Michael Owen Warns Liverpool About Transfer Market Risks

Michael Owen has warned Liverpool they are “playing with fire” in the transfer market after a subdued summer he believes has already cost them one ideal Mohamed Salah successor.

The former Anfield striker cannot understand why his old club did not move decisively for Jarrod Bowen once West Ham United’s relegation was confirmed, arguing the England international ticked every box for a side suddenly stripped of its most reliable source of goals and assists.

Owen questions Liverpool’s attacking plan

Liverpool have already made one major attacking addition, spending £34.5million on left-winger Victor Munoz from Osasuna. Talks are ongoing with Paris Saint-Germain over Bradley Barcola, while teenage Champions League winner Ibrahim Mbaye is also on the radar.

For Owen, the strategy looks oddly narrow.

“Absolutely, yes,” he said when asked if he was surprised by Liverpool’s quiet window. “Losing Mo Salah and his goals and assists must be a concern right now. Liverpool need to look to add more depth in the forward areas.

“I would have gone more Jarrod Bowen as one player to come in as I believe he is very talented, Premier League-proven and could have fitted in really well and could have scored plenty of goals.”

Bowen, who has now signed a new deal at the London Stadium, is no longer an option. To Owen, that feels like an opportunity squandered.

While Liverpool push hard for Barcola, the numbers involved raise another issue.

“Right now it seems Liverpool are putting all their time in looking to secure Barcola from PSG, although at a huge price tag it may mean that one of the attacking players may have to make way for him to join,” Owen said.

The message is clear: Salah’s exit has blown a hole in Liverpool’s front line, and one marquee winger alone will not fix it.

“I expect Liverpool to sign another attacking player as Mo leaves a big void and Liverpool do need to strengthen.”

Isak and Wirtz under the microscope

Attention inside the club is not only on new faces. Two of last summer’s headline arrivals, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, are also under pressure to deliver.

Liverpool committed more than £100million to the pair. They received only flashes in return.

Isak’s season was shredded by injury, including four months out with a broken leg. Wirtz, a prodigious talent, struggled to adapt to the demands of English football and a new system under Andoni Iraola.

“He had a tough time last season,” Owen said of Isak. “That kind of injury does take a lot of time to recover from and sometimes you only recover to the player you were, not one that can push on even further.

“But if Isak can find the same form that he did for Newcastle, then he can definitely show his worth for Andoni Iraola.

“He is hugely talented as shown for Newcastle and did look good in the World Cup, so hopefully he can be a top striker next season and score plenty.

“With (Florian) Wirtz as well now having one season under his belt, we hope he can find good form.”

For Liverpool’s new head coach, the equation is stark: either Isak and Wirtz grow into the players their price tags demand, or the club will be forced back into the market again, this time from a position of weakness.

Homegrown heartbeat under threat

Away from the headline pursuit of Barcola and the scrutiny on big-money signings, another issue is nagging at Owen – the future of Curtis Jones.

The midfielder is into the final year of his contract and continues to be linked with a move away. Inter have yet to meet Liverpool’s valuation, while Galatasaray are also circling.

Lose Jones, and Iraola’s squad would be stripped of its only senior Scouse outfielder. For a club that prides itself on local identity, that matters.

“It’s always nice to have homegrown players playing for Liverpool,” Owen told the ECHO. “The fans feel it when you see local players come through the Academy and shine for the first team.”

Owen knows that feeling better than most. He was the local prodigy who exploded onto the scene as a teenager, carrying the hopes of a city on his shoulders.

“But look around at other clubs, Jack Grealish came through at Villa and left and got stick, the same with Trent Alexander-Arnold at Liverpool when he left.

“So it’s difficult, but I do have to say, I was a local lad who came through the ranks and played for Liverpool and you could feel it was great.”

The warning sits between the lines. Strip away too much of that local core, hesitate in replacing a legend like Salah, and the club risks losing not just goals, but a sense of itself.

Liverpool still have time in this window. The question now is whether they move with the urgency – and clarity – that Owen believes the situation demands.