It was never going to be easy to replace a Liverpool legend like Jurgen Klopp, but Arne Slot appeared to be the perfect candidate. A second Premier League triumph seemed to suggest that he was continuing where the German tactician had left off.
However, if his first year at Anfield was a dream, his second year is rapidly becoming a nightmare. The Merseysiders have had a difficult run, losing six of their previous seven games, and doubts about their head coach have begun to emerge following their most recent defeat to Crystal Palace.
That bad form is exacerbated by the fact that the club heavily backed its manager in the summer, while many of their new signings struggled to make an impression. So, in the midst of that, GiveMeSport decided to evaluate all of Slot’s Liverpool signings and rank them from worst to best using a variety of ranking metrics.
Ranking factors:
Player performance: how they’ve performed for Liverpool thus far.
Total paid: Did the deal provide good value for money?
Football reputation: Is the player highly regarded in the world of football?
9Freddie Woodman
Transfer fee – Free
This may seem a little harsh on Freddie Woodman, given that he was never expected to make much of an effect. Signed as a free agent from Preston, the 28-year-old is largely at Anfield to fill in as a third-choice goalkeeper, which means he was always doomed to finish last.
To be fair, the Englishman has made at least one competitive appearance for the Reds. Unfortunately for him, it came in a 3-0 loss to Crystal Palace — not the best way to make your debut. He may make a few more appearances on an irregular basis during his year-long contract, but don’t expect the former Newcastle player to get many minutes.
8Milos Kerkez
Transfer fee – £40m
Milos Kerkez to Liverpool felt like it was meant to happen all summer. During his two years with Bournemouth, the Hungarian international established himself as one of the league’s most entertaining full-backs, gaining a spot on the PFA 2024/25 Team of the Year.
Which begs the question: where on Earth has that player gone? Kerkez has been a ghost of his former self since joining Liverpool for £40 million, becoming defensively slack and afraid to take risks. Things have gotten so bad that Gary Neville has even encouraged Slot to bench the left-back, saying the 21-year-old needs to rethink his strategy.
7Jeremie Frimpong
Transfer fee – £29.5m
Jeremie Frimpong, signed for a relatively moderate fee of £29.5 million, appeared to be an effective substitute for Trent Alexander-Arnold. Xabi Alonso depended on the Dutchman, who provided a similar offensive threat while at Bayer Leverkusen.
Although he has appeared nine times for Liverpool since signing, this comes with some qualifiers. He was sidelined early on due to a hamstring injury, and his minutes have been limited since his return, with Frimpong unable to complete a full 90 in the Premier League or Champions League thus far. He has also been benched by Conor Bradley and, oddly, Dominik Szoboszlai, and will now miss six weeks due to another injury. He didn’t make the kind of impact that Liverpool fans expected.
6Florian Wirtz
Transfer fee – £116m
When it was confirmed that Liverpool had beaten Bayern Munich and Manchester City to the £116 million acquisition of Florian Wirtz, fans were likely grinning from ear to ear. They had just signed a marquee player who had scored 44 Bundesliga goals over the previous two seasons.
However, in his previous performances, the German international has been unable to repeat that form. Wirtz has only three assists in his career, with games frequently passing him by, and he is largely seen as a major disappointment. With a reputation as a truly exceptional playmaker in world football, he has a good chance of being the coup that fans expected. But it is the only reason he has risen beyond Frimpong and Kerkez thus far.
5Alexander Isak
Transfer fee – £125m
A lot of time was spent debating what to do with Alexander Isak. Here’s a player who scored 23 Premier League goals for Newcastle, sealing his place as one of the top strikers in the world. Similarly to Wirtz, fans were ecstatic when the record-breaking £125 million deal was announced.
But, like his new German teammate, fans haven’t seen enough of their new striker yet. Everyone expected him to excel once he regained full fitness, but he has only one goal and one assist in all competitions, representing a pitiful return on investment. Now hampered with a groin injury, we’ll have to wait even longer to see the best of the leading finishers.
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