Liverpool Firm on Midfield Strategy Despite Curtis Jones Departure
Liverpool are standing firm. Curtis Jones has gone, the debate is raging, but the midfield door at Anfield is staying shut.
The club banked around £30m from Jones’ move to Inter Milan, a deal agreed with a year left on his contract and framed as the right time for a clean break on all sides. It leaves a clear gap in Andoni Iraola’s squad. Liverpool have lost a homegrown, tactically flexible midfielder who knew the system and the stage.
Yet the response from inside the club is blunt: they will not buy a replacement.
Nyoni backed as Jones’ heir
James Pearce has echoed what Liverpool insiders have been saying for weeks. Writing in The Athletic, he reported that senior figures remain committed to strengthening out wide, not in the middle of the pitch, despite the noise after the 2-2 draw with Newcastle.
“Despite the clamour for midfield reinforcements, which intensified after Sunday’s dramatic 2-2 draw with Newcastle, senior club sources say Liverpool’s focus remains on bolstering their attacking options out wide,” Pearce wrote.
“They don’t intend to replace Jones, as they see teenager Trey Nyoni as ready to step up and play a bigger part this season. Unless there’s a change of stance, it’s only the forward line which will be strengthened.”
That is a huge show of faith in Nyoni. The 17-year-old is being asked to grow into a role vacated by a player who has started Champions League knockout ties and domestic cup finals. Liverpool see his technical quality and temperament as enough to justify the gamble.
It is a bold call. Some would say a risky one.
Weakness laid bare against Newcastle
The timing of the stance has only sharpened the scrutiny. At Anfield on Sunday, Newcastle repeatedly sliced through Liverpool on the break. The 2-2 scoreline masked how exposed Iraola’s side looked when the game became stretched.
Dominik Szoboszlai pushed high and wide. Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch, both gifted on the ball, do not naturally sit as a pure No 6. The space behind them invited trouble. Newcastle accepted the invitation.
Fans saw it. Pundits saw it. The conversation after full-time was almost unanimous: Liverpool still have a hole at the base of midfield, a problem many believe has lingered for three seasons.
Inside the club, though, the plan has not shifted.
Iraola’s early worries – and the names that slipped away
Graeme Bailey has revealed that Iraola did not always sound this relaxed. When it became clear Jones might leave, the head coach worried about numbers and pushed to keep him.
“Before pre-season I am told that Andoni Iraola, aware of the Curtis Jones situation, was worried about the depth – one reason he wanted Jones to stay,” Bailey said.
Those concerns triggered a broad sweep of the market. Liverpool ran the rule over several options. According to Bailey, Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali were among those considered before moving elsewhere, to Arsenal and Tottenham respectively.
“Iraola also wanted work done on other options and we can confirm that was the case,” Bailey added. “A host of options were assessed – they looked at the Elliot Anderson, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes situations, but they were not right for them.”
Price, profile, timing – none of it lined up in a way Liverpool were prepared to act on.
The recruitment team also dug deep into younger targets. Adam Wharton, Alex Scott and Lamine Camara all came under serious scouting scrutiny. The verdict on their talent was positive. The verdict on the fees was not.
“But the likes of Adam Wharton, Alex Scott and Lamine Camara – very good young players – have been assessed and they like what they have seen and heard, but we are talking £50, £60 or even more than £70million in terms of deals,” Bailey said.
Liverpool walked away. The conclusion: they already have enough in-house.
Sturridge sounds the alarm
Not everyone is buying that logic. Daniel Sturridge has voiced what many supporters feel – that Liverpool have been living with a defensive midfield issue for far too long.
The former striker has criticised the club’s decision not to move for a £39m-rated midfielder this summer, underlining his belief that the No 6 problem at Anfield has been left unresolved for three years.
His frustration taps into a wider fear. Without a specialist shield, can Liverpool truly control games when the stakes rise and the tempo climbs?
For now, Iraola is betting on structure, coaching and youth. Trey Nyoni is being handed the chance of a lifetime. Liverpool are backing their academy and their principles over a late-window scramble.
The window is ticking down. The question is not whether they can find a midfielder. It is whether they will regret choosing not to.
