The 2017 summer transfer window has proven to be a defining one for Liverpool Football Club as Jurgen Klopp sought to transform the Reds back into one of Europe’s fiercest sides. Sure, Roberto Firmino and James Milner had been signed in the summer of 2015 by predecessor Brendan Rodgers, with Sadio Mane, Gini Wijnaldum and Joel Matip snapped up 12 months later, but it was the start of the German’s second full season at Anfield where his would-be all-conquering side started to take its first major steps back to football’s elite.
Back in the Champions League for only the second time since 2009, Liverpool agreed a deal to sign Mohamed Salah from AS Roma for an initial £36.9m on June 23, before signing Andy Robertson from Hull City for an initial £8m on July 21. Meanwhile, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain joined from Arsenal in a £35m deal on August 31, while the groundwork on signing Virgil van Dijk was also completed only for the Reds to be forced to backtrack following allegations of alleged tapping up from Southampton. They would sign the Dutchman in a £75m deal the following January.
Elsewhere, they staved off the efforts of Barcelona to retain Philippe Coutinho’s services for a further six months. However, the Brazilian’s head had been turned by the Catalan giants once their interest had been made known in the summer of 2017, leading Liverpool to sell him to the La Liga outfit for a club-record £142m fee. That figure was then reinvested back into the squad by FSG, allowing them to finance big-money deals for the likes of Van Dijk, Alisson Becker and Fabinho.
