How many players have worn the famous Liverpool shirt over the last 15 years? The five men in the picture above have had a hand in literally hundreds of careers, with varying success.
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The next three men to try their hand at Anfield will be James Milner, Danny Ings and Adam Bogdan, but how do they compare to those that went before them?
In the list below, we review every player the Reds have signed and let go since the turn of the century – giving each season’s set of signings an overall rating. How will this year’s crop compare? All is revealed here…
2000-01 season
Players Bought: Jari Litmanen (Free), Igor Biscan (£5.5m), Daniel Sjolund (£1m), Gregory Vignal (£500k), Christian Ziege (£5.5m), Nick Barmby (£6m)
Players Sold: Jon Newby (£100k), Titi Camara (£2.2m), Rigobert Song (£5.5m), Dominic Matteo (£4.75m), David Thompson (£2.75m); Released: Erik Meijer, Steve Staunton, Brad Friedel, John Boardman, Phill Babb
Performance: It was a quiet summer this at Anfield, as the Reds prepared to embark on a treble winning campaign. Igor Biscan and Nick Barmby both proved to be solid additions who served us well. Litmanen was a flop but he didn’t cost us anything to bring in and we made some decent money back through selling fringe players.
Rating: 5/10
2001-02 season
Players Bought: El Hadji Diouf (£11m), Abel Xavier (£800k), Milan Baros (£3.6m), Nicolas Anelka (Loan), Jerzy Dudek (£4.85m), Chris Kirkland (£6m), John Arne Riise (£4.6m)
Players Sold: Sander Westerveld (£3.49m), Robbie Fowler (£11m), Christian Ziege (£4m); Released: Gary McAllister, John Miles, Chris O’Brien, Leyton Maxwell, Ian Armstrong
Performance: Baros, Dudek and Riise were all astute additions from Gerard Houllier. Unfortunately, this season will be best remembered for us swapping Robbie Fowler for El Hadji Diouf, who was an almighty flop at Anfield. Abel Xavier was also poor after signing from Everton and Nicolas Anelka proved more trouble that he was worth.
Rating: 4/10
2002-03 season
Players Bought: Salif Diao (£5m), Alou Diarra (Free), Florent Sinama Pongolle (£2m), Anthony Le Tallec (£3.7m), Bruno Cheyrou (£3.7m)
Players Sold: Stephen Wright (£3m), Nick Barmby (£2.75m; Released: Mark Peers, Patrik Berger, Jari Litmanen, Neil Prince, Jamie Redknapp
Performance: So much talent, so much potential, so little end product. This was the summer where we bought ‘the new Patrick Vieira’ and ‘the new Zinedine Zidane’ only to watch them come to nothing. Sinama Pongolle did at least have a couple of special moments in a Liverpool shirt, most notably his goal against Olympiacos in 2004.
Rating: 4/10
2003-04 season
Players Bought: Harry Kewell (£5m), Steve Finnan (£3.5m), Patrice Luzi (Free)
Players Sold: Emile Heskey (£6.25m); Released: Steven Gillespie, Stephen Vaughan, Daniel Sjolund, Pegguy Arphexad, Andrew Nicholas
Performance: Kewell spent more time in the treatment room that he did on the pitch for Liverpool – although he did still have a few moments of brilliance. Finnan was an excellent signing and arguably remains our best full-back of the Premier League era. We made most of the money we spent back by selling Heskey as well.
Rating: 6/10
2004-05 season
Players Bought: Scott Carson (£1m), Fernando Morientes (£6.3m), Mauricio Pellegrino (Free), Antonio Nunez (Swap), Xabi Alonso (£10.5m), Luis Garcia (£6m), Josemi (£2m), Djibril Cisse (£14m)
Players Sold: El Hadji Diouf (£4m), Michael Owen (£8m), Danny Murphy (£2.5m); Released: Vladimir Smicer, Stephane Henchoz, Chris Butler, Markus Babbel
Performance: Rafael Benitez did a lot of good here. He brought in two Anfield favourites in Alonso and Garcia who were both crucial to our Champions League success. Morientes and Cisse did not produce as he might have hoped but the idea was right – we needed to rejuvenate our strikeforce. Diouf was got rid of as well, while Owen was sold.
Rating: 7/10
2005-06 season
Players Bought: Craig Bellamy (£6m), Robbie Fowler (Free), Daniel Agger (£5.8m), Jose Reina (£6m), Jan Kromkamp (Swap), Peter Crouch (£7m), Mohamed Sissoko (£5.6m), Antonio Barragan (£240k), Bolo Zenden (Free), Mark Gonzalez (£4.5m)
Players Sold: Fernando Morientes (£3m), Milan Baros (£6.5m); Released: Zak Whitbread, Conal Platt, John Welsh, Josemi, Mark Smyth, Paul Harrison, Antonion Nunez, Gregory Vignal, Jon Otsemobor, Mauricio Pellegrino
Performance: Once again, Rafa did a lot of good business here. Agger and Reina were important players for us, while you can make a case for Bellamy, Crouch, Sissoko and Zenden all justifying their price-tags. Bringing back Robbie Fowler for his final Anfield farewell was a masterstroke and we made a profit on the sale of Baros.
Rating: 8/10
2006-07 season
Players Bought: Lucas Leiva (£6m), Javier Mascherano (£1.5m), Alvaro Arbeloa (£2.64m), Nabil El Zhar (£200k), Dirk Kuyt (£9m), Jermaine Pennant (£6.7m), Fabio Aurelio (Free), Gabriel Paletta (£2m)
Players Sold: Danny O’Donnell (£100k), Florent Sinama Pongolle (£2.7m), Stephen Warnock (£1.5m), Darren Potter (£250k), Chris Kirkland (£3m), Jan Kromkamp (£1.5m), Neil Mellor (£250k), Djimi Traore (£2m), Antonio Barragan (£680k), Dietmar Hamann (£400k); Released: Salif Diao, Robbie Foy, Ramon Calliste, David Raven
Performance: More great stuff. Lucas and Mascherano were excellent additions, as were Arbeloa and Kuyt. Pennant was a disappointment but even he had his moments. Once again, we also got rid of a lot of the deadwood, including many of the players that were signed at the start of the decade. It was sad to see Hamann go cheaply.
Rating: 8/10
2007-08 season
Players Bought: Javier Mascherano (£17.1m), Martin Skrtel (£6.5m), Danien Plessis (Free), Emiliano Insua (£1.3m), Ryan Babel (£11.5m), Yossi Benayoun (£5m), Sebastian Leto (£1.85m), Fernando Torres (£26.5m), Charles Itandje (Free), Andrei Voronin (Free)
Players Sold: Mohamed Sissoko (£8.2m), Mark Gonzalez (£4.2m), Craig Bellamy (£7.5m), Djibril Cisse (£6m), Luis Garcia (£4m); Released: Lee Peltier, Gabriel Paletta, Robbie Fowler, Jerzy Dudek, Bolo Zenden
Performance: The Mascherano deal was tied up permanently. Added to that was Skrtel, Benayoun and Torres – who all did an excellent job for us. Babel didn’t quite manage to fulfil the potential that was expected of him but still performed well at times. Sissoko was sold for a profit and a lot of the money we spent was made back.
Rating: 9/10
2008-09 season
Players Bought: Philipp Degen (Free), Andrea Dossena (£7m), Diego Cavalieri (£3.5m), Robbie Keane (£19m), Vitor Flora (Free), Alberto Riera (£8m), David Ngog (£1.5m)
Players Sold: Anthony Le Tallec (Und.), Peter Crouch (£10m), Danny Guthrie (£2.5m), John Arne Riise (£4m), Scott Carson (£3.25m), Steve Finnan (£1m), Robbie Keane (£12m); Released: Harry Kewell
Performance: As disastrous transfer windows go, this one was right up there. Robbie Keane – our new major arrival – flopped and was sold back to Spurs for a loss within six months. We lost Finnan and Riise and replaced them with Degen and Dossena, while Crouch’s replacement was the infamous David Ngog. Not good this one.
Rating: 2/10
2009-10 season
Players Bought: Glen Johnson (£17.5m), Chris Mavinga (Free), Stephen Sama (Free), Alberto Aquilani (£17m), Sotirios Kyrgiakos (£1.5m), Maxi Rodriguez (Free), Raheem Sterling (£600k)
Players Sold: Paul Anderson (£250k), Sebastian Leto (£3m), Albaro Arbeloa (£3.5m), Xabi Alonso (£30m), Andrea Dossena (£4.5m), Andriy Voronin (£1.8m), Chris Buchtmann (£100k), Nikolay Mihaylov (£1.5m); Released: Sami Hyypia, Jack Hobbs, Astrit Ajdarevic, Jermaine Pennant, Shane O’Connor, Adam Hammill
Performance: Things didn’t get much better for us the following season. Rafa splashed the cash on Johnson and Aquilani – with the latter, like Keane, barely making an impact before being shipped out. We also lost Alonso and Hyypia, two of our longest serving players. The one plus point was the signing of Maxi, who did well for us.
Rating: 3/10
2010-11 season
Players Bought: Jonjo Shelvey (£1.7m), Milan Jovanovic (Free), Danny Wilson (£2m), Joe Cole (Free), Christian Poulsen (£4.5m), Brad Jones (£2.3m), Raul Meireles (£11.5m), Paul Konchesky (Swap), Suso (Free), Yusuf Mersin (£450k), Luis Suarez (£23m), Andy Carroll (£35m)
Players Sold: Mikel San Jose (Und.), Yossi Benayoun (£5m), Albert Riera (£5m), Diego Cavalieri (£1m), Kristian Nemeth (£1.5m), Javier Mascherano (£17.3m), Ryan Babel (£5.8m), Ferndando Torres (£50m); Released: David Martin, Robbie Threlfall, Christopher Oldfield, Alexander Kacaniklic, Lauri Dalla Valle
Performance: There are a two positives here. One is Luis Suarez. The second is the fact that we made a profit. However, you can’t really defend the madness of Roy Hodgson, who thought Poulsen could replace Mascherano and that Konchesky was a good player. Dalglish didn’t do much better, signing Carroll and selling Torres.
Rating: 5/10
2011-12 season
Players Bought: Jordan Henderson (£16m), Charlie Adam (£7m), Doni (Free), Stewart Downing (£20m), Jose Enrique (£6.3m), Sebastian Coates (£7m), Craig Bellamy (Free), Danny Ward (£100k)
Players Sold: Paul Konchesky (£1.5m), Chris Mavinga (£1m), Gerardo Bruna (£750k), Daniel Ayala (£800k), Christian Poulsen (£1m), David Ngog (£4m), Raul Meireles (£12m); Released: Milan Jovanovic, Emiliano Insua, Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Tom Ince
Performance: It was another crazy summer as Dalglish splashed the cash. Henderson has proved to be a success and will likely succeed Gerrard as captain next season. Adam and Downing both flopped and have since been sold, while Enrique and Coates have struggled with injuries. Bellamy did well during his second spell at the club.
Rating: 5/10
2012-13 season
Players Bought: Fabio Borini (£10m), Joe Allen (£15m), Oussama Assaidi (£2.3m), Samed Yesil (£1m), Daniel Sturridge (£12m), Philippe Coutinho (£8.5m), Jordon Ibe (£500k)
Players Sold: Dirk Kuyt (£1m), Maxi Rodriguez (Und.), Alberto Aquilani (£3m), Charlie Adam (£4m); Released: Lewis Hatch, David Amoo, Joe Rafferty, Stephen Darby, Fabio Aurelio, Toni Silva, Craig Bellamy, Kirk Broadfoot, Nathan Ecclestone, Joe Cole, Doni
Performance: We often bemoan Brendan Rodgers’ transfer dealings at Liverpool but his first season was actually pretty decent. Sturridge and Coutinho are now key players, while Allen and Ibe are also important members of the squad. Borini has been a flop but he’s offset that price by getting rid of a lot of unwanted fringe players.
Rating: 7/10
2013-14 season
Players Bought: Luis Alberto (£6.8m), Iago Aspas (£7m), Kolo Toure (Free), Simon Mignolet (£10m), Tiago Ilori (£7m), Mamadou Sakho (£18m), Victor Moses (Loan), Aly Cissokho (Loan)
Players Sold: Andy Carroll (£15.5m), Jonjo Shelvey (£5m), Stewart Downing (£6m), Jay Spearing (£2m); Released: Danny Wilson, Peter Gulasci, Jamie Stephens, Tyrell Belford, Jamie Carragher, Dani Pacheco, Adam Morgan
Performance: This was a bad one for Rodgers. Alberto and Aspas flopped, Ilori still hasn’t played, while Sakho has been struggling with injuries for the last two seasons. Mignolet is the only regular and even he’s struggled with his form at times. Nonetheless, we still ended the season in second place in the Premier League, so why complain?!
Rating: 4/10
2014-15 season
Players Bought: Emre Can (£10m), Rickie Lambert (£4m), Adam Lallana (£25m), Lazar Markovic (£20m), Divock Origi (£10m), Alberto Moreno (£12m), Mario Balotelli (£16m), Javier Manquillo (Loan), Lawrence Vigouroux (Free), Kevin Stewart (Free)
Players Sold: Luis Suarez (£75m), Conor Coady (£370k), Pepe Reina (£2m), Martin Kelly (£1.5m), Jack Robinson (£1m), Daniel Agger (£3m), Krisztian Adorjan (Und.), Oussama Assaidi (£4.75m), Suso (£1m); Released: Armin Hodzic, Jakub Sokolik, Villyan Bijev, Michael Ngoo, Yalany Baio, Yusuf Mersin, Craig Roddan, Stephen Sama
Performance: Much has been made of last year’s crop and the difficulties they’ve experienced. On the plus side, Can, Origi, Moreno and Markovic are all still young with room to grow. We saw flashes from Lallana, particularly towards the end of the season, while you can excuse the gamble on Lambert. Balotelli was a real disappointment.
Rating: 5/10
2015-16 season
Players Bought: James Milner (Free), Danny Ings (Free), Adam Bogdan (Free)
Players Sold: Iago Aspas (£5m); Released: Steven Gerrard, Glen Johnson, Brad Jones, Marc Pelosi, Jordan Lussey
Performance: Let’s hope for the best! We’ve done good business early by getting players in for the positions that we needed strengthening. A couple of big money arrivals to go with this and we could be looking at something special. Come on Brendan, you’re due!
Rating: 6/10 (so far)
