Two New Players To Make Reds the Tallest Premier League Side; Average Age of the XI Just 25

Liverpool can be young, strong, fast, tall, vibrant, skilful, clever and full of goals

I mentioned in this piece:

Liverpool Currently Have a Great Team (But the Lineup vs Palace Was Not It)

… the team that we could see next season, but with just two signings, the Reds could start the season with an average age of 25.5, and as the tallest team in the league, with zero donkeys.

I've focussed on two new first-teamers I think are gettable (and both heavily linked), but it's also worth pondering the changes to the squad. (But of course, it’s not make-or-break with any individual, and there are lots of players out there.)

Again, I think most of the squad improvement will come from almost a dozen players aged 17-20 being aged 18-21 next season. Each one of those dozen has the potential to improve by 30% in the next 12 months. Some may improve by more, even if some will get injured or stagnate. Still, it’s roughly a dozen players being cleverly prepared.

Then, those new to the club, aged 24 and under, will also likely improve.

A lot has been made of Manchester United's overhaul, but the team still has 6-8 starters who were part of a flopping side, including the ones thrashed 9-0 on aggregate by Liverpool last season.

To me, they always had a lot of talent, having spent fortunes, but often the wrong manager, and then the insanely disruptive influence of Cristiano Ronaldo, who sapped everyone's belief as it was all about him; casting a shadow that younger players needed to get out of. I don't think Erik ten Hag, while clearly good, is a great manager, but he went in and dealt with the two biggest problems: Ronaldo, and the defensive deadweight of Harry Maguire.

(Plus, he added midfield quality and experience, but also, as Tony McKenna noted on the TTT Main Hub, they're now generally quite an old side who went for short-term fixes, but maybe experience is what they needed. Still, bringing in three 30-somethings is not a long-term policy, yet sometimes short-term gain can lead to longer term success, or just a short-term bump.)

To me, two first-XI signings for Liverpool, maybe a couple more squad signings (depending on who leaves), and the rest is a case of improvement and promotion from within.

These two signings would absolutely slash the average age, to one similar to where the Reds were when things started to take off first time around under Jürgen Klopp: in 2019, a lot of the XIs that won big games averaged 26.5 or thereabouts, and this team would be 25.5 going into the start of next season; down from 29.8 at times this season.

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