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In football, transfer prices have gotten out of hand in recent years as clubs seek the very best of talents, even if it comes at exorbitant prices.
A typical summer window in the Premier Leagues sees heavy millions being thrown around for elite players, with sports enthusiasts keenly monitoring liontips.com for the latest transfer developments from their favorite clubs.
Liverpool has also joined the ranks of clubs desirous of signing the cream of the crop with record-breaking signings.
In this guide, we’ll find out who the club’s five most expensive center forwards Liverpool have bought.
1. Darwin Nunez – £85.6m (from Benfica, 2022)
Nunez has occasionally played on the left for Benfica, including in the Champions League at Anfield earlier this year.
Still, his reputation as a goal-scoring No.9 precedes him. With 34 goals in 41 outings, it is understandable the European heavyweights exchanged blows over him in the transfer market.
The 22-year-old dethrones Virgil van Dijk as the club’s record signing, raising a slew of questions about what he can provide Liverpool in the short and long term.
Nunez will be required to have an impact right away. Inevitably, Liverpool is counting on Nunez to follow in the footsteps of Salah, Mane, Jota, and Diaz in blending into the team rapidly.
2. Christian Benteke – £41.8m (from Aston Villa, 2015)
Benteke’s transfer to the club was finalized on July 22, 2015, making him the club’s second most expensive acquisition in history.
In all outings, he netted ten goals in 42 games. Overall, a dismal outing, and the acquisition was a failure.
Benteke’s strengths as a player were unsuited to Liverpool’s style of play, and after a promising start to his Liverpool career, his self-confidence appeared to wane.
Benteke struggled to adapt to Liverpool’s counter-attacking strategy at the time, preferring to keep the ball on the ground rather than quick crosses from the flanks.
But his time at Anfield had some highlights.
The goal against Manchester United
- If it hadn’t been a consolation goal, his magnificent overhead kick against Manchester United in September 2015 might have been a contender for goal of the season.
Goals against Leicester City and Bordeaux
- On Boxing Day, 2015, he scored the game-winning goal against Leicester City, while In the Europa League group stages in November 2015, he scored a critical goal in Liverpool’s 2-1 triumph over Bordeaux.
Trophies
- 1X 15/16 EUROPA LEAGUE RUNNER-UP
3. Diogo Jota – £40m (from Wolves, 2020)
On September 28, 2020, Jota had a memorable Liverpool debut, notching his place in the heart of the Reds with a goal against Arsenal.
Jota wasted no time demonstrating his abilities at his new club, scoring ten goals in just 21 games despite his debut season being cut short by a knee injury in December 2015 that kept him out for three months.
Jurgen Klopp gushed about Jota, “Diogo has a great package, which I didn’t realize when I first saw him. From a personality standpoint, he is an excellent young man, extremely intelligent and well-structured.”
So here are some of Jota’s highlights in his time at Liverpool so far.
Goal Against Arsenal
- Diogo Jota scored twice for Liverpool against Arsenal to help his team reach the 2022 Carabao Cup final.
The goal against Nottingham Forest
- In March 2022, Jota scored a late winner to book an FA Cup semi-final clash with Manchester City with a 1-0 win against Championship side Nottingham Forest.
Trophies
- 1X 2022 ENGLISH FA CUP WINNER
- 1X 2022 ENGLISH LEAGUE CUP WINNER
4. Roberto Firminho €36.9m (from Hoffenheim, 2015)
Roberto Firminho, dubbed the ‘engine’ of his team by Jürgen Klopp, became a Champions League and Premier League winner who does much more than score goals.
The Brazil international led Liverpool’s line with a formidable and influential combination of industry and inventiveness.
He scored 98 goals in 327 games for Liverpool, a decent performance.
Firminho struggled to live up to his price tag when he first arrived at Liverpool, but his performance improved after Jürgen Klopp took over as manager.
In 31 league appearances, he scored ten goals. Firmino, along with Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, makes up one of Europe’s best offensive trios, scoring 43 goals in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons to help Liverpool reach back-to-back Champions League finals.
He has delivered the goods when they mattered most.
First hat-trick for Liverpool
- In December 2018, he netted thrice in the 5-1 crushing of Arsenal
Last-gasp winner against PSG
- He came off the bench in the 92nd minute and scored a low shot advancing Liverpool to the last 16 of the Champions League in September 2018.
Knocking Manchester City out of CL
- Firminho scored the game-winning goal to send the Reds to the champions league semi-finals in the 2017/2018 season.
Trophies
- 1X 2020 FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP WINNER
- 1X 18/19 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE WINNER
- 1X 2020 ENGLISH CHAMPION
- 1X 18/19 UEFA SUPERCUP WINNER
5. Andy Carroll | £35m (from Newcastle United)
Liverpool raised a few eyebrows when they paid £35 million for Andy Carroll, breaking the British transfer record. Still, fans believed that the Reds were purchasing a player with great potential.
That wasn’t the case at Anfield, of course. The Gateshead-born forward scored 11 goals in 58 appearances for the Merseysiders.
In general, the center forward had a terrible outing with Liverpool. In 58 total games for Liverpool, he had 11 goals.
When Brendan Rodgers took over at Liverpool, it was clear that Carroll didn’t fit his needs. In general, he fell short of expectations.
Here are some of his memorable achievements on a Liverpool shirt.
Goal against Everton
- Andy Carroll scored the game-winning goal against Everton ensuring his club’s spot in the FA Cup final at Wembley in 2012.
So, here you have it, the all-time top five expensive center-forwards Liverpool has ever signed.
