Pretty much the majority of the transfer talk surrounding Liverpool at this moment in time is whether or not a new midfielder is needed. More specifically, whether Jude Bellingham will be moving to Anfield.
The Borussia Dortmund starlet is certainly a player that Liverpool's powers that be admire. You can be pretty sure that will be the case at a number of other top clubs across the Premier League and Europe, too.
However, club sources have indicated that the Reds, in terms of signings, are done for the summer. The arrivals of striker Darwin Nunez, attacker Fabio Carvalho and defender Calvin Ramsay are deemed to have concluded Jurgen Klopp's incoming business.
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That view has not been welcomed completely by supporters and pundits alike. Many feel that another new addition is needed, in order to inject added quality into the middle of the park.
It may be possible that Bellingham becomes a real target for Liverpool next summer. If that's the case, you can imagine that those same powers that be at the club will already be working on such a deal.
And while it may not be what some want to hear, but the Reds are already quietly working on something much bigger than signing one player.
One of the many rules that Liverpool and other Premier League clubs must adhere to is the homegrown quota. Every season, top-flight teams are required to submit a 25-man squad for the new season, of which eight players must be deemed to be homegrown.
In order for a player to qualify as homegrown, they must have spent at least three years at an FA-affiliated club before turning 21. This is why summer signing Carvalho qualifies as homegrown. He is a Portugal Under-21 international, after previously representing England youth sides, but he joined Fulham's academy in 2015.
Should a club not be able to name eight homegrown players, it must then submit a smaller squad. This was the case with Liverpool last year, when they named only a 24-man squad, given just seven players fitted the homegrown criteria.
Manager Klopp, working with new sporting director Julian Ward, will be keen to make sure the Reds are in good hands for the future when it comes to meeting the homegrown quota rules. And while Carvalho is one player who meets those requirements, he is not the only one.
Ramsay’s arrival from Aberdeen will also help the club meet those rules, with the right-back set to back-up Trent Alexander-Arnold - another homegrown player - in his first season at Anfield. The Scotland Under-21 international is a young player who could be key for Liverpool in the future - as is Harvey Elliott.
Signed from Fulham in 2019, Klopp and Co have certainly had high hopes for the England Under-21 international ever since he stepped through the doors on Merseyside. Last season was meant to be Elliott's big breakthrough campaign as a senior Reds player. Unfortunately, a serious ankle injury sustained in the early months of the season halted that somewhat, but it did not stop him from bouncing back quicker than expected to get back out on to the pitch.
Let’s not forget about Curtis Jones, either. Another who is yet to truly show on a consistent basis what everyone at the club knows what he truly can do. And, of course, it also helps the club that he meets the homegrown quota rules.
Jones, Elliott, Ramsay and Carvalho are Liverpool’s future - and that’s before you even throw into the mix the possible addition of Bellingham. Regardless of whether or not Dortmund agree to sell their prized asset to the Reds, Klopp is making sure that the next generation of top British talent are harnessing their skills at Anfield.
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