Liverpool’s desperation reaches new heights as Anfield changes are about to reveal themselves

Time has a funny habit of doing strange things during the transfer window. And for good reason, this period has long been known as the silly season in the football calendar. Weeks can seem like months, days like weeks and hours like days, not least to Liverpool supporters who have seen their club do, well, not much in the market so far this summer.

But the real sense of unease among the fanbase has come from, for the first time in almost a decade, the club taking a significant step into the unknown, with changes to both the coaching staff and recruitment team.

Of course, the roles have been reversed often in that time as Liverpool have evolved both on and off the pitch. However, there was a consistent thread throughout with relatively uniform thinking. Never before have the Reds had to deal with their entire overhauled hierarchy in one fell swoop.

So the lack of movement during the window – Calvin Ramsay’s loan move to Wigan Athletic at the start of last month remains Liverpool’s only business – has done little to assuage worries about what exactly is happening in the corridors of power.

Of course, the Reds are bound to recover in the transfer window, so there will always be an understandable delay in completing deals. But what hasn’t helped fans yet is that they can’t really gauge what to expect from the new era.

While one-time Liverpool target Leny Yoro has already played in front of nearly 60,000 people in Glasgow for new club Manchester United, the only glimpse Reds fans have had of Liverpool’s latest iteration is a four-minute video on the club’s website. since Friday’s behind closed doors friendly defeat against Championship side Preston North End last Friday.

Indeed, the increasingly desperate pursuit of any Liverpool clue saw supporters on social media spend a significant amount of time on Tuesday poring over a photograph of the Anfield Road End stand, where six blue covers had been placed over the seats at the lower level. Word quickly spread that they were hiding the numbers 66 and 2027 – indicating, of course, a new contract for Trent Alexander-Arnold.

The truth is not as exciting, with the covers having been in place for at least a week to protect the seats from remedial work being carried out to the perspex roof at the front edge of the stand roof.

But while no transfer looks imminent, there will be at least one way for supporters to ease some of their concerns and curiosities in the coming week.

An initial 28-man squad – further reinforcements are expected when the rest of the Reds’ international contingent begins to return from holidays – flew to Pittsburgh on Tuesday for the tour of the United States. After playing against Spanish side Real Betis, Liverpool face old Premier League rivals Arsenal and Manchester United. No easy tasks there for a squad full of youngsters – half of the traveling group have a combined number of just 19 first-team starts between them.

Big games, big crowds and a great opportunity to look for indications, both tactically and personnel-wise, of where Slot intends to lead the team, even if the overall quality will only become apparent once the head coach has complement to choose from.

This pre-season has been a test of nerves more than any other for Liverpool supporters – pandemic year 2020 aside, not since 1996 have the Reds waited so late to make a first summer signing.

But with patience being tested in some quarters, things will soon begin to unravel. The next development at Anfield is about to unfold.