Liverpool have struggled in the Premier League this season with several of Arne Slot’s summer signings failing to hit the ground running at Anfield
Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler has voiced concerns over the performance of some new signings in Arne Slot’s squad, suggesting they’re not up to Liverpool’s standards.
Despite a hefty outlay in the summer transfer window, the reigning Premier League champions have stumbled, losing five of their last six league games. The Reds’ transfer dealings initially drew praise, with record-breaking fees paid for Florian Wirtz and then for Alexander Isak.
The acquisitions of Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez were seen as savvy business, while Hugo Ekitike added another dimension to their attack. However, Slot’s side now finds itself languishing in eighth place, a far cry from their title-winning form of last season.
Fowler, who previously criticised Darwin Nunez as “not a Liverpool player”, was asked if he had similar reservations about any of the club’s recent additions.
“I do,” Fowler told Adventure Gamers. “When you’re analysing footballers, and you can take this with a pinch of salt, but I think a lot of coaches and managers now can probably see within the first training session or the first game, how a player adapts, see how they control things, see how they run, see how they move, and how they collect the ball. That was one of the first things I noticed with Darwin Nunez.”
The former Liverpool striker delivered his Nunez verdict ahead of last season’s FA Cup clash with Accrington Stanley in January. Nunez bagged 40 goals across 143 appearances before making his move to Al-Hilal in the summer transfer window.
“We’re saying the same things now that we were saying two or three years ago,” Fowler said of Nunez on ITV Sport. “He’s raw, he’s this, he’s that, and we can’t keep saying that.
“So for me, the more I see him, the more I think he’s not a Liverpool player. Now, people might have a go at me for saying this: you know, he works hard; you’re not signing a player because he works hard because that should be a prerequisite anyway.
“You’ve got to come in, you’ve got to score goals, and I know he’s a fan favourite for what he puts in, but at the time that we’re talking now, you’ve got to perform better, and you’ve got to do better in the Liverpool shirt.”
This season, Fowler has already declared that the Reds must be flawless for the remainder of the campaign to have any chance of retaining their Premier League title. He also reckons that Liverpool have failed to adequately replace Fabinho in defensive midfield since the Brazilian departed two years ago.
Fowler chose not to reveal which summer signings he would liken to Nunez. Nevertheless, he did share his thoughts on how Frimpong and Kerkez have adapted to Liverpool’s restructured defence.
“It’s been difficult for Jeremie Frimpong because everyone is thinking he’s going to come in and replace Trent, when he’s not really been played in the same position as Trent for his whole career,” Fowler added.
“Kerkez for me was a player who was outstanding in the Premier League last year. Hence the reason why he was picked in the Premier League team of the year. So there’s definitely potential with him as well. Is he ready now? I don’t know, but I think he will be.”