A general view of the Premier League trophy as players and staff of Liverpool sing 'You'll Never Walk Alone' as Liverpool are crowned the Champions of the Premier League for the 2024/25 Season following the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Crystal Palace FC at Anfield on May 25, 2025 in Liverpool, England.placeholder image
A general view of the Premier League trophy as players and staff of Liverpool sing 'You'll Never Walk Alone' as Liverpool are crowned the Champions of the Premier League for the 2024/25 Season following the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Crystal Palace FC at Anfield on May 25, 2025 in Liverpool, England. | Getty Images/Getty Images
Liverpool have sanctioned a number of player exits already this summer
Excitement is rife around Liverpool this summer. It would be difficult to come by a better start to a summer transfer window for a newly-crowned Premier League champion, as Arne Slot has honed in on the opportunity posed by success to make key improvements to his squad.
But Slot’s willingness to let players go has also been impressive. Misfiring striker Darwin Nunez continues to be linked with a move away, while Luis Diaz, Harvey Elliott and Diogo Jota have also been touted for potential exits. It is unlikely that all four forwards leave, but it is impressive that the Dutchman is open to parting ways with first-team players in order to fund improvements.
The likes of Alexander Isak and Bradley Barcola have been linked with moves to Merseyside. While a move for either would break the bank and be aspirational at best, the same was said about Florian Wirtz. Player sales could be key in funding any further moves.
One now-former Liverpool star has already completed a move away from Anfield this summer, but now may be faced with disaster just weeks later.
Caoimhin Kelleher decided to part ways with Liverpool
Caoimhin Kelleher was on the books at Liverpool for a decade before reluctantly deciding to take his career elsewhere in an £18m move to Brentford at the start of this month.
Kelleher was a reliable performer in 67 appearances for the Reds, making key contributions to multiple cup wins and featuring 25 times in the Premier League in the absence of Alisson Becker.
But it became clear that the 26-year-old must begin the next stage in his career and be a first-choice, which was not going to come easily at Anfield. Alisson remains first choice and will be for the near future, and the highly-rated Giorgi Mamardashvili would have made Kelleher’s job even more difficult on his arranged arrival from Valencia this summer after last year’s £29m transfer. With the recent signings of Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman, the Reds now have four goalkeepers on their books.
Kelleher wanted to leave and Liverpool decided to cash in, with Brentford looking like the best option after Mark Flekken moved to Bayer Leverkusen. The Irishman could no doubt have signed for a bigger club, but he viewed Brentford as an attractive project where he would be guaranteed first-team football. He could not be blamed for thinking this, but he could yet live to regret it.
Kelleher’s Brentford conundrum
Accustomed to being in an environment of success, Kelleher must have been looking around in distress at what has gone on at Brentford in the few short weeks since his arrival.
First Thomas Frank, arguably the best manager in Brentford’s history and the reason for their success, departed to replace Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur. Club captain Christian Norgaard agreed a £15m fee to join Arsenal earlier this week and Bryan Mbeumo continues to be the subject of strong links with Manchester United, who have had bids rejected but are expected to sign the player in the coming weeks. Striker partner Yoane Wissa has also been linked with moves away.
It must have been known that the Bees’ recent success always lay on a knife-edge. But Kelleher would not have been expecting everything around him to fall apart so quickly. The new season now looks increasingly worrying, and a relegation battle may be on the horizon - which would be a disaster for new signing Kelleher.
The Premier League is as strong as it has ever been, with Brentford punching above their weight for years. Frank was a huge reason for that, as were Mbeumo, Norgaard and former player Ivan Toney.
The Bees have now made the risky decision to promote from within, appointing set-piece coach Keith Andrews as their new head coach. There will be huge pressure on the club’s transfer business this summer - they usually get it right in the transfer market, but this summer feels different. All good things come to an end. What goes up must come down, as they say.
Whether or not Brentford truly struggle this season depends highly on how well promoted clubs Leeds United, Burnley and Sunderland compete. Should they be anything like the last two sets of promoted clubs, the Bees could finish 16th without ever being in danger of going down.
But that is all up in the air as things stand. One thing is for sure, Kelleher may have a more difficult job to do in goal for his new club than he would have imagined. He will certainly be given the chance to earn his stripes and show just why he should be a first-choice keeper at this level.
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