One of the standout traits of Jurgen Klopp’s reign as Liverpool boss has been his ability to get the best out of players.
From Virgil van Dijk to Alisson Becker, Liverpool have spent big money on star players who were expected to hit such heights.
But, for the most part, they brought in players, under the stewardship of the now-returning Michael Edwards, that were, below the elite level or even playing much lower down.
You can name many that succeeded so much and won it all under Klopp.
Gini Wijnaldum was purchased from then-relegated Newcastle United and became a mainstay of the team, Andy Robertson came in from Hull City, whilst Joel Matip was a free transfer.
Whilst those are feel-good stories Klopp and the fans can look back on once he does eventually leave.
There have also been players who struggled under the German’s stewardship, despite the success of the Liverpool boss and the team as a whole.
One of them included a certain striker, now thriving at Bournemouth, Dominic Solanke.
The 26-year-old came in from Chelsea’s much-talked-about and highly thought-of academy, but couldn’t make the grade at Stamford Bridge.
That road led him to Anfield, but after 27 appearances, he only scored one goal, before securing a £19 million transfer to Bournemouth in 2019. Transfer guru Michael Edwards played a huge part in that sale and it was one of the reasons why fans appreciated his work.
Fast forward to the present, and many years later, and Glenn Murray thinks Solanke has ‘almost completed the Premier League’, as he told Football Focus.
The former striker hailed the Euro 2024 hopeful for his performances this season and how he has been a typical modern-day forward.
Dominic Solanke post-Liverpool
“He has been exceptional this season for Bournemouth,” said Murray. “I think you have to take into consideration the level Bournemouth are at, they aren’t the most forward-thinking team, so he is up there a lot on his own.
“He is comfortable in one-v-one situations. He is what I would call a modern-day striker. He works hard for the team in and out of possession. I think that’s important when you are a lower-league Premier League team.
“Solanke is always in and around. He has learned his trade in the last couple of years by scoring goals and now it looks like he is ready to make that step into international level. He has almost completed the Premier League. He knows how to score goals at that level and he believes he can week in and week out.”
Will Dominic Solanke leave Bournemouth?
It needs to be noted that when Solanke first joined Bournemouth, it actually didn’t go to plan and he did struggle.
After the Cherries were relegated, that’s when he started to pick things up and help his team earn promotion and now he is pushing for the Premier League’s Golden Boot – Should Liverpool buy him back?
Solanke has scored an incredible 17 goals this season – three off Erling Haaland and Cole Palmer – with only one penalty to his name.
That player who once struggled in a thriving Liverpool team is about to his 20+ league goals and it is very much deserved.
