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Most of Liverpool squad are worth £50m or more, insists Kevin Phillips

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Image for Most of Liverpool squad are worth £50m or more, insists Kevin Phillips

The majority of players in Liverpool’s first team squad would fetch at least £50m in the transfer market if they were up for sale, according to former England striker Kevin Phillips.

His bold claim about Jurgen Klopp’s squad was made off the back of a report from CIES Football Observatory which concluded that the Reds had the most valuable squad in Europe, with a cumulative market valuation of €1.4bn (£1.28bn), ahead of Manchester City on €1.36bn (£1.24bn) and Barcelona on €1.17bn (£1.07bn).

Phillips was not surprised by the findings, given Liverpool’s status as (outgoing) Champions League holders and emphatic Premier League leaders, and he praised the club for frequently obtaining “value for money” with signings made in recent years.

He told Football Insider: “They are the reigning European champions and have dominated the Premier League this season. When you analyse the team player for player and compare them against various clubs in Europe, Liverpool have more variety across the squad. They have top quality players in every position. That is not anything against Manchester City but I would not argue with that.

“The majority of those players if they were sold tomorrow, every player is £50million plus if not more. Value for money certainly.”

Phillips is probably exaggerating when he says that most of Liverpool’s squad are worth £50m or more, given that just eight of the squad meet that criterion according to TransferMarkt, but his point about Reds players’ market value increasing drastically during their time at the club is a fair one.

Working with TransferMarkt valuations for each player, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane were signed for £36.9m (The Guardian) and £34m (BBC) respectively, a cumulative outlay of £70.9m – they are now valued at £135m each. Virgil van Dijk, who cost £75m in 2018 (as per BBC), has seen his value rise to £90m. Brazilian duo Alisson and Roberto Firmino, who cost £66.9m (The Guardian) and £29m (BBC) respectively, are both valued at £81m, just £14.9m less than their combined transfer fees.

Perhaps the greatest value, though, is represented by the two regular full-backs. Andrew Robertson was signed for only £10m (as per BBC) in 2017 and is now worth more than seven times that amount at £72m, as per TransferMarkt. Trent Alexander-Arnold, a product of Liverpool’s academy, has an astonishing TransferMarkt valuation of £99m.

Even if there are many Reds players who realistically wouldn’t fetch £50m in the market, Phillips makes a valid point in emphasising the enormity of value that Liverpool have achieved from so many of their signings over the last few years, which is a testament to Jurgen Klopp’s eye for a player and the negotiating skills of Michael Edwards and FSG.

Liverpool fans, what did you make of Phillips’ remarks about most of the Reds’ squad being worth £50m or more? Share your views in the comments section below!

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