Mario Balotelli: For many of us, myself included, the most electric signing of the window. The Italian forward brings much needed quality to our dearth of striker options and will, most frequently, find himself featured alongside Daniel Sturridge in what can only prove to be a mesmerising waltz of comedy and striking ability.
Emre Can: In my opinion, Emre Can will prove to be not only the best value out of our summer transfers, but the one who will play the most important part to any silverware we will be actively fighting for in the upcoming season. His playing still is much in the mould of Jordan Henderson and he looks to have the quality to play all over the pitch, a genuinely exciting prospect, last nurtured by our own Sami Hyypia at Bayer Leverkusen.
Adam Lallana: Unfortunately for Lallana, his Liverpool career has gotten off to a rocky start after being injured for the majority of preseason and the beginning of the Premier League fixture list. Brought in from Southampton early in the window, his talent has been on display in both the domestic competitions and internationally with the England squad. Bolstering an already creative and tactically scintillating midfield, the acquisition of Adam Lallana will both provide competition within the ranks and will add bags of quality and experience at the top level that we have been missing for some years.
Rickie Lambert: With our sanity in mind, the story of Ricky Lambert’s days in the beetroot factory will be foregone; however, the Kirkby lad has returned to his boyhood club. Sparing the sentimentality of the deal, Rickie Lambert is the type of shrewd business that FSG have been known for. A brilliant finisher and genuine quality forward, Lambert will likely feature in domestic cup matches and some Champions League fixtures, but his goal against Manchester City in the second week of the season proves that the sentimentality only runs so deep before the true value of Rickie Lambert is showcased.
Dejan Lovren: In a window so full of players incoming and outgoing, it’s hard to claim supremacy on one player over another, but for me, Dejan Lovren may be my favorite signing because he was the most needed. Surely there will be a period of adaptation, but Lovren has already shown that his defensive contribution is far beyond anything we have seen since the departure of Jamie Carragher.
Javi Manquillo: A strange deal involving a two-year loan, “Young Manquillo” has proven that, if nothing else, he is not Glen Johnson, and that makes us so very happy. In all seriousness, he has faced virtually no issues with adapting to the pace and physicality of the Premier League and looks a real prospect for the future. He will do well to solidify a place in the first team and add to the lack of depth in the fullback areas we once faced.
Lazar Markovic: Again, picking a favorite signing from one such as this is difficult, and he has faced similar injury problems as Lallana, but Lazar Markovic looked absolutely stunning in his cameo against Manchester City. His pace going forward and pinpoint control of passing and dribbling is very similar to that of another Liverpool youngster, Raheem Sterling. Given the right formation, I think Markovic could dominate opposing defenses this year.
Alberto Moreno: In a similar vein as Javi Manquillo, Alberto Moreno is not Aly Cissokho, and therefore passed the first test posed to him as a Liverpool player. In a world where some of our most recent left backs include Djimi Traore, Paul Konchesky, and yes, even Jose Enrique, Alberto Moreno is a breath in the Cotswolds compared with the South London air of yesteryear. His performance against Spurs was highlighted by the absolutely world-class run and finish he pulled out of seemingly nowhere to score against the home side.
Divock Origi: Performing well at the World Cup will always drive your value up, but luckily for Liverpool, we were in talks to sign the young Belgian weeks before the competition kicked off in Brazil. He is spending the year on loan at Lille, but his potential seems to be world class and it is something we will all have to keep an eye on.
Outs (Sold only):
Luis Suarez: At the risk of putting this off for too long and getting emotional over the departure of who may have been the great number 7 Liverpool has had, losing Luis Suarez was something that we have known was coming. Granted, the process was expedited because of unforeseen events, but the fee we receive was enough to reinvest wisely and strengthen our squad.
Conor Coady: Somewhere in the middle of the list of “future Gerrards”, Coady’s future at Liverpool never seemed to materialize and he was sold to Huddersfield Town. A player who will no doubt be successful in the lower leagues, the time had simply come for him to move on.
Pepe Reina: We loved Pepe for what he had done for the club, but once we signed Simon Mignolet last summer, his exit seemed imminent. All the best is wished at Bayern where he will again pair up with our beloved Xabi Alonso.
Martin Kelly: Crystal Palace you say? I suppose this transfer was an interesting one. Again, another player plagued by injuries whose career at Liverpool never seemed to quite pan out. Staying in the Premier League should be looked at as an accomplishment for the right back.
Jack Robinson: Out to QPR in a cut price deal, Jack Robinson is a part of a massive list of Liverpool youngsters from years earlier who felt the need to move on in the careers. Again, staying in the Premier League is not the worst thing that could have happened to him.
Daniel Agger: A somewhat unpopular opinion of mine is that his move to Brondby actually makes me love him as a player more. He was so dedicated to both his first club and ours that he opted to return to Denmark when other opportunities may have arisen elsewhere or even within the Premier League. Luckily, our backline has been reinforced so we will not necessarily miss his play, but we will always miss the fiery Dane who championed the Liverpool way for so many years.
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