The Premier League has confirmed the close-season transfer window will be split into two parts for the first time this summer, with Liverpool facing some major decisions in the market.
Because of the new Club World Cup taking place between June 14 and July 13, which Chelsea and Manchester City will compete in from England as winners of the Champions League in the last five years, there will be a window before that tournament for them to sign and register players. It will then close for six days, before being reopened.
“The window will open early, between Sunday 1 June and Tuesday 10 June, due to an exceptional registration period relating to the FIFA Club World Cup,” an official statement reads. “It will then reopen on Monday 16 June and close on Monday 1 September.”
There had been talk that the window would close before the start of the season but that is now confirmed as not being the case. The new Premier League campaign will get underway on the weekend of August 16 and 17, which Liverpool will hope to kick off as champion.
Before then, Arne Slot’s men could lose Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid while there remain doubts over the futures of Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah. Having only signed Federico Chiesa in his first summer, there are likely to be other changes to the Dutchman’s roster as well.
Liverpool could arguably do with signing a left-back and a number nine even if the three players whose contracts are running down remain put. And sporting director Richard Hughes will have even more work to do if any of the key trio depart.
(Image: Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)
“Liverpool should always be competing for a league title, we should always be competing for the Champions League. I’m hoping I will be able to keep the club at that level,” Slot told the BBC in January when he was asked about transfer activity.
“I know people sometimes question this because they haven’t seen us doing a lot in the transfer market in the summer and now in the winter as well. There’s a reason for that — because we’re happy with the squad. But I do know we’re definitely working on strengthening in the summer.”
Liverpool.com says: There is so much soccer now that the transfer window is having to change to accommodate it. That says plenty about where we are at these days with the saturation of the games, but it also points to the need for a big summer. Liverpool needs more quality players than ever before to cope with the fixture list, and that will mean dipping into the market.
