Jurgen Klopp has had a trophy-laden tenure since taking over from Brendan Rodgers at Anfield during October 2015, so here are his top five Liverpool signings of all time.
The Merseyside natives turned to Klopp during his sabbatical from the game after they fired Rodgers. He was still out of work at the time of Liverpool’s approach after stepping down as the head coach of Borussia Dortmund that April. It has proven to be a very successful move.
Klopp led Liverpool to their first English top-flight title in 30 years with the 2019/20 Premier League trophy. The German had already taken the club to their first Champions League title in 14 years during 2018/19, as well. Klopp has since taken EFL Cup and FA Cup honours, too.
Liverpool backed Klopp in several transfer windows to make the Reds title contenders again after failing to win any silverware between 2012/13 and 2017/18. The Reds’ only major title between 2006/07 and 2017/18 was also the EFL Cup under Kenny Dalglish during 2011/12.
A lot of Klopp’s signings for Liverpool have been a hit having helped the Reds lift titles again. Fabinho left them after five years in July 2023 as a Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup winner. Yet even he does not sit among Klopp’s top five Liverpool signings of all time.
5) Andrew Robertson (Hull City – Liverpool, July 2017)
Fabinho narrowly misses out on a place among Klopp’s top five Liverpool signings of all time to Andrew Robertson. The left-back pips the defensive midfielder for the top five as Hull City sold him for only £8m in July 2017. His transfer also featured a further £2m in extra add-ons.
Liverpool further secured themselves a bargain as Kevin Stewart went the other way as part of Robertson’s transfer for a similar fee. In return for raiding the newly-relegated Tigers, the Reds signed a future Anfield hero who redefined the Merseysiders’ left-back role with Klopp.
Despite being a part of the Hull side that got relegated from the Premier League in 2016/17, Robertson emerged as Klopp’s No1 left-back midway through his first season at Anfield. The Glasgow native has since shone with his creativity which is unrivalled by most in his position.
Robertson took double-digit hauls of assists in the 2018/19 (11), ‘19/20 (12) and ‘21/22 (10) Premier League seasons. He even reached 53 assists before his 200th top-flight game for the Reds. Klopp has often overlooked his defensive shortcomings to use his offensive threat.
4) Sadio Mane (Southampton – Liverpool, June 2016)
Liverpool agreed terms with Southampton in June 2016 as Klopp signed Sadio Mane despite some from outside of the club questioning the transfer. Onlookers at the time debated if the forward was worth the fee the Reds were willing to spend. But Klopp never had any doubts.
“Maybe people thought, ‘I am not sure he is worth it’, but we were 100% sure about him,” Klopp stated in July 2020, via the Independent, about Mane’s £34m transfer. “Consistency was the key and absolutely now what he is doing and how he performs is consistent.
“The level he performs at is unbelievable. He helps us massively. He is a complete player – offensively and defensively – he works hard [and] he is really quick.”
Mane ultimately left Liverpool to join Bayern Munich in July 2022 after a decorated career at Anfield. He also penned 120 goals plus 48 assists across 269 games across all competitions for Klopp. The Senegal sensation also scored 10 or more Premier League goals each term.
3) Virgil van Dijk (Southampton – Liverpool, January 2018)
Klopp made one of his best Liverpool signings so far in January 2018 by agreeing an at-the-time world record £75m fee for a defender to take Van Dijk from Southampton. He emerged as a brute force for the Reds’ path to the top of the Premier League and Champions League.
Van Dijk even also managed to avoid a top-flight defeat at Anfield until October 2022. Leeds United ended his 70-game streak with a shock result following 59 wins and 11 draws. It set a Premier League record, as well, which also featured 37 clean sheets and 48 goals conceded.
UEFA also chose Van Dijk as its Men’s Player of the Year for 2019 after helping Liverpool win the Champions League. Lionel Messi beat the centre-back for FIFA’s The Best award in 2019. While Klopp chose Van Dijk to replace Jordan Henderson as Liverpool’s captain in July 2023.
2) Alisson Becker (AS Roma – Liverpool, July 2018)
Liverpool fans will argue that Alisson Becker has been the Premier League’s best goalkeeper since signing under Klopp in July 2018. The Anfield natives paid AS Roma a world-record fee for a goalie. His £67m move eclipsed the £32.5m Juventus paid for Gianluigi Buffon in 2001.
Yet, despite demolishing Buffon’s 17-year transfer record, Klopp has never regretted signing Alison. The Brazilian has often proven his worth in gold with his sublime shot-stopping skills on Merseyside. Brad Friedel also lauds Alisson for how the goalkeeper reacts to any setback.
“Alisson, for me, is the best right now,” Friedel explained to talkSPORT in July 2023. “Ederson is excellent also. He’s very, very close to him but I like Alisson.
“What I like most about Alisson is when he does make mistakes, like all goalkeepers do, it just doesn’t faze him. He can walk straight back on the pitch again and be very, very good.”
1) Mohamed Salah (AS Roma – Liverpool, July 2017)
No player can rival Mohamed Salah as Klopp’s best signing as the manager of Liverpool. The Egyptian has been the King of Anfield since his £34m arrival from Roma in July 2017. He also quickly shook off any suggestions of being a Chelsea flop and then as a one-season wonder.
Salah only scored twice from 13 appearances and played 530 minutes in the Premier League for Chelsea. Yet the winger became the second-fastest player to reach 200 Premier League goal involvements for one club at Liverpool. He took 223 games for 139 goals and 62 assists.
Only Arsenal legend Thierry Henry (206) took fewer fixtures to achieve the feat at Highbury. While Salah has also scored double-figures in each top-flight season he has spent at Anfield to date. He even got the league’s Golden Boot in 2017/18 (32), ‘18/19 (22) and ‘21/22 (23).
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