Liverpool transfer window: Arne Slott vulnerable as club thinks long-term with Jeremy Jacque after Marco Guehi strike | Football news

In February, Liverpool is sixth, the current champion out of place in the Champions League qualifiers. It is striking, therefore, that their only move in this transitional period is for a £60m centre-back who won’t even arrive until the summer.

The decision to bring in Jérémy Jacque shows that Liverpool are committed to this long-term rebuild of their squad – and sends a clear message to Arne Slott that he must find solutions from within if he is to salvage what has been such a poor season.

Liverpool are still in two cup competitions, European and domestic, so there is plenty to move around and there is still the possibility of a glorious outcome. But the head coach has more pressing issues to deal with given the injuries affecting his Liverpool defence.

At right-back, Connor Bradley is out for the season, while Jeremy Frimpong has had his own fitness issues. Dominik Soboslai, Liverpool’s player of the season, had to replace the position. The late interest in Lutsarel Gertrude failed.

In the center of defense, the situation is a little better with Giovanni Leoni, who has been absent for a long time. Rian Gravenberch and Wataru Endo had to fill in at the back. Ibrahima Konate had to end his compassion to play in the win against Newcastle.

That’s why the omission of Mark Gehi remains a source of frustration. It was disappointing enough for Liverpool supporters that the deal fell through on deadline day in the summer. Seeing him move to Manchester City in this window has reopened the wound.

City’s acquisitions of Guehi and Antoine Semeny, 25 and 26, have been widely praised as they currently improve the squad as proven Premier League players. It cuts to the heart of the matter for Liverpool. They are clearly in transition.

Last season’s title win, although ostensibly the beginning of a new era under Slott, looks more and more like the end of one. Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, Anfield’s all-time greats, have signed new contracts, but along with Alisson, all three have now turned 33.

Liverpool’s decision-makers knew they had to construct the next team. The hope was that, as champions, they would be able to do so from a position of strength. Alexander Isak still looks like he’s enjoying himself, but the rest of the summer business has fit into that strategy.

Hugo Ekitike (23) and Florian Wirtz (22) are special talents whose best years are ahead of them. Milos Kerkez came in as a long-term replacement for Andy Robertson, almost a decade his senior, with the hope that the Scottish presence would help the transition.

These were signings that followed the template previously used by Michael Edwards to take Liverpool to this level under Jurgen Klopp. He recalls a conversation with Ian Graham, Liverpool’s former director of research, about planning this team.

He pointed out that Liverpool’s success in that period, when the signings of Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah helped them break into the Premier League, was not just WHO they bought then it was important but when they bought them.

“The successful players, they were 23, 24, one or two 25-year-olds. All the big successes were at that age. I think Julian Ward came up with the phrase that they should have had a career before they had a career at Liverpool.”

One of the lessons learned from building title-winning teams is that they always have a core of prime-age players. A team loaded with youth and veterans may have the right average age, but will struggle to produce the consistency needed.

Graham’s personal preference was “always on the riskier side – I wanted to take a risk on the younger players”, but admitted that when “Champions League qualification becomes the minimum target the risk-reward payoff changes a bit”.

It’s a balance that feels relevant after Jacques’ move. The young French defender is highly rated and already established at Rennes, progressing in what is a physical league. But for all that potential, it’s undoubtedly a signing that carries some risk.

That’s not a criticism of Jacque, just a fact. When someone is signed after 31 the first season, the future trajectory is unclear. As with Leoni’s serious injury, anything from form and fitness to periods of inactivity on the bench can adjust that trajectory.

Evidence suggests that adding more experienced players to a Premier League squad is a challenge. Graham noticed it too. “If you look at the actual number of players who became starters, we added three starters a year from 2016 to 2019.

He added: “Even though we make fewer transfers or have a lower net spend than other clubs, no other club has integrated as many starters. And that means the transfers they’ve made haven’t become regular starters as often.”

It might just help explain why Liverpool have had a tougher campaign than many expected. Overhaul is difficult, no matter how gifted the new recruits. That Ekitike and Wirtz are developing a better understanding just goes to show that it takes time.

Slot has its critics, which is understandable. But what he has won with Klopp’s team can easily be reversed. Just like a German power had success with that stable side a year ago, he could face similar challenges in managing this transition period.

As for Jacque, such is the excitement around his potential, it’s possible he could partner Van Dijk as early as August and become a Liverpool legend himself. Richard Hughes et al will be optimistic that their long-term thinking will be rewarded in time.

For Slott, he can’t afford to think that far ahead. “We’re trying to strengthen the team, not weaken it,” he said ahead of Deadline Day. “Let’s see when the window ends. It ends without signings in the second half of this season.”

The future of the slot could be decided in this period. Like their season, it is in the balance. Liverpool could still win the Champions League – or not even qualify for it. For all the stories about transfer windows won and lost, the answers, as always, must be found on the field.