They say in football that it's not always what you know but who you know. At Liverpool, it seems both aspects are as important as each other when it comes to recruitment.
A cursory glance across the current squad shows a handful of players whose arrivals have been rubber stamped after consultation with trusted contacts outside of the club.
Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz, for example, were two deals completed after Pep Lijnders spoke to those in the know at his former club Porto and the same goes for January signing Cody Gakpo, who, as one of the young stars in the Netherlands national team, was someone the assistant manager knew all about prior to his £37m move from PSV Eindhoven at the turn of the year. Virgil van Dijk also helped smooth the runway, having forged a friendship with Gakpo during their time together on Oranje duty.
