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In the wake of Liverpool's agonising Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid, there were three areas which clearly needed to be addressed this summer.

The first involved securing a replacement for Juventus-bound Emre Can. That was achieved with ruthless efficiency as the Reds quickly wrapped up a £43million move for Monaco's Brazilian midfielder Fabinho.

The second was filling the void which had existed since Philippe Coutinho was sold to Barcelona back in January. Liverpool coped admirably without him but the need to sign a creative class act capable of unlocking a stubborn defence was glaring. A potent attacking armoury had to be reinforced.

Again the Reds acted with haste. Nabil Fekir was the man Jurgen Klopp identified and Liverpool sporting director Michael Edwards thrashed out a £53million deal with Lyon.

A fortnight ago, just hours away from an expected announcement and with the France international's club media duties already completed, the transfer dramatically collapsed. Liverpool had sought a second opinion over concerns about Fekir's knee and ultimately decided not to proceed under the terms agreed.

His agent insisted this week “this is not the end of the story”, fuelling talk that the deal could be renegotiated after the World Cup.

The tournament was always going to have an impact on Liverpool's summer transfer business – both in terms of incomings and outgoings.

Things will only start to happen again as players' involvement in Russia ends. If the Fekir deal isn't revived then Klopp will target an alternative.

(Image: Andrew Teebay / Liverpool Echo)

But what about the third area which needed to be strengthened and arguably the most important – the keeper situation?

A month on from Loris Karius' painful meltdown in Kiev, Liverpool's pursuit of a new No 1 has gone very quiet.

The ECHO understands that recent speculation linking the Reds with Burnley's Nick Pope and Lazio's Thomas Strakosha is wide of the mark.

Alisson was the one Klopp wanted but hopes have been dented by Roma's £70million-plus asking price and the Brazilian's desire to join Real Madrid.

Tempting Jan Oblak away from Atletico Madrid wouldn't be easy and there's the small matter of his £88million release clause.

If landing someone of that calibre isn't possible then Klopp has a big decision to make – does he lower his sights in the transfer market or stick with what he's got?

What we know from the opening three years of his Anfield tenure is that Klopp won't buy for the sake of it and he certainly won't be swayed by public opinion.

In the summer of 2016 the calls for him to buy a left-back and a holding midfielder were deafening but he did neither.

Last summer he ignored the clamour to sign a centre-back after the Reds failed to land Virgil van Dijk. He decided to wait six months for the Dutchman.

It was a similar story when Liverpool sold Coutinho and Klopp decided not to instantly replace him.

If he doesn't buy a keeper this summer it would represent the biggest gamble of the lot.

(Image: SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP/Getty Images)

Only Karius will know how much that blow to the head from Sergio Ramos contributed to his two catastrophic mistakes in Kiev.

Take that night out of the equation and the German keeper did improve over the course of last season. But there were still some alarming mistakes along the way, not least in both legs of the semi-final against Roma.

With Simon Mignolet expected to depart, can Liverpool really kick on with Karius and Danny Ward competing for the No 1 shirt in 2018/19?

Dejan Lovren has taken the road to redemption under Klopp and Karius will hope to tread the same path. It would be some comeback.

Whether to give him that opportunity or dip into the transfer market is the biggest decision facing the manager over the coming weeks.