Jamie Carragher Thiago’s arrival makes title task even harder for brave Lampard
➤ Chelsea manager has rightly spent big but Klopp is in luxurious position of adding to winning formula
Managers who buy big are prepared to risk their reputation. They should not be sneered at
Who had the tougher job? Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool in 2015, or Frank Lampard when he became Chelsea manager last season?
Neither could be described as easier than the other. In many ways the comparison is unfair because the circumstances in which they took over are completely different. The broad expectations from the fans and owners are identical, but the timeline in which Klopp and Lampard must deliver success means they have to approach their roles in a distinctive way.
That is why I find the arguments about Chelsea’s recent spending compared to Liverpool’s illogical and unfair, especially if used as a stick with which to beat Lampard.
I am not sure if Klopp’s remark about clubs with “oligarchs and countries” buying big during this transfer window was intended as a criticism or an observation, but I can understand if Frank took exception to it.
The recent history of Liverpool and Chelsea shows that while the clubs go about meeting their ambitions by taking diverging paths, that t does not make one way better than han the other.
When Klopp took over from om Brendan Rodgers, there was s no immediate pressure to win the league. He had a remit for “slow slow and steady growth”, building ng a side with a couple of significant deals in each transfer window until ntil he reached a point where two mega signings – Virgil van Dijk and nd Alisson Becker – took Liverpool rpool to another level.
Long-term rebuilds bring g their own challenges. It needs a special manager to maintain n an upwards trajectory in an n impatient sport, retaining the faith of fans, players and board members amid unforeseen circumstances such as injuries, loss of form, or bids for your best players.
Klopp excelled so spectacularly that other clubs now see Liverpool as the blueprint to copy.
But if there is one manager in the Premier League who can never work k to such a long-term plan it is Chelsea’s.
The benefit of being Chelsea’s lsea’s coach is you have Roman Abramovich’s resources and d the chance to compete for the most coveted players. With that comes an immediate demand for trophies rophies and more job insecurity at a club known for their hire-and-fire re culture. Lampard needs to win the title in the next two years or his position will be on the line.
That is why it makes sense for him to add six or seven players in one hit. Lampard does not have the luxury of waiting and creating a team window by window. He has been decisive and given himself the best chance of succeeding quickly.
Once he could buy, what was Lampard supposed to do? Say, “No thanks, Roman” and let someone else use that cash next summer?
Look beyond the eye-watering transfer outlay and there is more in common between Liverpool’s sporting director Michael Edwards and Chelsea negotiator Marina Granovskaia than appearances suggest.
Although Chelsea have shelled out £302 million in the last four windows, since February 2019 they have recouped £248.6 million. Edwards and Granovskaia are two of the best in the business when it comes to getting value for money when buying and selling.
So although we still think of this a as the big-spending Abramovich e era, it is not exactly how it was. When Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte won the title in 2015 and 2017 respectively, they were taking on the Manchester clubs who by then were paying out more.
Although they are closer to b breaking even financially nowadays, in terms of the scale of squad reconstruction, Chelsea’s summer is comparable to 2003, when Claudio Ranieri was still in charge in the immediate aftermath of Abramovich’s takeover and they signed 14 players. Despite the outlay, the squad still needed time to gel before they were ready to win the Premier League under Mourinho the following season.
There is no guarantee that introducing so many new recruits will work. Sir Alex Ferguson used to say that the hardest thing in football is managing change. There is a risk – I would even call it bravery – in doing so much at once.
Not all managers are prepared t to do it, fearing it will go wrong and they will be remembered for squandering millions with poor ju judgment.
Managers who buy big are prepared to put their reputation on the line. That is why I never understand why any coach is sneered at for spending money, w whether it is Mourinho in 2004,
Pep Guardiola in 2017, or even Klopp when he paid so much for Van Dijk.
Lampard has grasped the nettle with some great deals for players at an ideal age such as Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Ben Chilwell.
Are they ready to challenge Liverpool? No. Not without a new goalkeeper.
The danger with a fresh squad is Lampard’s second season is really more like the first for most managers. There is as much chance of them finishing outside the top four as challenging the top two.
Until 24 hours ago, many would have said Chelsea enjoyed a more productive transfer window than Liverpool. But that is because they are at contrasting points in the team’s lifespan.
Liverpool are in a luxurious position where they require tweaks to a winning formula. That is why when the pandemic struck and brought so much financial uncertainty, from Liverpool’s perspective it is better it happened now than when Klopp was six or seven players short of a titlechallenging team, as was the case in 2016.
It is others playing catch-up. That is why in the last four transfer windows – even after the Thiago Alcantara and Diogo Jota deals were sealed yesterday – Liverpool have spent £88 million on new players, well below the rest of the top six. Those trying to get closer are taking all the risks.
Liverpool have waited 30 years to be in this position. I want the club to maximise every second they have for the remainder of Klopp’s contract until 2024, which means giving him the tools to keep evolving the side. Even the best managers and highest quality dressing rooms need fresh blood.
With Jota joining Thiago – a backup to the front three – I think Liverpool are strong favourites to be champions again. If Chelsea and others feel the best way of preventing that is spending a fortune in one summer, so be it.
Abramovich and Fenway Sports Group will never go about winning in exactly the same way. There are pros and cons to every chosen journey. Getting to the title destination is what matters.