Raphael Honigstein has defended Jurgen Klopp over his prior comments criticising rampant spending in the aftermath of Manchester United’s £100m move for Paul Pogba back in 2016.
The German has come under heavy fire recently after Liverpool secured £64m man Darwin Nunez from Benfica as part of a transfer package that could very well reach the £85m mark in add-ons.
“I don’t think [Klopp’s comment on spending] was a joke, I think it was genuine six years ago,” the German football expert told the Transfer Talk podcast on Sky Sports.
“I don’t think he could foresee the acceleration in wages and transfer fees. I think it shows where Liverpool are that they can spend that kind of money.
“They had to sell in the past, they couldn’t hold on to their best players. It was a situation he was very familiar with at Dortmund, every year they would lose one player and every year you would be constantly rebuilding and losing a little bit of momentum and rhythm as a result.”
Even with the market having been affected by mega deals for the likes of the former (and soon to be once again) Juventus star, the reality is that Nunez is still £15m off the mark in question – and that’s without taking into consideration factors including the Uruguayan’s long-term contract and low wages.
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It’s a significant differentiator even when comparing the arrangement with Manchester City’s initially cheaper purchase of Erling Haaland, which will turn out to be more expensive in the long run thanks to bloated wages.
Either way, Honigstein is right to point out that the market has shifted somewhat since our German tactician first questioned the rampant spending in the sport.
More to the point, as a club whose calling card under FSG has been sustainability in its transfer dealings – indeed, our net spend this summer, should Neco Williams’ move to Nottingham Forest go ahead as planned, will number at £14m – Liverpool are hardly gaming the system like some of their state/oil-backed rival outfits are domestically and abroad.
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