Alan Hansen finally speaks on Jurgen Klopp – criticises squad, says £200m needed to fix it

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Liverpool’s legendary former central defender Alan Hansen has discussed Jurgen Klopp’s current squad, and as per usual, pulled no punches.

The Scot has kept himself out of the media spotlight since retiring from Match of the Day, but gave an interview to the Independent in which he weighed into the current team and Liverpool’s failures in the transfer market to date.

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“These players are not going to win the league, so realistically they probably need five major signings,” Hansen began.

“Jurgen Klopp will have taken the job already knowing who he wants to bring in. The owners have brought him in and now they need to back him, but the problem is the money.

“From what I understand Fenway Sports Group have told the manager it is not a bottomless pit. So the problem he might have is that the owners have invested so much already, will they be reluctant to do it again? They have spent a lot – £20m on Lazar Markovic, and then he was sent out on loan.

“You could say they need to spend £100m, but where does that get you in today’s market? If they are going to have a real go it needs to be more like £200m – but you can’t just snap your fingers and solve the problem.”

Hansen’s views are harsh, and perhaps unrealistic as well.

Manchester United have proven in the past few years that simply throwing money at players doesn’t automatically turn a side back into Premier League title contenders.

On a lesser extent, Aston Villa and Newcastle spent big in the summer – and have got worse.

Liverpool need to be sensible but ambitious in the transfer market – targeting specific players for specific roles in Jurgen Klopp’s long-term plan. They should be able to walk straight into our first-team, but it’s clear that we’re not going to simply splash £200m on five new first-team players yet. The process will be gradual, we imagine – with money being saved for when the right player becomes available.

With that attitude, Arsenal acquired Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, and it’s that kind of player Liverpool need to transform our fortunes.

Marko Grujic and Joel Matip will join properly in the summer, but you can be certain more will follow in what could quite possibly be a window that defines Klopp’s first few years at the club.

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