Arne Slot launches Liverpool £450m transfer defence after record spend and Arsenal comparisons

Arne Slot has issued a staunch defence of the £450million that Liverpool spent during this summer transfer window. The Reds broke their transfer record twice since the end of last season, first by paying Bayer Leverkusen an initial £100million for Florian Wirtz, that deal also included £16million worth of add-ons.

They then set a new British record after agreeing to a £125million deal with Newcastle United for Alexander Isak on transfer deadline day. Hugo Ekitike has already arrived from Eintracht Frankfurt for £69million plus potentially another £10million in add-ons.

Liverpool also spent just over £100million on strengthening their defence. Those signings were of Giovanni Leoni (£26million), Jeremie Frimpong (£30million) and Milos Kerkez (£40million).

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A deal with Valencia worth £30million for Giorgi Mamardashvili that the club agreed last summer also went through when this season started. Overall, they spent the best part of £450million, as Slot is well aware.

The likes of Arsenal and Chelsea also spent big this summer in a bid to narrow the gap at the top of the Premier League, but Slot says that one key thing any criticism is missing is the balance of their outgoings.

"There's so much focus on our new signings," the Liverpool head coach said during a press conference. "The pundits that favour, not us, but some other clubs in the country, cannot stop talking about 450 million, I repeat 450 million, I repeat 450 million.

"But they always forget the £300million that we've sold [players] for." The Reds sold Ben Gannon Doak, Caoimhin Kelleher, Darwin Nunez, Jarell Quansah, Luis Diaz, Nat Phillips, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Tyler Morton, as well as agreeing a permanent exit for Harvey Elliott next summer.

Slot continued: "These players that we brought in are, indeed, a lot of money, but they are playing now together with players that are worth the same amounts of money. So, yes, if we want to strengthen the squad, we need almost to spend that much money because then they are... if we sell Dominik Szoboszlai tomorrow, he would be worth £100million as well."