins sorted first (in this special window, allowing players to be ready well before preseason), then sort the Outs afterwards, knowing the interest is there in those who wish to seek pastures new, or will be asked to seek pastures new; and the Reds will avoid being held to ransom when buying as the window approaches its close.

Of the player castigated for leaving for free, Liverpool have received £10m, a month before the £0 Bosman kicked in; a nice bonus, for certain. (I’ll also be glad that the constant, tiresome talk of the Contract Trio last season is now over, and I’ll do my best to ignore what goes on at Real Madrid unless they cross paths with the Reds.)

Remarkably, next season, Liverpool, despite losing an elite passer, could end up with a net balance of more creativity, more goals in the team, more pace in the team, more stamina in the team, and an average age reduced from 27 to 25-26, despite keeping three older starters; and where almost all the youngest players in the squad will have, at minimum, close to 100 senior career games (such as Jarell Quansah) or over 100 (Conor Bradley).

With the rapid Jeremie Frimpong – 24, and already 245 club games under his belt – the first to be confirmed, a deal for Florian Wirtz is said to be nearing completion, along with a deal for Milos Kerkez, and maybe a new no.9. (Wirtz and Liverpool are still negotiating, but it seems a compromise will be reached.)

I’m still trying to work out if Hugo Ekitiké will also arrive, or another no.9, or no new no.9 at all. (Chelsea are currently believed to be favourites, albeit have also just signed a no.9; not that having 700 players has ever been a problem for them.)

I’m open to all three (Wirtz could play as a false nine), albeit I think Ekitiké is one of the few whose game is so complete and varied that I can see how it could work, as he’s far from a standard no.9.

For example, Erling Haaland is the very bottom percentile in the top five leagues amongst strikers for passes per 90 (12!), despite playing in a super-heavy passing team, and does very little, if anything, outside the box, which overall has seen City become less effective since he went there; Ekitiké is 76th percentile for passes, making over twice as many, in a much lower possession team. Yet Ekitiké also has more touches in the opposition box, which is the one thing Haaland excels at.

The question is, are Liverpool genuinely in for Ekitiké? Is he headed to Chelsea? And if Liverpool want a new no.9, who else fits the profile?

I said all through last season that Liverpool, while superb, lacked killer pace. Now they’ll have killer pace. And will have more energy, creativity, goals, and a freshening up at the right time, but with the right players, hungry to see Anfield celebrations like this year’s in 2026 and beyond.

And so, some of the things I’ll look at:

• How the team might look, and how it can be reshaped within matches or between matches;

• Why Florian Wirtz is almost unique in terms of creativity and finishing ability;

• The high variance of finishing and why it’s hard to judge a striker against one season’s xG performance;

• How much Liverpool can afford to spend;

• What elements are being added to take the team to the next level.

**This article is for paying TTT Main Hub subscribers only.**