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Jurgen Klopp insists Liverpool will have the spending power to compete for the top class signings he craves this summer.

The Reds’ slump since the turn of the year has re-ignited the debate over whether owners Fenway Sports Group have invested sufficiently in the playing squad.

Klopp has returned a profit on his transfer dealings during his Anfield reign and a lack of depth has cost Liverpool dear with just six points taken out of the last 21 on offer.

The manager knows that a sizeable injection of quality will be required, regardless of whether the Reds go on to land a Champions League spot between now and May.

Bayer Leverkusen winger Julian Brandt is one of his main targets and Klopp is convinced that money won’t be an issue.

Asked if Liverpool could compete at the top end of the transfer market this summer, Klopp said: “I think yes. What is the highest level?

“Is it only to battle with the teams around? I think it’s pretty difficult if Barcelona makes you an offer, I am not sure a player will choose you instead.

“Domestically? Yeah, we can go for the players we want. It was not since I was here for one second about money. Nobody told me in this club: 'Stop, that is too much money.' It was always because we were convinced about the player, the situation.

“One or two players in January, when we had problems with injuries and the Africa Cup, would have been cool. Could we have had more? Yes, but the transfer window in the winter didn’t give us any opportunity. We had this problem, but we will be prepared and ready for the summer for sure. We need to still make the right transfers.”

Klopp is adamant he didn’t have to balance the books last year when his outlay of around £70million was covered by the sale of fringe players like Christian Benteke, Joe Allen, Jordon Ibe, Martin Skrtel, Luis Alberto and Brad Smith.

And the Reds boss says he won’t have to generate funds in order to spend big this summer.

“We have all the same plan,” he said.

“Sporting director, scouting department, owners, myself, we want to make this club as big and successful as possible. We will spend money in the summer.

“Will it be a similar transfer window as last summer when we broke even? I don’t think it’s possible. Again, it was not a target last season. We didn’t say: ‘Let’s see if we can do it.’ It just happened. It was a big squad and we tried to create more of a group which we thought would be enough. There will be a few other faces and that’s how it is always.”

If United make an offer, if Chelsea make an offer, does it make sense to jump in?

Liverpool’s spending has been dwarfed by the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City in recent years but Klopp says there’s more to it than just cash when it comes to attracting players.

“If you only think you have to spend the same amount of money as other clubs, then yeah, maybe it’s more likely to fight for the same players,” Klopp said.

“Is it possible to fight with those clubs for those players? In a few moments it is possible. It will not be about money I am sure.

“We can go for the players we want to go for. Can we go for a player Manchester United want to go for? If United make an offer, if Chelsea make an offer, does it make sense to jump in? I don’t know.

“So is it then about money or is it that players think: ‘Manchester is a nicer city or I want to live in London instead of Liverpool?’ We have to make a decision apart from what the other clubs want.

“We have to make a decision, and if then the club comes to me and says: ‘That is too expensive’, I have to accept it. But that didn’t happen until now and I don’t expect it to happen.”

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When it comes to deciding who is surplus to requirements, Klopp says he will assess the current crop’s contribution over the entire season. After so many players were found wanting in the dismal defeat at Leicester on Monday night, he’s expecting much better when Arsenal visit Anfield on Saturday.

“I can’t judge them after the worst game of the season or the best game of the season,” Klopp said. “I don’t doubt them as a group, but doubt doesn’t mean that we cannot improve.

“For this moment in this season when we can’t make transfers any more, we have to concentrate on this. That’s why I said after the Leicester game that we are all playing for our futures. That’s how it is, we get judged.

“We create the need for transfers or not by ourselves. If we perform at the highest level, nobody asks for new players. If you don’t, everybody asks for them. That is the situation we are in. We are working on it already, without looking too much at results. We are looking at development of the player.”

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