Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has insisted that it would be a sensible idea to strengthen up front in the aftermath of his side’s Community Shield defeat.
The Reds were seen as favourites to beat Crystal Palace at Wembley on Sunday, but the Merseysiders were beaten in a penalty shootout after the sides drew 2-2.
Though the Premier League champions will be disappointed to have lost, there were a number of positives to take away from the match, including the strong performances of Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz.
Liverpool looked significantly less threatening once Ekitike was substituted off, and speaking to talkSPORT (vua SportsMole) after the match, captain Van Dijk insisted that there was room in the squad for more attackers, saying: “Well, we just lost Darwin [Nunez], he went to Saudi and we lost Lucho [Luis Diaz], obviously he went to Bayern.
“I think there’s always room for an attacker in order to strengthen us so let’s see what the window brings in terms of the balance of the team.”
Also Read: Crystal Palace Stun Liverpool Via Penalties, Lift Community Shield
The Reds have been linked with Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak this summer, and have already had a £110m bid rejected for the forward earlier in August.
The Reds have been the Premier League’s biggest spenders so far, but they have also managed to recoup a significant portion of their expenditure through sales.
Darwin Nunez has completed a move to Al-Hilal and Diaz has joined Bayern Munich, leaving gaps in the squad that are arguably yet to be filled.
The tragic death of Diogo Jota means that Ekitike is the club’s only senior striker, and it would be risky to head into the 2025-26 season with just one number nine.
If versatile forward Federico Chiesa departs as expected, then Liverpool’s will only have Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah as established wide options in attack.
The addition of Isak would not only strengthen the Reds’ depth in the number nine position, but would also allow Ekitike to be used in other positions in the forward line.
