Liverpool has been active in the transfer market this summer, bolstering Arne Slot's Premier League-winning squad. The latest addition is Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen, who joined the Reds on Friday in a record-breaking deal.
Milos Kerkez, the Hungarian international, is expected to be the next player to join Liverpool, with a move from AFC Bournemouth imminent as he completes his medical.
In addition, Liverpool has already secured the services of Jeremie Frimpong and Armin Pecsi, while Giorgi Mamardashvili will also be making his way to Anfield this summer following an agreement with Valencia last year. However, Liverpool's recruitment drive isn't expected to stop there, with the potential for a new forward and center-back to join before the transfer window shuts on September 1.
On the flip side, Liverpool is also preparing for several departures, with senior players having already exited the club and more expected to follow.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, who opted not to renew his contract at Anfield, has moved to Real Madrid in a deal that saw Liverpool pocket a fee. This allowed him to terminate his contract a month early and represent the La Liga titans in this summer's FIFA Club World Cup.
Caoimhin Kelleher has also departed, signing for Brentford in a deal, fulfilling his long-held ambition to seek first-choice goalkeeper opportunities elsewhere. In other news, Vitezslav Jaros has been loaned to Ajax for the season, following a contract renewal with Liverpool.
Liverpool has also agreed a deal to transfer Jarell Quansah to Bayer Leverkusen, Nat Phillips has permanently moved to West Bromwich Albion, and goalkeeper Harvey Davies is set to be loaned to Crawley Town in League Two. An interesting commonality among these departing players is that they all qualified as homegrown talents for Liverpool.
Jarell Quansah is set to leave Liverpool
Jarell Quansah is set to leave Liverpool (Image: 2025 DeFodi Images)
Last season, Alexander-Arnold, Kelleher and Jaros were all registered as such, contributing to Liverpool's homegrown quota in both the Premier League and Champions League. With their departure, Liverpool now needs to reorganise its homegrown roster. Interestingly, several Under-21s who qualify as homegrown are coming of age ahead of the new season.
Harvey Elliott, Conor Bradley, Luca Stephenson, Fabian Mrozek and James Balagizi will all need to be included in Liverpool's 25-man squad if Slot wants to select them for Premier League or Champions League matches. The same applies to the outgoing Quansah and Davies, as well as James Norris who remains on loan at Irish club Shelbourne until November 2025.
Liverpool already has homegrown players including Joe Gomez, Curtis Jones, Tyler Morton, Owen Beck and Rhys Williams, as well as Jaros who is currently on loan. Summer signing Frimpong also qualifies due to his time at the Man City academy.
Currently, Liverpool has 11 senior players who are considered homegrown in the Premier League, with all but one classified as 'club-trained' in the Champions League. Premier League rules state that clubs cannot register more than 17 overseas players over the age of 21 in their squads. This means that clubs must name at least eight homegrown players if they want to register a full 25-man squad.
Similarly, for the Champions League, clubs must select at least eight 'locally-trained players' to name a full 25-man squad. No club can list more than four 'association-trained players' among those eight places.
Marc Guehi of Crystal Palace during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace FC and Liverpool FC at Selhurst Park
Marc Guehi could be on his way to Liverpool (Image: 2024 Sebastian Frej/MB Media)
With Phillips leaving, Frimpong is currently Liverpool's only 'association-trained player'. However, academy player Rio Ngumoha could also be selected, as he does not yet qualify for a place on 'List B', which is reserved for Under-21s players.
So, it appears that Liverpool is currently meeting their homegrown quotas with 11 current players qualifying for such status. A closer examination of the 11 players in question reveals that it wouldn't be a shock if most of them also depart from the club this summer, including Elliott and Gomez.
If all eight were to leave, Liverpool would be left with only Jones, Frimpong and Bradley as homegrown players, limiting them to a maximum 20-man senior squad.
This shrinking pool of senior homegrown talent is likely one of the factors behind Liverpool's decision to bring in Frimpong as a replacement for Alexander-Arnold.
Similarly, this is one reason why Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi has caught the eye at Anfield as he enters his contract's final year. It also explains Liverpool's interest in Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United last summer and Levi Colwill of Chelsea the year prior.
The Reds have been linked with Eberechi Ezi, Morgan Rogers, Jarrad Branthwaite, Morgan Gibbs-White, Jamie Bynoe-Gittins, and Adam Wharton in recent months as well.