Liverpool urged to make two January signings to spark a revival

Liverpool return to action this weekend in the Premier League when they host Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.

The Reds have struggled to establish themselves as strong title contenders after becoming champions in the summer, and Arne Slot will be feeling the pressure to get back on track.

The Dutch manager has credit in the bank after securing the Premier League title in his debut season on Merseyside, but the current campaign has been frustrating to say the least.

Liverpool were the talk of the summer transfer window after uncharacteristically dropping a whopping £450m on new additions, which included superstars like Alexander Isak, Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike.

So far, not many of the newcomers have found their move to Anfield an easy transition and those before them are also struggling to play at their best.

Mohamed Salah has long been the source of success in front of goal for almost a decade at Anfield, but this season he has only found the back of the net four times in the league, which is unlike him in the opening months.

The Egyptian winger isn’t the only concern for Slot, as the defensive performances have also been incredibly poor with almost as many goals conceded (17) as those scored (18).

Former striker and Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler has spoken out on the recent downfall of his boyhood club and has given thought to how the club can use the January transfer window to their advantage.

Speaking to Adventure Gamers, Fowler said:

“I do think we need a Fabinho-type sitter in that park,”

“As much as there are three fabulous players in there — [Alexis] Mac Allister, [Ryan] Gravenberch and [Dominik] Szoboszlai — discipline would probably be the wrong phrase here because I think they can do it.”

“But you need that disciplined player to sort of sit there and try and control things. At times I think Liverpool have maybe been a bit too risky with the three midfielders going forward when it’s probably not on. I think they do need that little bit of stability in front of that back four.”

Moving onto the back four, Fowler delivered his verdict on the second role that he believes needs addressing:

“God forbid anything happens to Virgil van Dijk.”

“If he gets injured then it puts them in a really worrying position. So I think they do need to go out and get that centre-half.”

It would be no surprise to Liverpool fans if the club didn’t spend heavily in the January window, especially after an expensive summer.

However, their precarious form and inconsistencies are laid bare for everyone to see, and not investing in crucial positions in the new year could prove to be the making of a disastrous season.

Liverpool will lose Salah to AFCON for the entirety of January at the least, but the updated attacking personnel should be able to cope with his absence.

The Reds are currently eight points adrift of Arsenal at the top of the table in the Premier League title race, but are comfortably competing in the Champions League.

They are currently eighth in the prestigious European competition’s league phase, and if they can retain that spot over their remaining games they will qualify for the round of sixteen with ease.

Fowler’s comments echo the feeling of frustration for many Liverpool fans who felt that the title win and ambitious transfer window gave hope of consistent progression for the immediate future.

Patience will be key in this phase of form, and even a win over Nottingham Forest at the weekend could be the much-needed confidence boost that sparks a turnaround at this early stage of the season.

Having said that, the January transfer window does offer Liverpool an olive branch to make tweaks and grow into the season.

It would be a bold move to avoid getting some reinforcements in should the current form creep into the festive period.

Rebekka Arnold is an experienced writer with a strong background in digital media, PR and football journalism.

Since 2021, Rebekka has written opinion pieces and match reaction content for Football Fancast, part of the Snack Media network, building on her growing presence in the football community through viral Twitter content and podcasting.

Now at Transfer Tavern, Rebekka brings her sharp eye for analysis and deep passion for the game to deliver engaging football opinion and breaking transfer news content.