'That's what they'll do' - Jamie Carragher gives…

'That's what they'll do' - Jamie Carragher gives verdict on Liverpool midfield transfer dilemma

Jamie Carragher believes Liverpool should only enter the transfer market for a midfielder if there's one "who has that quality and is available" as he tells supporters not to "panic" ahead of the final weeks of the summer window.

Liverpool were dealt another sizeable blow this weekend as Thiago Alcantara added his name to the ever-increasing injury list on the red-half of Merseyside, which currently stands at 10 senior players, as the Spaniard pulled up five minutes into the second half of Saturday's 2-2 draw with Fulham at Craven Cottage.

The former Barcelona man joins long-term absentees Curtis Jones and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the sidelines, who have suffered calf and hamstring injuries over the summer, while Naby Keita failed to take any part in training last week as he suffered from illness. However, the Guinean is expected to be fit for Monday's visit of Crystal Palace.

With Tyler Morton and Leighton Clarkson having both been loaned out last week in a bid to assist their senior development, it leaves Jurgen Klopp with just five senior midfielders - Jordan Henderson, Harvey Elliott, Fabio Carvalho, James Milner and Fabinho and potentially Keita - for their second game of the new season.

And unexpectedly, such a crisis so early in the new Premier League season has prompted supporters to call for a midfielder to be added to the signings of Carvalho, Darwin Nunez and Calvin Ramsay this summer.

However, former Liverpool defender, and current Sky Sports pundit, Carragher has called on fans not to "panic" but instead for supporters to trust the club and their recent track record when it comes to recruitment.

"Liverpool's first-choice midfield - and the one that played at Fulham - is getting towards the 30-age mark" wrote Liverpool's former No.23 in his Sky Sports column. "You think a younger and more energetic player at some stage is needed, they've got those players there in reserve but they're all injured. I would only want Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool to do that if they get the midfielder they want.

"Liverpool's success in the transfer market has been down to not panicking, it's not what they've done in the past, it's not what they're doing now and it can't be what they do in the future. If there's no midfielder they want out there, don't get him. But if they feel there's one who has that quality and is available, I would like them to do it of course. But don't panic."

Carragher added: "That's the way Liverpool assesses things in the transfer market. If you think about the deal with Virgil van Dijk, that deal fell through in the summer and they waited until January. They didn't get another centre-back - and they did need one - but they waited for the guy that they wanted. That proved very successful and that's what they'll do in midfield."

Over the weekend, following Thiago's injury against the Cottagers, Liverpool were linked with AC Milan's Ismael Bennacer, Inter Milan's Marcelo Brozovic and Portugal international Matheus Nunes. However, Klopp's six-and-a-half years at Anfield thus far have demonstrated just how imperative patience is when it comes to sounding out new additions at Anfield.

Of course, Virgil van Dijk's move from Southampton in 2018 has become the ultimate example of patience personified during the German's time on Merseyside. The Liverpool manager had been desperate to bolster his defensive ranks in the summer of 2017 but after the South Coast outfit had become dissatisfied with how the Reds had gone about trying to engineer a move for the defender, the move was swiftly called off. But Klopp would ignore outside noise from those demanding the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly be signed immediately in July 2017 and instead waited until the following January to get his man from St Mary's.

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