Liverpool Football Club is known for being conservative in the transfer market, but that doesn’t mean they don’t occasionally break the bank. The club can spend huge sums of money to sign a player when they think it will pay off. But does it pay off? In other words, is Liverpool getting satisfactory results for the money spent? And if so, which players deserve that investment?
We’ll try to answer these questions by looking at the three most expensive transfers the club has ever made. If you want to take a break from football & statistical analysis and have a good time, we recommend visiting the RouletteDoc platform. You can try your luck playing american roulette online on RouletteDoc for free.
Liverpool’s Most Expensive Transfers List
Before we start, let’s list the footballers we will use in this article, as mentioned above. These are the three most expensive players that Liverpool paid record transfer fees to sign:
| NAME | TRANSFER FEE |
| Darwin Nunez | £85 million |
| Virgil van Dijk | £75 million |
| Alisson | £65 million |
Now, we can move on to the real question: Were these players worth the money they were paid?
Darwin Nunez: Liverpool’s Record Signing
Darwin Nunez is Liverpool’s most expensive signing. Nunez attracted attention thanks to his success in the Portuguese Primeira Liga and was signed for the same reason. Although he has taken longer than expected to adapt to the Premier League, he seems to have performed satisfactorily. However, there is no unanimous opinion on whether he is valued for money. Some critics argue that he will only get better with time, while others think that you shouldn’t expect more than his current performance. Let’s take a look at his basic stats:
- Appearances: 135
- Goals: 40
- Assists: 24
- Yellow Cards: 21
Once again, these are not bad statistics, but some believe that the club’s most expensive signing should have achieved better results. In any case, it is clear that Nunez is a valuable striker, and even if he is not playing at the elite level expected of him due to his price, he is still very young and may not yet be showing his true potential.
Virgil van Dijk: The Transformative Defender
Virgil van Dijk was signed to fill Liverpool’s defender shortage, but many didn’t expect a world-record transfer fee to be paid. (It was indeed a world record in 2018.) Unlike Nunez, however, many think he has more than made up for it. Virgil brought leadership and aerial dominance to Liverpool. His ability to read the game perfectly harmonises with Jürgen Klopp’s attacking philosophy. Here are his basic stats:
- Appearances: 310
- Goals: 26
- Assists: 13
- Yellow Cards: 25
Virgil played a key role in Liverpool’s 2019 Champions League triumph and helped the team win the Premier League title after a long absence (nearly 30 years). His ability to cover Liverpool’s biggest weakness – defense – makes him valuable and worthy of his transfer fee.
Alisson: The Goalkeeper Who Changed Everything
Liverpool also had a goalkeeper problem for long years, so Alisson was signed alongside Virgil van Dijk in 2018. (In other words, 2018 was a year in which Liverpool spent a lot of money.) Alisson has been just as effective as van Dijk, and in a very short period, he started to contribute to Liverpool’s success with his shot-stopping skills. His crucial saves in big moments strengthened the team’s defensive line and made it much safer. Here are Alisson’s key stats:
- Appearances: 291
- Goals Conceded: 258
- Yellow Cards: 4
Alisson deserved his transfer fee as much as van Dijk. He was a strategic investment in a defensive position, which has paid off so far. He also again showed that defensive positions are as important as attacking acquisitions.
To summarise, the performance of the most expensive signings shows that Liverpool’s “quality over quantity” principle is paying off. While there is still no consensus on Nunez, for the other two signings, everyone thinks they are value for money. Virgil van Dijk and Alisson have turned Liverpool’s weakest points into strong advantages. Years after their signings, both are still listed among the best players in the world in their respective positions. That alone is enough to show that the club made the right decision.
For Nunez, it’s too early to make a definitive judgment. If this transfer had been made 10 years ago, everyone would have considered him an elite performer, but nowadays, expectations are much higher, and Nunez needs more time to adapt. But all indications are that he continues to develop as a player, and in the not-too-distant future, we may be able to say the same words of admiration for him.
