I think it can be generally assumed that most football clubs like to get their transfer business out of the way as early in the window as possible. For one, most managers like to know what they have at the start of pre-season training and then they can get to work on things fairly quickly on the training pitch, on tactics and organisation, rather than worrying about outgoings and in-goings.

Manchester United have certainly got their business out of the way early, with the signings of David de Gea , Phil Jones and Ashley Young, and although Liverpool started off well with the signing of Jordan Henderson , since that good start the Reds have been left frustrated in their transfer dealings.

Of course it is not the end of the world that the squad for the upcoming season is not really in place as pre-season begins, as there is the best part of two months to bring in new faces, but it could be said that it is something of a hindrance that you have many in the squad currently who will (hopefully) not be at the club by the 1st September. Another frustration is that negotiations on new players coming in will be taking place later on in the window when the Reds should be focused on preparing for matches in August. Ideal preparation is key for a new season and a few things are frustrating this from happening at the moment.

One thing is very clear; there is a lot of dead-wood in the squad at the moment and there are too many players who look to be surplus to requirements. Philipp Degen , Emiliano Insua , Nabil El Zhar, Christian Poulsen, Joe Cole , Paul Konchesky , David Ngog , Brad Jones and Milan Jovanovic are just some of the names tipped for departure this summer, but the lack of bids for these players so far has been concerning as it is crucial to get these players off our wage bill to free up funds.

FSG is unlikely to authorise big transfer fees and allow sizeable salaries if these players are not removed. Although the Reds are possibly still bidding for a fair few players, the matter maybe concerning if the Reds lose out on potential signings if the club refuses to go beyond certain transfer fees or certain wage limits because of the amount of dead-wood which is currently at the club. Two apparent transfer targets Connor Wickham and Gael Clichy have slipped through our fingers perhaps because of the constraints caused by this.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m in full support of FSG’s sensible financial strategy. Paying over the odds in wages to players such as Doni could not be condoned. Also, there is no way you could justify spending £10million on Charlie Adam and £19million on Stewart Downing.

Making sure we could the right players must be a priority this summer but I feel the more urgent matter at the moment is to get these players off the wage bill, and fast.

Read more of David's articles at Live4Liverpool

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