'I knew Roberto Firmino was special from what I saw behind scenes - Liverpool signing will be same'

When Liverpool greenlit a summer splurge of around $600M, shattering the British transfer record twice with the acquisitions of Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, few could have predicted the season's trajectory for the Reds.

Arne Slot's team was the reigning Premier League champion, having clinched the title with ease, and seemed poised to build on their success. Instead, they find themselves languishing in mid-table, enduring their worst string of results since the 1950s.

This wasn't the anticipated outcome after navigating the priciest and busiest transfer window in Liverpool's history. While 10 new faces were welcomed, it's worth noting that such dealings came with a catch.

The Reds also pocketed roughly $260M from player sales as 10 members of Slot's title-winning squad departed. With most players keen to explore new opportunities, a squad overhaul was inevitable.

However, instead of bolstering Liverpool's strength, they seem to have regressed. Only time will determine whether this season is viewed as a transitional period or one marred by 'poor' recruitment.

It's too soon to dismiss Liverpool's summer signings, despite the fact that most are yet to find their feet at Anfield and justify their substantial transfer fees. However, as Liverpool's struggles persist across all areas, external scrutiny only heightens — even though both Isak and Wirtz played crucial roles in the club's return to victory at West Ham United on Sunday.

The Reds have been down this road before, having made significant investments only to see mixed results while waiting for the payoff of their efforts.

Under the stewardship of Fenway Sports Group, the summer of 2014 stands out as a notable misstep when attempts to replace Luis Suarez fell short, with players like Mario Balotelli, Lazar Markovic and Rickie Lambert failing to make the desired impact.

History has been somewhat kinder to Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Emre Can and even Alberto Moreno. But the drop from nearly clinching the Premier League title the previous year to finishing a distant sixth serves as a stark reminder that such spending sprees rarely yield immediate success.

Similarly, in the 2011/12 season, of the seven new recruits, only Jordan Henderson managed to carve out a successful long-term career at Anfield. And even then, he was almost sold after an underwhelming first season.

Liverpool were equally active in the summer of 2015, yet their struggles persisted under Brendan Rodgers. However, the tide turned for the Reds with the arrival of Jurgen Klopp, as players like Roberto Firmino and James Milner became club legends — unlike the priciest signing, Christian Benteke.

Fast forward to the following year, and FSG orchestrated their most successful overhaul yet, with the signings of Sadio Mane, Gini Wijnaldum and Joel Matip propelling the Reds back into the Champions League. They've been on an upward trajectory ever since.

Granted, FSG has faced criticism for its restrained approach to transfers over the past decade, opting for a more measured strategy since restoring Liverpool's status at the pinnacle of English and European football.

However, former club transfer gurus, such as Ian Graham — Liverpool's ex-Director of Research — have gone on record stating that transfers are always a gamble, particularly when done in bulk, and stability is far more beneficial for a club with title aspirations.

Liverpool is now experiencing the truth of these words more than ever, though, naturally, there are exceptions. The Reds signed eight new players ahead of the 2013/14 season.

But upon closer examination, only Simon Mignolet was a clear first-choice, with the rest of the newcomers bolstering the squad as a whole — albeit with mixed results.

Rafa Benitez saw greater success in the mid-noughties, significantly bolstering his squad year on year. However, it was a hit-and-miss approach, with as many new signings thriving as those who were quickly cast aside after failing to make an impact.

Before the introduction of the mid-season transfer window, Gerard Houllier achieved success following extensive recruitment drives in the summers of 1999 and 2000.

For instance, Liverpool brought in six new players ahead of their treble-winning campaign. But what stands out when comparing to today's recruitment is the differing profiles of these recruits.

Most of the Reds' recent arrivals are in their early twenties, with their best years still to come, and have limited Premier League experience. But things were different back then.

Bernard Diomede may have been a flop, but he was a World Cup winner. Markus Babbel was at his peak at 27, having proven himself at the highest level internationally for several years.

And Gary McAllister, Nick Barmby, Christian Ziege and Pegguy Arphexad all had plenty of Premier League experience under their belts.

Speaking to the Liverpool ECHO's new monthly publication 'Blood Red', on behalf of casinobernie.com, McAllister insists that such factors — or their absence in this case — cannot be ignored when trying to understand the struggles of Slot's current squad.

"It's not hit or miss. Sometimes what people don't take into consideration is people are coming to this country for maybe the first time, so that's a big shift," he said. "The style of play in this country, that's a big shift.

"The speed of the play is a big shift. But there's also the welfare side of things. You don't want to be making excuses, and it should be something the players should just transition into but it's hard.

"If you're bringing in one, then you've got good senior pros, you rally around that one. But when it's four, five, six players that are being bought.

"You look at the prices that they've paid for them, they don't have to be first-team players, but the money suggests that they're coming to play in the first team immediately. It does take time, and that's been a part of it."

However, McAllister's understanding of such a significant recruitment shake-up at Liverpool extends beyond his playing days 25 years ago.

He also came back to the Reds as first team coach under Rodgers in the summer of 2015, when $113M was invested in Benteke, Firmino, Nathaniel Clyne, Danny Ings and Joe Gomez, whilst Milner and Adam Bogdan arrived on free transfers.

Firmino stands out as the greatest success from that group, though few would have predicted such an outcome based on his early months at Anfield. He battled with injuries and struggled to find his place in the team whilst adapting to English football, with Klopp's arrival proving pivotal in unleashing his true potential.

Parallels can be drawn between the Brazilian and both Wirtz and Isak specifically, considering the former's own difficulties since his switch from the Bundesliga and the latter's fitness concerns following a disrupted pre-season at his previous club Newcastle United.

However, McAllister witnessed enough from Firmino during training sessions to be confident he would flourish at Liverpool. He's convinced it will be a similar tale for the two most expensive signings in the Reds' history.

"I think the players will be noticing (Hugo) Ekitike and Isak and how good Florian is in the training sessions," he said. "And that was immediate when Firmino arrived at the training ground.

"A wee bit like when I first went there and you see the level of Coutinho and Sturridge. It was like, 'Oh wow, these are guys up a notch!' But Firmino was similar.

"I think that the thing, certainly coming from the Bundesliga, is the intensity of our game. That's the thing that they've got to try and catch early. Firmino grabbed it early.

"I can only comment on what I saw in and around the training ground, but as part of a group, he just settled very, very quickly. An experienced guy, but he wasn't a youngster. You could see that he was an exceptional player. To go on and do what he did, wow, that was special.

"If you're talking about ability-wise, Wirtz and Isak are outstanding too. Prior to Liverpool's interest in Isak, the way he was playing at Newcastle, when you listen to strikers talking about Isak, they all had him up there as one of the best.

"His movement, the way he can come and light the team. How exciting he is in front of goal and getting in behind. The little flashes that I saw for Newcastle... He's obviously come to Liverpool and not hit those heights yet, but how much he really got in the heads of the Arsenal centre-backs.

"He had some good days against Arsenal, and to cause those two problems, you've got to be a good player. So Isak, there's no doubt he'll become that again.

"Wirtz is the same. He's proven that. He's been an outstanding player at Leverkusen and for the national team.

"Maybe we got a little insight against Real Madrid, playing from the side and looking in at the game. He didn't play like a left winger. But just that starting position of being there and then wandering into that number 10, which is his familiar role.

"I thought that was his best game and we want to see more of that."

Isak and Wirtz may yet have to justify their hefty price tags at Liverpool as the Reds continue to struggle. However, as Roberto Firmino's journey demonstrates, perseverance can eventually reap rewards.

Rodgers and McAllister didn't stick around long enough to witness the full transition. Only time will reveal if Slot, who's currently under scrutiny, meets a similar fate.

However, while the heat is on for Liverpool's recent title-winning coach, his new signings are likely to be given a bit more leeway.

If the win at West Ham is any indication, where Isak netted his first Premier League goal and Wirtz delivered his best Premier League performance to date, it seems likely that McAllister's predictions will soon be validated.