Kloppy Klopp Klopp discusses his transfer plans

Matt Stead

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp claims he has “no idea” whether he will strengthen his squad further before the end of August.

In an exclusive interview with ESPN FC the Reds chief said that everyone in his squad at the end of next month would have a “big influence” on the season, but he was unsure on whether he would add to the signings of Loris Karius, Sadio Mane, Joel Matip, Alex Manninger, Georginio Wijnaldum and Ragnar Klavan. Daniel Storey believes the club still need a new left-back.

“If I had to guess I would say rather no, but I don’t know actually because it’s a long time until the 31st of August and I have no idea,” Klopp said. “[The] 31st of August we have a few friendlies of course and few test games and then we have, one, two, maybe three – I’m not sure – Premier League games.

“So we will see. We will see how the players react on my decisions again because we will have more players than 11 for sure, and then you have to accept a few decisions and you have to take it as an opportunity.

“To develop a team never ends so, you have only result, result, result, but then you will have to again decide. That’s how it is. So we will see. I don’t think we’ll have a lot. But of course everyone knows about it maybe on the outgoing side will happen a little bit…yeah I have no idea in the moment.”

Klopp has made a concerted effort to trim his squad with numerous fringe men leaving or set to leave Anfield after using 34 players last season. He is keen to have a tighter squad this time around and he has emphasised that everyone will be involved.

“What I can promise,” he said, “if we win something at the end of the season, everybody who’s here after 31st of August in this squad will have a big influence on it. If we win something and we will have a big picture and everybody will be on it.

“And if you are then smart enough to think ‘yes I was a big [part], I played a big role in it’ – whatever a big role is, it’s a decisive goal in the last minute with three matches, or it’s a, I made 20 matches, 10 of them not so good but 10 were brilliant – whatever. If you win something, then it’s because of the group you have been [in].”

The German is used to working with a sporting director from his time at Mainz and Borussia Dortmund as the model is common in his homeland.

Liverpool’s much-criticised transfer committee, a source of frustration for former boss Brendan Rodgers, has been re-evaluated and revamped since Klopp’s arrival with the 49-year-old having the final say on all deals.

But that does not mean Klopp is against an all-round approach to sourcing and securing targets.

“Improvement can come in all kinds of life and in all parts of life and it’s based on experience,” he said.

“So I don’t think it makes sense that you give one person the whole power, that’s why we have democracy and no other kind of political leadership.

“Hopefully it stays like this and because we learned that it makes sense that you put all your skills together and in the end you try to find the best decision.

“I don’t know how it works in other clubs but in this squad it’s not one player.

“It’s all about the situation in the club and the squad and it’s about money.

“We all have a budget – (that is) how it is and that’s how I like it and that’s how I’m used to working.”