Graded: How Liverpool’s Six Major Summer Signings Fared This Season

Graded: How Liverpool’s Six Major Summer Signings Fared This Season

Following a massive summer of transition that saw high-profile exits like Trent Alexander-Arnold and Luis Díaz, Liverpool manager Arne Slot was handed a staggering transfer war chest of over £400 million to rebuild the squad. Expectation levels at Anfield were sky-high, with fans anticipating an immediate, unstoppable title charge.

Instead, a combination of tactical growing pains, unfortunate injuries, and underwhelming individual adaptation led to a turbulent campaign. While the Reds did salvage a fifth-place finish to lock down Champions League football, the inconsistent performance of their six marquee arrivals remains the defining storyline of the season.

Here is the definitive final report card for Liverpool’s major summer recruits.

1. Hugo Ekitiké (Forward)

• Signed From: Eintracht Frankfurt

• Fee: £69 million

• Season Stats: 45 appearances, 17 goals, 6 assists

In a campaign often short on silver linings, Hugo Ekitiké proved to be an absolute breath of fresh air. Arriving with plenty of pressure as a marquee attacking reinforcement, the young Frenchman hit the ground running immediately with a clinical finish in the Community Shield. Despite suffering a minor injury setback late in the year, his electric movement and consistency in front of goal made him Liverpool’s undisputed Signing of the Season.

• Grade: A-

2. Giorgi Mamardashvili (Goalkeeper)

• Signed From: Valencia

• Fee: £25 million

• Season Stats: 20 appearances, 6 clean sheets

Having officially joined up with the squad following his previous agreement, Giorgi Mamardashvili provided vital security in goal. With starter Alisson Becker enduring multiple spells on the sidelines due to nagging injuries, the Georgian international was called into action far more than initially expected. While he is still refining his distribution to fit Arne Slot’s build-up style, his elite shot-stopping kept Liverpool alive in crucial fixtures.

• Grade: B

3. Milos Kerkez (Defender)

• Signed From: Bournemouth

• Fee: £40 million

• Season Stats: 48 appearances, 2 goals, 2 assists

Brought in to share the defensive workload on the left flank with veteran Andy Robertson, Miloš Kerkez had an iffy, tentative start to life on Merseyside. The physical demands of playing a relentless, high-pressing system initially caught him off guard. However, his performance arc improved drastically as the months wore on, showcasing a relentless work ethic and solid defensive recovery speed in the final stretch of the season.

• Grade: C+

4. Jeremie Frimpong (Defender)

• Signed From: Bayer Leverkusen

• Fee: £29.5 million

• Season Stats: 35 appearances, 2 goals, 1 assist

Tasked with filling the massive tactical void left by Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jeremie Frimpong brought raw pace and dynamic overlapping runs to the right flank. Unfortunately, matching the generational playmaker output of his predecessor proved an impossible metric. While Frimpong offered incredible verticality, his defensive positioning was frequently exposed against elite Premier League wingers, forcing Arne Slot to occasionally favor a more conservative setup.

• Grade: C

5. Florian Wirtz (Midfielder)

• Signed From: Bayer Leverkusen

• Fee: £100 million

• Season Stats: 49 appearances, 7 goals, 8 assists

Unquestionably one of the most high-profile coups of the summer window, the £100 million signing of Florian Wirtz sent shockwaves across Europe. The 23-year-old German maestro arrived with the reputation of a generational playmaker, yet his debut campaign in England was an arduous uphill battle. Wirtz flashed undeniable moments of genius in short bursts, but he struggled significantly with the sheer physicality and lack of space in the English top flight, often going completely missing against stellar opposition.

• Grade: D+

6. Alexander Isak (Forward)

• Signed From: Newcastle United

• Fee: £125 million (British Record)

• Season Stats: 22 appearances, 4 goals, 1 assist

Everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Alexander Isak’s blockbuster move to Anfield. After forcing a late-window move from Newcastle by going on strike, the Swedish striker missed the entirety of pre-season, leaving him physically off the pace from day one. Just as he began to find a modicum of rhythm, a devastating broken fibula sidelined him for a massive chunk of the campaign. Finishing with a mere 3 Premier League goals after commanding a British record fee makes this a nightmare debut season.

• Grade: F

The Transfer Window at a Glance

The Verdict: While individual bright spots like Ekitiké and Mamardashvili offer immense hope for the future, the sheer weight of underperformance and bad injury luck from record signings Wirtz and Isak heavily dragged down Liverpool’s campaign. Arne Slot has the foundational pieces, but he faces a massive task getting his expensive superstars firing in year two.