Luis Suarez's 2013/14 Premier League season will always be remembered as one of the all-time great individual campaigns.
After missing the first five games of the season when punished for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic in April 2013, the Uruguayan forward was suspended by the Football Association for eight matches, which would rule him out of the Reds' penultimate games of the 2012/13 campaign as well as the opening rounds of the new season.
That didn't stop Suarez from equalling Cristiano Ronaldo's record of 31 goals in a single league campaign, a tally that was only bettered by Mohamed Salah's total of 32 in the 2017/18 season.
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As what used to be the case with any fine individual campaign in the Premier League, Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid would soon come calling, as they did with both Gareth Bale and Ronaldo, and Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was the Premier League's latest victim of the vicious European football food-chain as Suarez sealed a switch to Barcelona in July 2014.
Even after receiving a fee in the region of £75m for the striker, who they had signed from Ajax for £22.5m three-and-a-half years earlier, Liverpool still had every right to feel they had been shortchanged for their most prized asset.
Perhaps it is only now, eight summers on from Suarez's switch, because of how inefficiently Liverpool spent their funds that the Catalan club's capture is now heralded as one of the most renowned signings in their modern history.
However, for Liverpool, here are the eight different players they signed that summer in a bid to reshape the squad after Suarez - and how their careers progressed.
Adam Lallana - £20m
Signed for £20m from Premier League side Southampton, the former Saints skipper was one of the first signings made by Rodgers that summer they went on to enjoy a fine career at Anfield, even if it was hampered by injuries.
Hailed as the face of Jurgen Klopp's gengenpressing system following the sacking of the Northern Irishman in late 2015, the German took a huge liking to Lallana during their five years on Merseyside together and used the midfielder 130 times prior to his departure in the summer of 2020.
The now 34-year-old's best season at Anfield came during the 2016/17 campaign when the Reds qualified for the Champions League thanks to Lallana's impressive total of eight goals and seven assists throughout. Him and his teammates would lift the trophy two seasons later after beating Tottenham in the 2019 final before Lallana was crowned a Premier League champion in his final season at the club.
Upon the expiration of his contract in June 2020, he joined Premier League outfit Brighton.
Dejan Lovren - £20m
Also signed for £20m from Southampton in the summer of 2014, Dejan Lovren is one another name on this list that represents decent value for money, all things considered.
Despite an ultimately turbulent six years on Merseyside, Lovren made some important contributions along the way - none greater than his stoppage-time Kop-end winner against Borussia Dortmund in the 2016 Europa League quarter-final.
Having made a total of 185 appearances under the guidance of both Rodgers and Klopp during his time at Anfield, Lovren helped the club win the Champions League and Premier League before departing to Zenit St Petersberg for £10.9m in the summer of 2020.
Lazar Markovic - £20m
Probably one of the most disappointing signings on the list has to be Lazar Markovic, who was brought from Benfica for £20m.
Having been hailed as one of the finest products to pass through the academy of former club Partizan Belgrade, the Serbian's transfer to Anfield was one that generated plenty of excitement amongst supporters.
However, for Markovic - and Liverpool - things didn't go to plan as he scored just two Premier League goals during the 14/15 season as he was deployed in a right-wing back role during his most prominent spell in the team.
There was a fine cameo in the Champions League group stage tie against Basel at Anfield in 2014, as he injected some much-needed spark into a fleeting Liverpool performance but a questionable red card from referee Björn Kuipers extinguished the winger's momentum as he gave him his early marching orders.
After a poor debut season at Anfield, he was sent on loan to Fernabache, Sporting CP, Hull City, and Anderlecht before joining Fulham in 2019.
Now 28 years of age, Markovic recently joined Turkish SuperLig outfit Gaziantep.
Mario Balotelli - £16m
Rivalling Markovic for one of the worst pieces of recruitment on the list, is former Manchester City and Liverpool forward Mario Balotelli.
The Italian surprisingly moved to Anfield from AC Milan for £16m in the summer of 2014, just weeks after Rodgers had seemingly ruled out a move for the controversial forward while on the club's pre-season tour.
With Liverpool quickly realising the mistake they had made in signing the former Manchester City star, the Northern Irishman dropped the forward for large parts of the second half of the season after a string of training ground antics left Anfield officials and his team-mates rather unimpressed.
Balotelli departed Anfield in the summer of 2015 as he returned to AC Milan on loan and eventually had his contract at Anfield terminated in 2016 as he joined Ligue 1 side Nice.
The forward now plays for Turkish side Adana Demirspor.
Alberto Moreno - £12m
When compared to some of the other names who feature on this list, Spaniard Alberto Moreno enjoyed a decent five-year stint at Anfield.
Having been a long-time target of Rodgers, the Liverpool manager eventually agreed on a deal of £12m with La Liga outfit Sevilla for the left-back.
Despite a promising start to life on Merseyside, which included a stunning solo goal against Tottenham at White Hart Lane, Moreno failed to string together consistent performances during his stay and was ultimately relegated to second-choice left-back following the signing of Andy Robertson from Hull City in 2017.
The Spaniard returned to La Liga following Liverpool's Champions League triumph in 2019, joining Villarreal.
Divock Origi - £10m
Ask any modern-day Liverpool supporter to name you a 21st centuary club legend, and while they may reel off such names as Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Steven Gerrard, if you listen for long enough you will probably hear the name of Divock Origi, following his catalogue of historic strikes during his time at Anfield.
Having joined from Lille in 2014, Origi was in fact loaned straight back to the French outfit for the 2014/15 season and therefore did not join up with his Liverpool team-mates until the summer of 2015.
Despite being made to wait for his chance, the Belgian striker seized his opportunity during the latter stages of the 2015/16 Europa League campaign as he helped the Reds defeat Borussia Dortmund in dramatic fashion across two legs.
But after an injury-hampered season, the forward was sent on loan to Wolfsburg in 2017/18, before enjoying the finest spell of his Anfield career in the four years that followed.
The forward famously fired two goals against Barcelona in the 2019 Champions league semi-final and added a further strike to his portfolio against Tottenham in the final as the Reds claimed their sixth European Cup.
The former Lille man left Anfield this summer after his contract expired and finalised a move to AC Milan not long after.
Emre Can - £8m
Signed for what proved to be a well-spent £8m from Bayern Leverkusen, Emre Can earned himself a reputation as one of the most reliable utility men at Anfield during his four-year stay.
Having played in midfield, right-back and centre-back under the tutelage of Rodgers, Klopp helped shape his countryman into one of the game's most promising deep-lying midfielders during their time at Anfield.
However, Can swapped Merseyside for Turin in the summer of 2018 as he signed for Italian giants Juventus once his contract had expired, but was sold just two years later to Borussia Dortmund.
Rickie Lambert - £4.5m
Perhaps the most sentimental transfer of the 2014 summer haul was when former youth scholar Rickie Lambert made his return to Anfield 17 years after being released.
After enjoying two fine years with Southampton following their return to the Premier League in 2012, Lambert joined the Reds for £4.5m.
In truth, the transfer didn't pan out how the England striker would have envisioned as he scored just two league goals in a disappointing campaign for the Reds.
Leaving the club to join West Brom in 2015, the former Saints man retired in 2017.
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