Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp unconcerned by Premier League rivals' spending

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 25 July 2017

Jurgen Klopp reiterates that Liverpool are still in the market for big-name players, but he is not willing to spend large sums of money just for the sake of it.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has claimed that he is relaxed about his side's transfer spending to date and is "not interested" in how other teams are getting on in the market.

The Reds have spent around £45m to bring in three new players during the first half of the window, the vast majority of which was paid to Roma to land attacker Mohamed Salah.

Klopp has been left frustrated in his efforts to sign Virgil van Dijk and Naby Keita from Southampton and RB Leipzig respectively, though, with Liverpool seeing their Premier League title rivals work overtime to land their own top targets in recent days.

Former Borussia Dortmund chief Klopp is unwilling to spend big just for the sake of it, though, and is happy to play the long game.

"There's a feeling that the transfer window is more interesting than the league," he told reporters. "People [look at who their club have bought and] think: 'Oh we are winning already.' Unfortunately after the transfer window you have to carry on playing. That's what I am most interested in.

"It doesn't mean we don't want to bring players in. We've always brought players in. Wonderful players. But it was not like - I don't know – [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic, [Romelu] Lukaku and others. Does that mean we can't do it? I have no idea. We will see.

"We want to do the right thing and not calm the people down with a big signing and everyone will think now you have to [win the league], then its: 'Oh, obviously you can't'. I'm not interested in what other clubs are doing until we play them. So they can make the best business or the worst business, I'm not in it."

Liverpool, who have won three and drawn one of their summer friendlies to date, return to pre-season action on Saturday with a meeting against Hertha Berlin.