Whether FSG will pull their hands from their pockets and make a signing at Liverpool this summer remains uncertain, with the Anfield side lurking in the summer transfer window's shadows.
However, sporting director Richard Hughes ventured to allay concerns during Arne Slot's first press conference as the new head coach, stressing that the nature of the club's situation, having undergone sweeping structural changes, leaves deals more likely to be made in August, toward the end of the market.
Fans were disquieted after the club stepped away from transfer target Leny Yoro, who was seemingly Real Madrid-bound but has now signed for Manchester United in a move rising to £59m.
Matches played
32
Matches started
30
Goals
2
Clean sheets
13
Pass completion
92%
Touches per game
67.6
Tackles per game
1.1
Interceptions per game
1.1
Clearances per game
3.0
Ball recoveries per game
3.9
Duels won per game
3.3 (63%)
There's a belief that the Reds need defensive reinforcements and Yoro is regarded as a 'generational talent' by those around him, but FSG didn't feel they could justify such a figure for a player entering the final year of their contract and with just 60 senior appearances under his belt.
Liverpool will strike if everything lines up, and there's another defender – one of the Premier League's best – who may be on the move this summer.
Liverpool transfer news
As per Caught Offside, Liverpool are one of the clubs interested in Wolverhampton Wanderers' Rayan Ait-Nouri, having already lodged an enquiry regarding the signing of the left-back – who is believed to be open to making a move away from the Midlands this summer.
The 23-year-old is stepping into the penultimate year of his contract at Molineux – though with the option for an extra season – and it would take an outlay of €45m (£38m) to convince Gary O'Neil's outfit to do business.
Slot will jet his squad off to the United States in a little over a week to commence Liverpool's pre-season tour, so it's likely that Ait-Nouri's future will be more or less wrapped up by that point.
What Rayan Ait-Nouri would bring to Liverpool
Ait-Nouri signed for Wolves in 2021, completing a £9.5m transfer from French side Angers. Wolves' former technical director Scott Sellers said "he's a very talented player with lots of potential", and he has since proved such praise and then some.
Having amassed 116 appearances – scoring seven goals and adding eight assists – over three years in Old Gold, he now boasts the athletic strength and potency to contribute up and down the left flank effectively.
He'd join having sharpened his tools to a point that could make a penetrating difference at Liverpool, tussling with Andy Robertson and the like for a regular starting berth to Virgil van Dijk's left.
Hailed as "one of the Premier League’s best players in 2024" by Sky's Dougie Critchley, this does feel like an opportune moment to capture a player on the cusp of their prime, moulding him into a shape fitting for Slot's system.
Indeed, as per FBref, the skilful player ranked among the top 18% of full-backs in the Premier League last season for pass completion, the top 19% for tackles and the top 2% for successful take-ons per 90. He's very much turning into the complete player, with the wheels, witts and sharp technicality to thrive at the highest level.
Robertson has been a stalwart for Liverpool but the Scottish skipper does have his detractors, and given that he's now 30 and started only 18 Premier League fixtures last term due to injury, perhaps moving for Ait-Nouri could be a prudent move.
After all, just imagine the partnership with Trent Alexander-Arnold on the alternate flank.
Why Ait-Nouri can shine with Trent Alexander-Arnold
Will he, won't he? Alexander-Arnold's future is possibly the most fear-inducing topic on the red half of Merseyside right now, with the 25-year-old courted by Real Madrid and entering the final year of his contract.
Risen from the academy, Alexander-Arnold is comfortably one of Europe's most technically impressive players, with his range of passing and eagle-eyed vision leading pundit Jamie Carragher to proclaim that it's "like having Kevin De Bruyne playing at right-back".
He's the second-highest assist maker (for defenders) in Premier League history, with his tally of 58 only one behind peer Robertson.
The Reds' vice-captain ranks among the top 5% of full-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 1% for passes attempted and shot-creating actions and the top 2% for progressive passes per 90.
Matches played
33
28
Matches started
29
25
Goals
2
3
Assists
1
4
Pass completion
87%
80%
Big chances created
3
17
Touches per game
51.2
84.5
Key passes per game
0.8
2.3
Ball recoveries per game
4.1
6.3
Tackles per game
2.2
1.4
Dribbles per game
1.9 (61%)
1.0 (57%)
Duels won per game
6.3 (55%)
3.0 (45%)
By comparing the respective full-backs' data from the 2023/24 Premier League campaign, we can posit that Liverpool would create a wonderful sense of contrast next season.
And Alexander-Arnold is hardly one-dimensional either, actually ranking among the top 12% of positional peers for successful take-ons per 90 himself.
Threading surgical passes through to the breakneck Ait-Nouri could serve up quite the recipe for success at Anfield, and FSG must seriously consider making the payment with haste, lest rival suitors Chelsea steal ahead in the race.
Ait-Nouri's propensity to move into midfield and impress could further create a unique sense of interchanging balance within Slot's system, the Dutchman having employed such tactical fluidity in the Eredivisie with Feyenoord.
Liverpool evidently have money to spend, though they are emitting little more than reticence right now. This is frustrating, though time and time the American owners have proved their business savvy.
Should Ait-Nouri truly be at the top of the shopping list, Liverpool must pounce.
Liverpool hit the jackpot with Klopp signing who's worth more than Yoro
He could reach a new level under Arne Slot’s leadership this season.
ByAngus Sinclair