Jamie Carragher Liverpool transfer rant in full - FSG, Lavia, Klopp, Edwards and ‘big problem’

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has expressed his dismay at the ‘absolute mess’ at his former club as the Reds look to boost their squad before the end of the summer transfer window.

The departures of midfield duo Fabinho and Jordan Henderson have left Jurgen Klopp’s squad looking light in the middle of the pitch, despite the summer addtions of RB Leipzig star Dominik Szoboszlai and Brighton and Hove Albion’s World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister.

A need to strenghten in midfield has led to a complicated period as the Reds tried and failed to complete deals for Mac Allister’s former Seagulls team-mate Moises Caicedo and Southampton youngster Romeo Lavia. Caicedo has now joined Chelsea in a reported £110million move and he is expected to be followed to Stamford Bridge by Lavia over the coming days.

Carragher delivered a passionate but frustrated assessment of the situation at Anfield on Sky Sports Monday Night Football and he believes the ‘embarrassing’ situation has its roots in the Reds failure to replace the impact made by a former key figure within their transfer hierarchy and a lack of stability in the recruitment department.

Carragher on attempts to sign Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia

“They are in a pretty difficult place, they need to buy somebody in midfield.

“People know they are desperate. They put a bid in for Lavia today for £60million, when they refused to pay £50million four or five days ago. It’s an absolute mess, it’s a joke and the biggest problem about it is Liverpool have known they’ve needed midfield reinforcements since about August of last season.

“You start with Lavia, don’t pay a certain amount, then go to Caicedo, yes, you get something agreed and that’s why I’m not critical of the owners. They were willing to pay £110milion and break the transfer record but to go with him when he’s been talking to Chelsea for three months, and now go back to Lavia, it’s an absolute mess."

Carragher on FSG and the structure within the club

“People think I defend FSG, I have no relationship with them at all, but this is not on the owners, this is on the structure of the football club when you go back two years when Liverpool were the model every team in Europe, not just the Premier League, wanted to follow.

“When Liverpool were winning the league and getting to Champions League Finals, what are Liverpool doing? They’re not spending as much as other teams, but they are producing these players.”

“Yes, they’ve got a great manager, but they had a guy called Michael Edwards at the top of the club as a director of football, transfer committee beneath him, it worked well. He left, his number two took over, he was in the job for six months, he left and you have to ask the reason why these people are leaving the football club.

Carragher on the failure to replace Michael Edwards as sporting director

“I don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes. A guy has come in from Germany who has a relationship with Jurgen Klopp but he’s only there for the summer and then he’s moving on. Liverpool will then get another director of football, so in the space of 18 months, Liverpool have had four directors of football.

“They haven’t got deals done, that is your job in that role, to get deals over the line. The two players Liverpool bought had buyout clauses. There’s no negotiating, there’s no big deal to go about it. You just meet the buyout clause. Liverpool have not got deals over the line and it’s been embarrassing.”