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With less than a week to go until the transfer window closes, Jurgen Klopp has hit back at criticism of Liverpool's quiet summer.

Teenagers Sepp Van den Berg and Harvey Elliott have been the only new arrivals at Anfield this summer with the Reds instead focused on keeping together the majority of their Champions League-winning squad.

Daniel Sturridge and Alberto Moreno are the only senior departures from Klopp's squad last season, while European Cup hero Divock Origi became the latest in long line of players to commit their long-term futures to Liverpool by signing a new contract, following in the footsteps of the likes of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane.

The Reds spent big after losing the 2018 Champions League final to Real Madrid, bringing in Fabinho, Naby Keita, Alisson and Xherdan Shaqiri for over £160million.

Klopp has always insisted a repeat of last summer's transfer activity was not going to happen.

And on the eve of the new Premier League season, he has strongly defended Liverpool's close-season business.

"There was never the intention to spend again because of the team we had last year which is a wonderful age group," he said.

"It’s only in England where you come up with ‘now bring in more quality and new faces’ and all that stuff at the end of a season.

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" Divock Origi has a new contract and all the others have stayed – THAT is transfer business. I know people smile and even laugh about it, that’s just how it is."

He continued: "But keeping a team like this together is not easy. Half the world would like to have these guys.

"And they (other clubs) don’t throw nuts – they have money as well! It’s like this.

"We wanted to keep that team together and it means consolidation, pay the bills, play football, go for everything then after the season we can have a look what happened.

"But this team deserves another year together – that’s how it is. So absolutely it’s a bonus just keeping these guys together for another year."

Despite his lack of senior incomings, Klopp was also adamant his squad is stronger than last season, citing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 's return from injury as an example.

And the German revealed he doesn't believe any available players were capable of improving his squad.

"Six weeks ago we started to make sure we are ready for the new season," Klopp said. "But we have no solution in the transfer market that could solve the problems we will have during the season – that’s the truth.

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"We have to face the problem, find the solutions internally, on the training pitch and go again – that’s what we will try.

"We cannot buy the quality we have up front every summer and say ‘come on, we are bringing another one in of this quality’.

"That doesn’t work so that’s why I don’t like too much to discuss that concept.

"We have fresh blood and fresh legs. Naby Keita is pretty much a new player, Oxlade too, Brewster is a new player, Divock Origi is a new player.

"The rest can make steps and improve and then afterwards we can talk about how they develop."