Sunday People

It’s time to get your A-lister game on, Mr Henry STAN COLLYMORE

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By comparison, if something happened to Kevin De Bruyne at the Etihad, Bernardo Silva steps in.

When Sergio Aguero is struggling with his knee, Gabriel Jesus does the business.

At Old Trafford, Jose Mourinho has Anthony Martial and Juan Mata to call upon – although, judging by the FA Cup final last week, he’s still seeking a genuine replacemen­t for Romelu Lukaku.

If Liverpool are to close the gap, they need genuine A-listers as backup. And I believe now is the time to strike.

By reaching two European finals in three seasons, Klopp has shown he can manage.

And FSG must demonstrat­e their commitment by using the £75million-plus generated by this run and back their man in the transfer market.

I am NOT talking about signing the likes of Andy Robertson from Hull City – as good as he has been.

I AM talking about wandering into White Hart Lane, plonking £150m on the table in front of Daniel Levy and saying, ‘I’ll give you that for Christian Eriksen, Toby Alderweire­ld and Dele Alli’.

Arsenal’s then mover-and-shaker David Dein complained in 2003 about Roman Abramovich – when the Russian first appeared at Chelsea – that he had parked a tank on their front garden and was firing £50 notes at Highbury.

Well, I want FSG and head honcho John W Henry (above, right) to do that to the two Manchester clubs.

I know that central midfielder Naby Keita is en route from RB Leipzig. I see that Lyon’s £60m-rated forward Nabil Fekir is on the list of targets.

That needs to be just the start. The reason why I believe the time is now can be seen from the history books. Do you remember the previous time Liverpool really set pulses racing in Europe?

I’m talking about the Miracle of Istanbul against AC Milan in 2005, and how the club’s profile enabled them to land Fernando Torres and Javier Mascherano, players at the very peak of their powers.

These kind of imports will make a difference – and they will be looking at Liverpool and thinking to themselves, ‘Yes, I’d like to be a part of that’. Who wouldn’t want to be? Massive club with a huge, passionate fanbase and a manager who walks around with a smile on his face and also likes playing football on the front foot.

What’s not to like? And I wouldn’t have any problem splashing the cash on genuine talent. Pep Guardiola has spent almost £450m in less than two years.

Mourinho’s outgoings are in excess of £300m and it must be said Klopp – thanks mainly to the £142m from Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho – is almost in credit.

He has won the right, too, to have a dart in the market – and the owners should be given confidence by his transfer dealings so far.

Moves for Salah and Sadio Mane are the standouts, obviously.

Marquee

Isn’t it strange that no one is highlighti­ng Liverpool’s supposed defensive deficienci­es now that Virgil van Dijk has arrived?

And Robertson’s performanc­es at left-back are just seeking to highlight – for £7m – what is lacking in Luke Shaw’s game at four times the cost.

But I would still like the owners at Anfield to give the green light for three or four marquee signings.

To provide additional cover, to win matches the club has in the past been drawing – and to close what is a sizeable gap on Manchester City and halt Mourinho in his tracks.

So come on, Mr Henry, how about it?

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