Adam Williams – Head of Football Finance and Governance Content for GRV Media – has now shared comments with TBR Football on what Liverpool fans can expect after a busy summer of spending.
The Reds amazingly broke the British transfer record twice during a summer in which £450m was spent on players, as Arne Slot welcomed superstars like Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz to Anfield.
It was a fairly uncharacteristic window for Liverpool – who often look to find bargains like the £35m Alexis Mac Allister, for example – rather than splash significant fees on global stars.
Adam Williams can now share how the immense recruitment drive will impact on Liverpool going forwards, with Mohamed Salah potentially departing as a result.
Exclusive: FSG not expected to oversee another window like this as Mohamed Salah could be sold
It is testament to how well FSG have run Liverpool that this £450m spending spree could be financed purely by the club’s cash, with the Reds being a self-sufficient outfit.
However, it is not sustainable to act like this.
Williams explains: “There are a few different factors we have to look at when considering how much Liverpool’s spending might affect their future transfer business under FSG. There is:
A) Squad strategyB) FSG’s long-term exit planC) PSRD) Cash flow
“In terms of the squad, this was clearly a window which has seen them tool up for the next five years at the very least. There is still some work to do to fortify the defence, as the Marc Guehi saga suggested. But in midfield and the forward line, they have got the core of the team sorted for the next era.
“From FSG’s point of view, and this ties into cash flow too, they probably haven’t needed to put any money into the club to finance its summer business. I suspect Liverpool might have used their revolving credit facility, which is basically like a credit card or an overdraft. But they already had low transfer debt and the fees they’ve received have tipped the scales significantly in terms of their net position too. So while I think cash will be low at the moment, I doubt that it has required external funding from FSG.
“I mention this because FSG have never once put money into the football side of the business. The club is entirely self-sufficient, in that sense. I don’t think they plan to change that philosophy any time soon. I personally don’t see another one of these mega transfer windows in their time at the club for a number of reasons, but mainly because they will want a clean balance sheet ahead of a potential exit in five to ten years time, when they eventually sell the club. That’s just my personal instinct.
Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images
“In terms of PSR, Liverpool have loads of room under the Premier League’s rules. They’ve added about £90m in annual amortisation costs, but have removed a chunk as well, and that’s before the ‘pure profit’ sales of academy graduates. Those ‘pure profit’ sales mean that UEFA’s Squad Cost ratio rule, which limits spending on first-team wages and transfer-associated costs to 70% of revenue plus profit on player sales, is going to be quite comfortable too. I do think that’s something they will be keeping a very close eye on in future though, given that amortisation plus wages is likely to be £500m-plus going forward.”
“However, in terms of cost control and their emphasis on value, I think it’s very likely that Salah will be sold next summer while they can still get a good fee. It would be very, very unlike FSG to forego that opportunity, especially if the Saudi Pro League are still willing to pay big money for him. So all in all, I think we’re going to continue to see the squad re-based in the next few windows, but it won’t be anything like as dramatic as this summer. FSG have been planning this for several years, and they will surely be showing more restraint going forward.”
What Liverpool were offered for Mohamed Salah last time Saudi Arabia came calling
Back in September 2023, Liverpool were offered £150m by Al Ittihad for Salah – who was sad to see Harvey Elliott leave for Aston Villa.
The Egypt international was 31 at the time and had two years remaining on his contract.
Now aged 33 and with the same amount of time left on his deal following an extension, Salah is arguably better than the player Liverpool were offered £150m to sell – having just won the PFA Player of the Year award after a season involving 34 goals and 23 assists in just 52 appearances.
Therefore, Liverpool could now receive even more than £150m from Saudi Arabia for the Egyptian, in our opinion at least.