It's been a very quiet summer for Liverpool, but should not necessarily come as a surprise. They spent a lot of money last summer, and while adding a couple of fresh faces is always a boost, their squad is already pretty stacked.
Jurgen Klopp has said that repeating last summer's spending spree was never really an option, claiming only four clubs in world football can afford to spend huge money every summer: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester City and PSG.
He believes those clubs simply spend to solve their problems, something others are not afforded the luxury to do.
Those comments have not been well received by Pep Guardiola. He believes claims that his side spend huge money every summer are unfounded.
It bothers me. Of course it bothers me, because it’s not true that we spend £200m every transfer market.
That is not true. So it’s Liverpool, you’ll never walk alone, so it’s not a small team. It’s Liverpool. So of course I don’t like it, because it’s not true.
Last season we spent £17m (net spend) on one player.
Two seasons ago if we spent a lot it’s because I took over the team and we had 10 or 11 players over 30 years old so we had to do it.
But we cannot spend £200m every season. For example last season Liverpool spent more than £200m last season, and cannot do it this season, but it’s the same.
We bought one player this season and Angelino, who we made a payback clause and came back with us and that’s a reality.
One of the big differences between City and Liverpool is outgoings. Liverpool tend to bring in quite a bit of money via players leaving the club, even ones on the fringe of the squad. In contrast, City rarely sell players for sizeable fees.
This summer, they have bought Rodri from Atletico for £63million, as well as two other smaller deals to bring their spend to £81million. £23million of that was supplemented by the sales of Fabian Delph and Douglas Luiz.
It is true that City's spending has been reigned in the past two summers, but the first two years of Guardiola's tenure saw unprecedented levels of spending.
While City fans point to Liverpool's record signing being more expensive than City's, quantity matters massively. Four of the world's most expensive defenders (Walker, Mendy, Stones, Laporte) were signed by the Spaniard at City, as well as one of the priciest goalkeepers.
After spending over £125million on full backs in 2017, it is rumoured they will fork out another £50million for Juventus right back Joao Cancelo before the end of this window.
Other players brought in for massive fees include Leroy Sane, Riyad Mahrez, and Beranrdo Silva.
While Guardiola is correct to point out that the squad required rebuilding, he was allowed to do so in a way almost no other club could have done. The money he got to spend was way beyond the means of his competitors. That's the whole point.
It has lessened since, but they still spend sizeable sums. With a few days remaining in the transfer window, this could be yet another big summer for City.
This is what Klopp was saying. They may not spend record breaking amounts each year, but even a quiet summer for City is well beyond what most clubs can afford. They can have a big window, and not feel the effects of it in the future.
Guardiola certainly does not suffer through a pauper's existence. He is a phenomenal manager, but to claim he doesn't spend is ridiculous.
