WE WON LIVERPOOL’ T GO INTO THE RED

Klopp not joining the transfer ‘ circus’

JURGEN KLOPP has launched a passionate defence of Liverpool’s approach to the transfer market, insisting they will not spend “just to be in a circus”.

The Reds made just one signing during the summer window, bringing in central defender Ibrahima Konate from RB Leipzig for £36million in June.

But they effectively broke even on that purchase thanks to the sales of Xherdan Shaqiri, Harry Wilson and Marko Grujic.

Their title rivals have been less cautious, with Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea all splashing the cash.

But Klopp has little interest in their spending and said: “It’s really a little bit annoying that I have to talk about that because I said it already five million times. The only transfer we didn’t speak about was Cristiano Ronaldo, but all the other things we spoke before.

“No, I’m not surprised that they do it, I was surprised – but it’s a personal thing – that Cristiano left Juve because I didn’t know that would happen and that’s it.

“Clubs do business.

When I say it, my problem is obviously my

English because from time to time I obviously annoy some other managers and I don’t want to annoy them, I’m not interested in it, why should I?

Response

“I say something, I think it’s right, and then it is probably right in my mind and then two days later I hear the response from somebody and think, ‘Why is he on his toes?!’

“Honestly, I couldn’t care less what other clubs are doing. In a few weeks I am four years here, I signed up for this way when I arrived here.

“In that time, we were quite successful, not the most successful in the world, but quite successful. We won a couple of trophies exactly with that way and it’s in

all transfer windows the same.

“But it’s always the same that we then get asked why do you do that? We thought it made sense that we sign up our squad in the moment that we have here and we did that.

“That is not as spectacular as all the rest around, I cannot change that because you cannot do transfer business just to be in a circus. “But they did it, other teams signed players, fine, and now we will play them and see what we can do.”

Klopp’s squad depth is set to be tested in January when

Liverpool will lose Mohamed Salah (left), Sadio Mane (below left) and Naby Keita (below right) to the Africa Cup of Nations. He has ruled out the possibility of signing like-for-like replacements for any of his departing stars but suggested he will certainly be on the lookout for a ‘solution’ when January arrives.

Situation

He continued: “That depends on the situation in the squad in that moment. It’s not ideal, everybody knows that.

“The Africa Cup of Nations, they have the right to play their cup as well, like Europe, like South America. We knew it, we have to deal with it and we will. How? We will see in January.

“People say you have to sign two strikers of the quality of Sadio and Mo, yeah that cannot be the solution because we cannot do that.

“We need to find a solution for that in January.”