Summer Transfers 2025 Missed Opportunities and Regrets

[HCZ_Reborn]

Again you’re trying to suggest a motivation for my argument to suggest I don’t believe what I’m saying. The point averages tell you what a team has done, it tells you nothing of what a team will do.

After the win in Paris, Liverpool played 12 games in all competitions of which they won five…Southampton, West Ham, Leicester, Everton and Spurs. Two sides that were relegated, and one that probably would have been relegated in any other season. With the exception of the Leicester game these were all home wins.

Add the PSG home defeat and the Newcastle final defeat, this was a team that wasn’t firing even before they won the title. The only game in that run where the Liverpool of earlier on in the season was evident was the home game which got them over the line against hopeless Spurs.

They didn’t power their way to the title, they used the momentum they’d built up earlier in the season and the hopelessness of ours and City’s title challenge to get them there.

As I’ve already argued once, they did what they needed to do by overcoming the obstacles of Brentford, Bournemouth, City and Villa four very tough away matches that they got ten points from 12 from. Now where I was wrong was suggesting end of last year that they might come unstuck in those fixtures and they didn’t.

But they were noticeably out of form from mid March to the end of the season (and that argument can be made even without the final four games) - going out of the champions league after winning away from home against PSG, losing a cup final and losing one of the two league away fixtures they had against Fulham.

This doesn’t suggest to me that they had an extra pocket of reserve to call on where they could have got so much more from four tricky fixtures post Spurs.

But I’m tired of repeating myself, I think you have a very incorrect misconception that I’m somehow trying to justify making a prediction about Liverpool at the start of last season that was wrong as if somehow that’s important to me. Who cares, I clearly got it wrong…I’m not talking down Liverpool because I got that prediction wrong, if I genuinely thought they were that good I’d say so. If I genuinely thought the only reason they got two points from the final four games is because they’d already won the title I’d say so.
The fact is neither of us know what would have happened for certain.
This whole argument is based on “you got burnt by Liverpool last season, what’s wrong with you that you don’t see them as a threat”
Well as I say, the biggest singular threat to us at this moment in time is the coach and questionable summer purchases

[HCZ_Reborn]

I think the fact Slot buggered off to Ibiza after the title was confirmed kind of set the tone for those last 4 games.

Quite. The title was won by then

What I find ridiculous is the insistence that I must be out of my mind to think a Liverpool side running on fumes would not have definitely got far more points from these games than they did if they’d needed them.

[21_GOONER_SALUTE]

I’ll tell you what I will say though.

At this moment in time I’d expect Liverpool to finish above us, but it’s got nothing to do with Liverpool

Even though we are stronger in terms of squad depth, I think we are arguably weaker than last season

A lot of players have gone backwards - Odegaard, Havertz, Martinelli, Saka, Saliba, Raya.

The insistence on playing Lewis Skelly as inverted full back even though he lacks the awareness to play in midfield. That Norgaard even though he’s a squad option looks utterly pathetic, that Zubimendi doesn’t look cut out for the premier league. That we are trying to play a long ball game to combat the low block, but the problem isn’t really the style of play it’s the style of players. I can’t think of a less gifted team technically in my lifetime, it’s a team full of guile, physicality and I’d say mental resilience but no great dribblers or ball passers…and this is demonstrated by the fact that senior players are shown up by a 15 year old academy player.

It’s easy to be wise with hindsight but we should really have spent the money we used on Zubimendi, Mosquera and Norgaard (about 85 million collectively) on a top creative player.

Hmmm...a pretty good post.

All though I don't agree with all the conclusions (at least not until the transfer window is shut) I do have to agree its quite telling that the standout performances in our preseason games have all come from teenagers (Nwaneri &Dowman ) and probably it could be a worrying sign of things to come.

But honestly if this does turn out to be just like last season where practically all the new signings are found to contribute very little to whatever we achieve , then I can't see how anyone can justifiably make an argument that Arteta shouldn't be booted out immediately to avoid him overseeing another transfer window and keeping us in constant huge negative net spends while loading us with criminal wages of indolent and ineffectual players.

(BTW what ever Gyokores achieves won't be because of him, it'll be despite him AFAIAC, seeing as it clear his preference was for another "prospect" in Sesko and more importantly a striker should have been signed 3-2 seasons ago... so Gyokores success will make him look more and more silly AFAIAC (similar to what happened with Saliba))

[Mac76]

(BTW what ever Gyokores achieves won't be because of him, it'll be despite him AFAIAC, seeing as it clear his preference was for another "prospect" in Sesko and more importantly a striker should have been signed 3-2 seasons ago... so Gyokores success will make him look more and more silly AFAIAC (similar to what happened with Saliba))

totally agree, I should be excited by this coming season because I do think we have strengthened the squad and as you say we were fortunate to escape Arteta's preferred striker and instead got the right guy, but I just have very little faith he can get anything much extra out of the players - I didn't watch the Spuds game and while I'd repeat that i said somewhere about not reading too much into that game, by all accounts Frank outsmarted Arteta hands-down and we ended up resorting to the Horseshoe of Death because Arteta quickly ran out of ideas

[Mac76]

Fulham after Zin apparently

[Chippy]

totally agree, I should be excited by this coming season because I do think we have strengthened the squad and as you say we were fortunate to escape Arteta's preferred striker and instead got the right guy, but I just have very little faith he can get anything much extra out of the players - I didn't watch the Spuds game and while I'd repeat that i said somewhere about not reading too much into that game, by all accounts Frank outsmarted Arteta hands-down and we ended up resorting to the Horseshoe of Death because Arteta quickly ran out of ideas

I agree, that is why I have already resurected the "When will Artea be sacked" thread.

[Letters]

Again you’re trying to suggest a motivation for my argument to suggest I don’t believe what I’m saying.

If you do then you're contradicting what you were saying at the time, but I'll come on to that.

The point averages tell you what a team has done, it tells you nothing of what a team will do.

Obviously true. But to suggest that them wrapping up the title with four games to go had no influence on their results after that is ridiculous. The effect of them wrapping up the title is something you acknowledged at the time.

After the win in Paris, Liverpool played 12 games in all competitions of which they won five

This is simultaneously true and a skewing of the facts. They lost vs PSG, who you may remember ended up winning the CL - and they only ended up losing the tie on penalties, which is more than we did. And they lost against Newcastle in a competition literally no-one cares about. Well, apart from Newcastle fans but when you haven't won a trophy for over 70 years...
In the league after the PSG win they won 5 out of 6...at which point they'd wrapped up the title and downed tools. And you know they did because you said so at the time:

Here's you when after they went 1-0 down on the final day:

Scorelines so far reflective of the fact that most teams have bugger all to play for

And here you are during the Chelsea game:

Liverpool putting in a, we don’t give a fuck performance

And here you are after we played them:

Draw sounded about right to be honest. Would have loved to win, but coming from 2 nil down even against a Liverpool side that is off on its holidays mentally isn’t terrible.

My emphasis. And then in a separate post you said:

For Liverpool it was a glorified friendly

I’m old enough to remember the dead games after we won the title. In 1998 Got the shit kicked out of us at Anfield, then lost at Villa Park. 2002, we had the 4-3 game at home to Everton where defending meant nothing to either side. Then we had 2004 where we only cared about not losing rather than winning

So...

The fact is neither of us know what would have happened for certain.

That is, of course, true. But the thought that a team wrapping up the title then often down tools is not controversial - it's something you acknowledged in the posts above.

[HCZ_Reborn]

If you do then you're contradicting what you were saying at the time, but I'll come on to that.


Obviously true. But to suggest that them wrapping up the title with four games to go had no influence on their results after that is ridiculous. The effect of them wrapping up the title is something you acknowledged at the time.


This is simultaneously true and a skewing of the facts. They lost vs PSG, who you may remember ended up winning the CL - and they only ended up losing the tie on penalties, which is more than we did. And they lost against Newcastle in a competition literally no-one cares about. Well, apart from Newcastle fans but when you haven't won a trophy for over 70 years...
In the league after the PSG win they won 5 out of 6...at which point they'd wrapped up the title and downed tools. And you know they did because you said so at the time:

Here's you when after they went 1-0 down on the final day:



And here you are during the Chelsea game:



And here you are after we played them:



My emphasis. And then in a separate post you said:




So...


That is, of course, true. But the thought that a team wrapping up the title then often down tools is not controversial - it's something you acknowledged in the posts above.

Sorry where do you find me arguing that Liverpool made any particular effort in these fixtures within the last few days?

My argument is that given they were running on fumes, I don’t expect they would have done tremendously better had they actually needed to win

Honestly let it go, I’m comfortable with what I said despite your attempts to prove inconsistency with views in May.

[Letters]

Sorry where do you find me arguing that Liverpool made any particular effort in these fixtures within the last few days?
My argument is that given they were running on fumes, I don’t expect they would have done tremendously better had they actually needed to win

You're now arguing that they weren't able to to better. You previously, like most people on here, noted that they were "on holiday mentally". You literally said vs Chelsea it was a "don’t give a fuck performance". You said the game vs us was a "glorified friendly" and on the last day you said that the scorelines, which included Liverpool's reflected the fact that most teams "have bugger all to play for".
That is all very different to arguing that Liverpool just couldn't physically give any more.
You even regaled us with stories of the "dead games" after we'd wrapped up titles. So you acknowledge that this changes results. Now you're trying to pretend that on this occasion it didn't and it would have been the same anyway and you knew that all along.
Bull. Shit.

I’m comfortable with what I said despite your attempts to prove inconsistency with views in May.

It's not an attempt. The inconsistency is very clear, it's a bit silly that you're still trying to pretend otherwise.
I'd take you more seriously had I found any posts from you from the time in which you predicted they'd get such poor results in those last 4 games, but I can't find one.

[HCZ_Reborn]

You're now arguing that they weren't able to to better. You previously, like most people on here, noted that they were "on holiday mentally". You literally said vs Chelsea it was a "don’t give a fuck performance". You said the game vs us was a "glorified friendly" and on the last day you said that the scorelines, which included Liverpool's reflected the fact that most teams "have bugger all to play for".
That is all very different to arguing that Liverpool just couldn't physically give any more.
You even regaled us with stories of the "dead games" after we'd wrapped up titles. So you acknowledge that this changes results. Now you're trying to pretend that on this occasion it didn't and it would have been the same anyway and you knew that all along.
Bull. Shit.


It's not an attempt. The inconsistency is very clear, it's a bit silly that you're still trying to pretend otherwise.
I'd take you more seriously had I found any posts from you from the time in which you predicted they'd get such poor results in those last 4 games, but I can't find one.

You found the quote where I’d compared it to the game where we lost 4-0 to Liverpool after winning the title in 98.

Complete dead rubber game

But also we hadn’t beaten Liverpool in almost five years, and had lost the last three league games to them. So just as well we didn’t need to get a result there.

But nice try, trying to tell me what I think.