What happened to 9 players Liverpool signed with £75m Luis Suarez transfer fee
Luis Suarez, one of Liverpool’s all-time great strikers, left big shoes to fill when he moved to Barcelona in 2014. Liverpool’s response was to bring in nine new faces.
Here’s a look at how those nine signings have fared since then.
Rickie Lambert
Lambert’s return to Liverpool was a fairytale for the boyhood fan, but it lasted just a year. He managed three goals in 36 appearances during the 2014-15 season. Lambert told Bristol Live in May 2020, reflecting on his time, “It was great to come back as a more professional player, but replacing Suarez was incredibly tough.” He retired in 2017 after stints at West Brom and Cardiff City.
Dejan Lovren
Liverpool paid £20 million to bring Lovren from Southampton. Despite being a polarizing figure, he eventually won over fans. Lovren moved to Zenit Saint Petersburg in 2020, where he won the Russian Super Cup and the league title in his first season. “I’m happy I left Liverpool when I did,” he told Zenit’s official website in January 2021. Lovren, now 35, rejoined Lyon last year.
Adam Lallana
Another Southampton recruit, Lallana was integral to Klopp’s early Liverpool teams. Injuries marred his time, but he earned a Premier League winners’ medal in 2020. Lallana joined Brighton for regular football and recently returned to Southampton. He joked about the oddity of playing under a manager younger than himself.
Emre Can
Can arrived from Bayer Leverkusen and was a regular for four seasons. He left on a free to Juventus in 2018, winning Serie A in his first season. Falling out of favor under Sarri, he moved to Borussia Dortmund in 2020 and captained them to the Champions League final last season, only to lose to Real Madrid.
Lazar Markovic
Touted as a future star, Markovic never lived up to his £20 million fee, scoring just three goals in 34 appearances. After various loan spells, he joined Fulham in 2019 but was soon released. He found form back at Partizan Belgrade and now plays for Gaziantep in Turkey.
Divock Origi
Origi became a cult hero at Liverpool, scoring crucial goals against Everton, Barcelona, and Tottenham in the 2019 Champions League final. He left for AC Milan two years ago but struggled there and on loan at Nottingham Forest. Despite scoring no goals in 20 appearances last season, he remains under contract with Milan but is expected to move this summer.
Alberto Moreno
Moreno, signed from Sevilla, showed attacking promise but struggled defensively. He fell behind Andy Robertson and left for Villarreal in 2019, where he won the Europa League against Manchester United. He left Villarreal last season and is currently unattached.
Mario Balotelli
Balotelli’s £16 million move from AC Milan was a gamble that didn’t pay off. He scored just four goals before leaving for Nice on a free transfer. Balotelli had stints at Brescia, and Monza, and now plays for Adana Demirspor in Turkey.
Javier Manquillo
Manquillo’s two-year loan from Atletico Madrid was cut short after just 10 Premier League appearances. He had spells at Marseille and Sunderland before moving to Newcastle United in 2017. After making only six appearances in the past two seasons, he quietly left Newcastle this summer and joined Celta Vigo.
From forgotten men to cult heroes, the nine signings Liverpool made in 2014 have had varied careers since their time at Anfield.
