Liverpool committing to Barcelona model, massive change for club

Liverpool are committing to the Barcelona model. It's a massive change for the club - but will it pay off?

Liverpool have a transfer strategy under Jurgen Klopp and it was a wildly successful one. They moved for the player who best fit the gaps in the squad. And if that player didn't exist? Well, they were happy not to sign anyone.

Klopp preferred to work with what he had unless the signing would definitely improve the squad. In other words, they had to have a place or the spend was pointless.

This went incredibly well but Liverpool decided to move away from it after Klopp departed. They now have a head coach model - one that means the club signs players and then the head coach makes them work.

And it increasingly looks like they're committing to one club's model with this: Barcelona.

Liverpool and the Barcelona model

The truth is, working this way is unbelievably expensive. You're relying on having the best players, essentially, as they don't necessarily combine to be a sum stronger than their individual parts.

And so if you don't have the outright best players, any club that can match your quality and do it in a way that the squad meshes together will simply outperform you. That's what's happening with Manchester City and Arsenal right now.

Even Brighton, to be honest.

But Liverpool appear to believe that there's a way to do it that naturally brings squad cohesion. That's by following the Barcelona model, one that places an incredible amount of faith in young players.

The idea here would be young players are both undervalued as first-team players (especially in pay) and that by developing together, you remove the need to treat players like puzzle pieces. They'll naturally find a way of meshing together simply through familiarity.

This thinking has led Barcelona to trust Pedri and Gavi to run their midfield in recent years. It saw the dramatic rise of Pau Cubarsi at centre-back - a teenager who starts for World Cup-winning Spain.

Xavi Espart just started at right-back and scored against Paris Saint-Germain. Marc Bernal played 22 La Liga matches last season and now has a Spain cap at 19.

And then, of course, there's Lamine Yamal. An otherworldly talent doing things as a teenager that hasn't been seen in decades.

All of these players form key roles for one of the biggest clubs in the world. They're all, Yamal aside, paid far below equivalent players with experience but they deliver the same quality. That frees up money for signings like Anthony Gordon and Rodri.

Liverpool appear to be giving this a go. Rio Ngumoha and Trey Nyoni and starting to solidify first-team roles. Lewis Koumas is starting regularly. We fully expect Ifeanyi Ndukwe and Mor Talla Ndiaye to break into the first-team squad next season as the next generation of centre-backs.

We've seen the Reds invest in Samuel Martinez, too, and there's heavy interest in Gilberto Mora. Teenage players who could be far, far cheaper than experienced equivalents and be ready to perform from the get-go.

Now, there are concerns. Will all of this lead to unbelievably burnout? Does the strategy rely too heavily on someone like Yamal? Liverpool do not have a teenager of that quality.

But Barcelona have proven you can win with teenagers and now Spain have shown it at the absolute highest level. Liverpool appear ready to follow suit.