Former Liverpool boss on why Liverpool struggle to buy top players

Former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez has given one potential reason for why the club can find it hard to attract players to Anfield.

Liverpool are the only Premier League side not to buy ANY players so far this summer, with Arne Slot's squad weaker than last season due to a number of outgoings.

Benitez spent seven years in charge of the Reds and some of the club's most iconic players joined during his tenure, but he has shared why he thinks Liverpool can find it harder than other sides to bring stars in.

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Speaking on Sky Sports' The Overlap earlier, Benitez said that he found it hard to compete with other clubs when vying to secure the signature of top players – claiming that teams like Manchester City and Chelsea can offer more money than FSG.

"The new owners were lucky [early on] because we sold Torres for £50m, then Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho. So, they had money to spend around that time. You must spend a lot of money like Chelsea and Manchester City," he said.

But it's not just money that acts as a barrier to bringing in new players, according to Benitez.

"LIVERPOOL WAS THE THIRD CHOICE"

The Champions League-winning manager claimed that he had to convince players that Liverpool city was a good place to live, as many found the idea of moving to Manchester or London more appealing.

"For Liverpool, it was very difficult because the families of the players preferred to stay in London because of the airport, as well as Manchester. Liverpool was the third choice because of the size of the city, and they like to go shopping in London, I heard one wife talk to another wife," he said.

"You also cannot pay the salaries. In terms of the city, I love Liverpool but if you go to London there’s the wives, families and all the people. Liverpool were also not winning trophies. Manchester was winning trophies; Chelsea was winning trophies and even Arsenal was winning trophies. So, it was very difficult - you have to convince players,' he added.

During Jurgen Klopp's time in charge at Anfield the club made a number of high-profile signings, including the likes of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.

However, this summer has been a difficult one for a new setup consisting of Sporting Director Richard Hughes and the returning Michael Edwards, who were unable to convince Martin Zubimendi to leave his boyhood club Real Sociedad and join the Reds.

Players often said that the manager was one of the deciding factors in their decision to join the club, but with it still being early days under Slot, it seems that Liverpool's pull is not as strong as it used to be.