There has been a lot of talk about big money signings in relation to Liverpool of late, with many supporters willing the club to pay top dollar to sign Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain. However, when the Reds do pull the plug and sign a player for a huge fee, there have so far been mixed results.
The transformative signings of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker fundamentally altered the trajectory of Liverpool Football Club. Arriving in 2018 for then-world-record fees for a defender and goalkeeper respectively, the duo provided the missing defensive steel that immediately turned former manager Jurgen Klopp’s side from entertaining entertainers into ruthless, trophy-winning machines.
Serving as the defensive foundation for a glittering run of silverware that included the club's sixth UEFA Champions League crown and a historic, drought-ending Premier League title.
However, the £64 million paid to secure Darwin Núñez's signature did pan out quite as well, while the jury remain out on Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, both of whom arrived for in excess of £115 million last summer, yet to deliver the goods thus far.
This summer's new signing Jérémy Jacquet is now the eighth-most expensive recruit in Liverpool's history, just above a player you may have totally forgotten about.
The former Liverpool man still playing
Few players have arrived at Liverpool to as much hype as Naby Keïta. He officially signed for the club for £52 million in the summer of 2017, but it was agreed that he would remain a RB Leipzig for another year. This only added to the excitement, the Guinean chose to take the number eight shirt, becoming the first player to do so since a certain Steven Gerrard's departed for Major League Soccer (MLS) side LA Galaxy.
Well, fair to say, he did not live up to those expectations. Despite collecting Premier League and Champions League winners' medals, Keïta never truly delivered as a Liverpool player. Across five seasons, the midfield did make 129 appearances, of which 77 were starts, but missed a whopping 103 matches due to various injury issues.
In his final campaign on Merseyside, Keïta started just five games, accumulating a miserly 488 minutes across all competitions, so was thereby released in the summer of 2023.
Thereafter, he was picked up by Werder Bremen, appearing only five times for die Grün-Weißen, and has been with Ferencváros since December 2024, so how are things going for him in Budapest?
What Naby Keïta has achieved for the first time in 7 years
As you might imagine, a move to the Nemzeti Bajnokság I has not eradicated Keïta's injury issues. He made just 11 appearances during his first half season with the Green Eagles, before only 19 during the last campaign, totalling just 1,023 minutes across all competitions.
However, could things be on the up for the 31 year old? Well, even as the World Cup was still going on, as Magyar Kupa (Hungarian Cup) winners, Ferencváros' season began in Europa League qualifying on 9 July. Keïta completed 90 minutes during both legs of their victory over Serbian side Vojvodina, winning 2-1 at Stadion Karađorđe in Novi Sad and then 3-0 back at Groupama Aréna last Thursday.
For the first time in seven years, the 31-year-old has completed a full 90 minutes in consecutive club matches. The last time he managed this feat was during his Liverpool days in February 2019, playing out for the full duration of a1-1 draw against West Ham and a comfortable 3-0 victory over Bournemouth.
To put into perspective just how long ago that was, the Hammers' lineup that day featured former Manchester United striker Javier Hernández and Robert Snodgrass, while Daniel Sturridge was still coming off the bench for the Reds against the Cherries.
Keïta carries the best wishes of most Liverpool supporters, clearly talented and hard-working, but completely derailed by injuries.
Next up for him and Ferencváros, they will face Eredivisie outfit FC Twente in the Europa League second qualifying round, which they are underdogs for, with the first leg in Enschede on Thursday.
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