Liverpool’s 2025-26 Signings: Big Money, Mixed Early Returns

The summer spending spree that shook the Premier League

Liverpool went shopping like a kid in a candy store this summer. And not just any candy – top-shelf, premium, break-the-bank kind of sweets. Alexander Isak for a British record £125 million. Florian Wirtz at £100 million. Hugo Ekitiké snagged for £79 million. The total bill? Somewhere north of £400 million. For context, that’s roughly the GDP of a small island nation. Or, if you prefer football terms, enough to buy every player in the Championship. Twice.

The club wasn’t just replacing bodies. Luis Díaz, Darwin Núñez, Trent Alexander-Arnold – these weren’t just names on a team sheet. They were identity. Rhythm. The kind of players who make a system hum. So when they left, Liverpool didn’t just need new faces. They needed upgrades. Tactical evolutions. A squad built for Arne Slot’s vision, whatever that vision actually is at this point.

The forwards: big fees, quiet nights

Let’s talk about Isak. £125 million buys a lot of expectations. It buys headlines. It buys hope. What it hasn’t bought yet is goals. Not the kind that justify a British transfer record, anyway. The stats up to December 2025 tell a story – just not the one Liverpool fans wanted to hear. Shots on target? Decent. Link-up play? Fine, I guess. But the net isn’t bulging like it should when you’ve just dropped the equivalent of a Premier League wage bill on one man.

Then there’s Ekitiké. £79 million for a winger who’s looked… well, let’s call it “unsettled.” Fast, sure. Technical, absolutely. But football isn’t just about potential. It’s about impact. And right now, Ekitiké’s impact feels like a whisper in a stadium full of shouts. The Premier League has a way of chewing up and spitting out even the most talented attackers, especially when they’re still figuring out how to translate Ligue 1 flair into Anfield intensity. Maybe he’ll turn it around. Maybe he won’t. But £79 million doesn’t come with a “maybe” clause.

Wirtz is different. Midfielders take time – that’s the party line, anyway. But even by those standards, his integration has felt… uneven. There are flashes. A through ball here, a clever turn there. But the consistency? The dominance? The kind of performances that make you forget about the price tag? Not yet. And in a midfield that’s supposed to be the engine of Slot’s system, that’s a problem.

The defense: energy, but not yet harmony

On the other side of the pitch, things look a bit brighter. Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez weren’t cheap – £30 million and £40 million respectively – but they’ve at least given Liverpool something tangible: energy. Frimpong, in particular, has been a revelation. The kind of player who makes you wonder why no one else thought to sign him sooner. His overlapping runs, his defensive work rate, the way he turns defense into attack in the blink of an eye – it’s the kind of signing that makes fans nod approvingly.

Kerkez, too, has shown promise. Not as explosive as Frimpong, but solid. Reliable. The kind of left-back who doesn’t make you miss Andrew Robertson every single game. But – and there’s always a but – defensive cohesion isn’t built in a day. Or even a few months. Slot’s system demands fluidity, pressing, quick transitions. That takes time. And time, as they say, is money. Especially when you’ve spent £400 million of it.

The big question: is this a rebuild or a gamble?

Here’s the thing about Liverpool’s summer: it wasn’t just about replacing players. It was about redefining them. Upgrading the squad’s ceiling. Building something that could last. But football doesn’t work on spreadsheets. It works on moments. On chemistry. On the kind of intangibles that don’t show up in transfer fees or expected goals models.

Right now, those intangibles are missing. The squad feels like a work in progress. A collection of talented individuals who haven’t quite figured out how to play as a team yet. Is that surprising? Not really. Is it concerning? A little.

The problem isn’t that the signings are bad. It’s that they’re not enough. Not yet, anyway. Isak isn’t scoring like a £125 million striker. Ekitiké isn’t dominating like a £79 million winger. Wirtz isn’t controlling games like a £100 million midfielder. And until they do, the questions will keep coming. Because in football, especially at Liverpool, expectations don’t just come with a price tag – they come with a deadline.

The clock is ticking, but the story isn’t over

It’s December 2025. The season’s not even halfway done. There’s still time for these signings to click. For Isak to find his rhythm. For Ekitiké to grow into his role. For Wirtz to become the midfield maestro Liverpool paid for. For Frimpong and Kerkez to turn promise into consistency.

But here’s the uncomfortable truth: time isn’t infinite. Not in the Premier League. Not when you’ve spent this much money. Not when the fans are restless and the pundits are sharpening their knives. Liverpool’s 2025 summer signings were supposed to be the foundation of the next great team. Right now, they feel more like a work in progress.

Maybe that’s all they’ll ever be. Or maybe, just maybe, they’ll turn into something special. For Liverpool’s sake, they’d better hope it’s the latter. Because £400 million doesn’t buy patience. It buys pressure.

Where to go from here

If you’re looking for ways to track these players’ progress – or any player’s, for that matter – Tips GG reports offer detailed performance analytics and insights that can help cut through the noise. Whether it’s Isak’s shot conversion or Frimpong’s defensive contributions, having the right data can make all the difference in understanding what’s really happening on the pitch.

For now, though, Liverpool fans are left with more questions than answers. And in football, that’s never a comfortable place to be.