Jurgen Klopp has argued that the biggest clubs in the world like Liverpool can never rely on just one player.
And that is the reasoning behind his surprise transfer window swoop for Luis Diaz, with the Reds boss explaining that he is planning not just to lift trophies this season, but also for a successful future.
The arrival of Diaz, in a move from Porto potentially worth £50m, has left many fans wondering if that means the club won’t renew contracts for their famous front three of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino.
But Klopp argued the move is to help his star players and the club to keep evolving.
“This club is too big to rely on single persons, whether that's me or a player, and has to be ready for all different scenarios,” he said.
“We constantly prepare for today and for tomorrow as well. We need options and we need help. All development includes fresh blood as well and that's what we did with Diogo Jota when he came here and now when we signed Luis it is exactly the same.
“Players might have plans for their future but a club has to be ready for pretty much all scenarios and that's what we do between playing games all the time.”
Although Salah’s contract stand off has grabbed most attention, Liverpool are still immersed in contract wrangles with all three forwards, with no new deals said to be imminent.
That has led to speculation - with all three out of contract in the summer of 2023 - not all of them will be given extensions. But Klopp is adamant Diaz has arrived to complete his forward line, not replace it.
“First and foremost nothing happened apart from we brought a really good player in. Now we really have to work with Luis, and all the others as well," he explained.
“It's really nice to have these kind of options. That is what our job has to be. The reaction of the players is always that they have to perform at the highest level. That has always to be the case.
“Our players, even when we had injuries and only three available up front, they pushed themselves to an extreme extent and that is why we were pretty successful in the last few years. But we cannot hope that we get through this with three or four players.
“We are long together with this team, it's a fantastic team, one of the most successful in the history of this club but we will never miss having a look ahead and that's exactly what we are doing.”
Diaz has spent much of the week in Paris, waiting for his papers to be cleared to allow him to enter the UK and work, with the winger due to join his team-mates on Friday.
That makes him touch and go to appear in the FA Cup tie against Cardiff on Sunday, but Klopp didn’t rule out the prospect completely.
He added: “It's not easy to sit around in Paris waiting for the papers. So I don't know, give me a second to meet him and to ask him how his last two or three days were!
"I wouldn't say no because I would be excited as well about giving him a few minutes in a sold out Anfield.”
Klopp has Thiago back in training after injury and a chest infection, along with Naby Keita and Harvey Elliott, who he said would “definitely be involved” in the Anfield cup tie.
