Liverpool has come out swinging in the transfer market, making a series of hugely exciting additions with the promise of more to come.
But at least one onlooker believes that Arne Slot could be putting himself under serious pressure in his second season.
In terms of completed deals, Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong are both already through the door from Bayer Leverkusen. So too is Giorgi Mamardashvili, a transfer having been agreed last summer. Meanwhile, a move for Milos Kerkez appears imminent. And if Darwin Nunez leaves as expected, with Napoli keen, then Liverpool could reinvest in a marquee striker.
That player may yet even be Alexander Isak. While such an outcome is distinctly unlikely, it is not impossible, and the summer would go down as one of the most outlandish, impressive transfer windows ever conducted by any club.
But even assuming that move does not materialize, there can be no denying that Liverpool has ramped up expectations even higher with its transfer activity. Remarkably, it is currently the bookies' favorite to win both the Premier League and the Champions League.
Those markets are profoundly affected by gambling activity, so perhaps it's a case of one too many Liverpool fans getting swept up in Wirtz fever. Even so, when a reigning league champion strengthens this much, there is always going to be added pressure to go again.
At least one pundit seems to think so. Writing for the BBC blog, Pat Nevin hailed Liverpool's business, but issued a warning.
"There is no such thing as a sure-fire winner in this business... but I suspect Florian Wirtz is as close as you get in the modern game," Nevin mused. "Wirtz is different - and so he should be at a princely £100 million ($136 million) before add-ons.
Florian Wirtz was unveiled as a Liverpool player after his signing at AXA Training Centre
Florian Wirtz was unveiled as a Liverpool player after his signing at AXA Training Centre (Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
"With Kerkez, the exciting Jeremie Frimpong and the fabulous Georgian keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili [as well as Wirtz], Arne Slot has put himself under huge pressure because just about everyone has them as favourites to retain their title. I wouldn't argue with that for a second."
Liverpool's last attempted title defense somewhat unfairly got dubbed the worst ever, as a spate of injuries meant it was all Jurgen Klopp could do to salvage a top-four finish. That, too, will turn up the heat on Slot.
But this is the man for whom the task of replacing a legend like Klopp was water off a duck's back. Playing into the Dutch stereotype of pragmatism bordering on bluntness, he will presumably view reinforcements as an entirely positive thing, rather than a source of any extra pressure.
Nor does the assessment of the pressure on Liverpool take into account the outgoing business. Under other circumstances, the loss of someone like Trent Alexander-Arnold would have had many questioning if the Reds' top-four status could be under threat.
Others could still leave, too. Harvey Elliott is among the more notable names being heavily linked with a departure, while there is creeping uncertainty over Ibrahima Konate.
Even so, there's no escaping the fact that Slot entered his first Liverpool season with the Champions League places considered a reasonable goal, and will enter his second with the expectation that he challenges for (or maybe even wins) the title. But as the saying goes: pressure is a privilege.