They’ve come a long, long way
Liverpool are a big club, of that there is no doubt. The Merseyside team have always been a big club, and their recent revival under Jurgen Klopp is merely seeing them edge closer to their former position in football.
Despite this, there was a period which some fans would rather forget, and which opposition supporters would prefer to continue reminding them about.
Namely, the period at the beginning of the 2010s, and particularly the year of 2010.
The world was a different place back then. Barack Obama was the President of the United States, Donald Trump was still just the host of The Apprentice US, and Brexit was a phrase that had not once been uttered in polite conversation.
Another, wholly different occurrence in 2010 was the players that Liverpool signed during the summer transfer window.
Those players were: Joe Cole, Danny Wilson, and the unforgettable Milan Jovanović.
Cole was signed from Chelsea on a free transfer, while Wilson was signed from Scottish Premiership side Rangers. Jovanović however, was signed from Standard Liege on what was rumoured to be a bumper contract following a Bosman move.
Now, these transfers were hit and miss at the time, but a graphic publish by Match of the Day on its Facebook page shows exactly how hit and miss they were, especially compared to the club’s business this summer.
No one knows whether Alisson Becker, Naby Keita, Fabinho and Xherdan Shaqiri will actually be good signings for Liverpool, but they at the very least indicate serious ambition, rather than appearing like players you’d buy when you take over a club on Football Manager.
The signings of three genuinely (or at least very close to) world class players also indicate a club going places, not content with their position, and one which has made major strides in the eight years since Roy Hodgson decided to make a splash in the market.
If nothing else, the comparison will be pleasant reading for Liverpool fans, who should be pretty happy at the progress made in the last eight years.
