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If you like a transfer 'gamble' is Jurgen Klopp your man?

It has certainly appeared that way at times during his Liverpool reign so far.

As the dust settles on a transfer window which has seen the Reds conduct minimal business as their rivals have spent to try and catch up, many fans are thinking the dice have been rolled again.

Reflecting on the club's summer approach, Jurgen Klopp said yesterday: "Is it a gamble? No. I really think it makes sense to keep this team together but we have to prove that.

“If we had bought new players people might ask ‘after you played last season like this you send some of them away?’

“We have to make our decisions based on our expectations of what we think we can do this year. By the way, the history of Liverpool does not end this season.

“We will judge the season and see what we have to do. Maybe then it will be easier to find improvement.”

Understandable uncertainty remains in elements of the fanbase over whether Klopp is right and Liverpool have done enough.

But whenever doubt has been cast over recruitment decisions, the Reds boss and the rest of the Anfield hierarchy have usually turned out to be holding all the aces...

The Sadio Mane dilemma

Back in January 2017, Liverpool endured a miserable run of form. Sadio Mane was at the Africa Cup of Nations and many saw his absence as the reason why.

The answer according to numerous voices outside the club? Sign another forward.

Klopp, however, was seemingly of the view that a short-term solution could create a longer-term problem.

As the ECHO reported at the time, there was interest in the likes of Julian Brandt and Christian Pulisic. But they were not deals that could be done in January.

Unless a quality name who fitted the bill was available, it was clear the Reds would not be opening the chequebook.

If Liverpool bought someone of a lesser standard to take Mane's place throughout the month, would they still be getting a game when the Senegal star returned?

Later in the season Klopp admitted his squad “could have used a new player, for instance an attacking winger” to arrest their Winter slump.

But ultimately, his transfer 'gamble' not to spend recklessly on a compromise solution in January was a shrewd move.

Liverpool's form picked up in March and Klopp guided his side to a fourth-placed finish. Champions League qualification was achieved.

And Mohamed Salah was soon pictured with a beaming smile, leaning on surfaces and signing a contract at Melwood.

Klopp held firm and secured an elite talent. That patience has been handsomely rewarded by the Egyptian king from the moment he arrived.

The wait for Virgil van Dijk

(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Similar scenarios have unfolded in various transfer windows since.

When negotiations with Southampton over Virgil van Dijk broke down in the summer of 2017, there was a clamour to bring someone else in to shore up the defence.

But Klopp opted to sit tight, trust his resources to get him through to January and try again for his top target. This time the Reds were successful.

The subsequent transformation of Liverpool's backline with the big Dutchman as the catalyst is clear evidence of another 'gamble' landed.

When Van Dijk eventually did seal his £75million switch 18 months ago, Philippe Coutinho departed.

Again there was a widespread desire to see a replacement secured instantly - and a fear that not filling the void would prove costly.

But Klopp was unmoved and Liverpool marched on.

The team began to grow in Coutinho's absence, finishing fourth in the league and coming so close to European triumph in Kiev.

The current situation at Liverpool

(Image: Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)

Fast forward to summer 2019 and a familiar tone of debate emerged once more.

The Reds spent big last year and took the final leap needed to close the gap on Europe's football giants.

In came Fabinho, Alisson, Xherdan Shaqiri and Naby Keita for a combined total of more than £170m.

It was the injection of quality needed to propel Liverpool to the highest level, culminating in Champions League glory against Spurs in Madrid.

As this transfer window ticked by without any major additions, some Kopites expressed concerns

Should Klopp have invested just as heavily as in 2018? Should the club have strengthened from a position of strength?

A crucial question lingers now the deadline has passed. Will City prove too big a challenge in the league again given Liverpool didn't splash the cash?

The views of Klopp and FSG

As early as March, the manager was talking down the necessity for significant outlay this summer.

Following the Champions League win against Bayern Munich, Klopp said there was "no need" to shell out at the same level as last year.

He added: “I don’t want to talk exactly what we will do, but I don't think this is a team at the moment where we have to spend the big money or whatever."

Speaking to the ECHO on the club's recent US tour, Klopp reaffirmed that stance.

He said: “We are still looking, but it will not be the (biggest) transfer window of LFC. It just will be a transfer window.

“We will see what we do, and if we haven't done anything by the end it will be for different reasons.

"It's about using this team. In the transfer window, you have to build a team that you think you want to go into the season with. But I have that team already.

“If we can bring somebody else in that makes it even better, we will see. But if not, this team is already there. And again we will have to find solutions at different moments.”

And if the boss did have players he wanted to pursue, all the signs are that the support is there to go for them.

Speaking to the ECHO back in June, Liverpool chairman Tom Werner insisted Klopp would be backed if he had targets in mind.

Werner said: “John (W Henry), Mike (Gordon) and I will leave the transfer business to those who know it so well – Jurgen and (sporting director) Michael Edwards.

“If they recommend someone then we will support that recommendation. Our role at FSG is to support the manager and the people around him in the best way that we possibly can.”

Why Klopp can be trusted again

(Image: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Klopp recently outlined his ideal vision of how a squad should be built and maintained.

He said: "The best way to do it is bring together a group of players, try to develop them altogether and then stay together for a while.

"That was maybe the main problem of Liverpool for the last decade. When they had a good team after a season they went all over the world. That will not happen this year for sure."

He is undoubtedly right on that final point. There has been no summer saga hanging over the club with not even a whisper that any of Liverpool's stellar names were looking to leave.

Not only does this make planning and training easier for Klopp and his trusted lieutenants, but it points to an area where big money has been spent of late: contracts.

The Reds squad is a settled unit with the core of the group tied down to long-term deals.

Divock Origi recently signed on the dotted line, joining Salah, Mane, Roberto Firmino, Jordan Henderson and Joe Gomez who have all committed their futures to Liverpool in the last 18 months.

Many of Klopp's charges are in their peak playing years.

And with further improvement likely to come from fresher faces such as Fabinho and Naby Keita, it already looks like the existing side has the potential to kick on without any extensive need for new recruits.

The 'new players' at Klopp's disposal

When asked about the prospect of new signings last month, Klopp said: “We have brought them already and you don't realise it."

He went on to explain: “Rhian Brewster, Oxlade-Chamberlain didn't play last year, all the young boys didn't play for us last year, they are all new players for us.

“The transfer market is open. We will see what we do, but I don't think it will be the biggest transfer window of all time.”

While it is a perspective some members of the fanbase find tough to swallow given their wish for additions, it is difficult to dispute the premise of Klopp's point.

Brewster has caught the eye in pre-season with a succession of encouraging performances. Oxlade-Chamberlain is showing promising signs too.

The pair only played a combined 24 minutes of senior football in 2018/19. It is plain to see why Klopp is excited about their return to action.

The Reds currently have a number of players on the books who could be on the cusp of a first team breakthrough.

Many flew out on the pre-season tour of the USA looking to impress. Some could still head out on loan in the next couple of weeks before other deadlines pass.

But there is perhaps increased scope this season for those that remain to bolster Liverpool's options.

With the prospect of extra games in the pipeline this term - in the Club World Cup, EFL Trophy, possible progress in the domestic cups - Klopp could be offered opportunities to see what his fringe players are made of and give his proven stars a rest.

Should any of them seize their chance, it could save Liverpool a significant sum in the transfer market and further vindicate the approach taken this summer.

When Liverpool might make their move

Liverpool's strategy this summer - with the signings of Sepp van den Berg and Harvey Elliott, plus a new contract for Ki-Jana Hoever - has been geared towards the club's long-term future.

Last year's expenditure was very much about adding premium quality to the squad to enable the club to forge ahead in the present.

With Liverpool and their scouting department understood to plan two transfer windows ahead, perhaps the big moves will be made in the summer of 2020?

It would make sense if the Reds' spending cycle swung back towards a larger outlay next year, as key stars move further on in their careers and the need for reinforcements begins to grow.

Speaking about Coutinho's transfer situation recently, Klopp dropped a possible hint that may the plan.

Asked about a potential move for the Brazilian this summer, the boss said: "I like Phil, I think he's a fantastic footballer and all that stuff, but it would be a big, big, big, big, big, big, big, big-money signing and it's not our year for that."

It's "not our year for that" kind of expenditure in 2019. But next year could well be a very different case.

The transfer debate is sure to continue despite the window having closed yesterday.

But there are plenty of reasons to have faith in Klopp, his recruitment team - and his squad of Champions League winners at the peak of their footballing powers.

(Originally published on August 3rd)