Richard Buxton: Klopp almost done with his jigsaw puzzle

Liverpool have perennially been one missing piece shy of completing their puzzle.

Each supposed solution was actually a mere addition to their seemingly never-ending jigsaw.

This summer, however, Juergen Klopp may finally succeed where his predecessors all failed.

Problem positions have been reduced from an epidemic to a solitary concern for the Reds, one likely to be remedied with a world-record deal for AS Roma goalkeeper Alisson.

At £66.8 million (S$119.1m), the Brazil international will not be arriving cheaply, but gone are the days when Anfield chiefs are allowed to stage a daylight robbery in the transfer market; Mohamed Salah's £36.9m switch from the Italian capital last summer was a bargain that is unlikely to be repeated soon.

GOALKEEPER WOES

Sooner or later, the Reds' penny wise and pound foolish ways had to come to an end. Klopp has been equally culpable for the failure of cut-price signings to amend key deficiencies.

Paying a premium for Alisson is necessary, not least when only Pepe Reina, the club's last truly formidable stopper, recorded more clean sheets in Serie A last season than him.

Liverpool, however, have been burned by this particular narrative once before.

Loris Karius was rated second only to Manuel Neuer in the Bundesliga before leaving for the English Premier League. Two years on, the only thing linking him to the Bayern Munich goalkeeper is nationality.

One night in Kiev derailed nine months of steady progress for the German.

A concussion-induced performance in the Champions League final joined Liverpool's hall of goalkeeping infamy; on a par with David James blaming a video game preoccupation for costly mistakes.

Recovering from the ignominy of an error-strewn display against Real Madrid appeared ambitious.

Further blundering in a pre-season friendly with Tranmere, a side in the fourth tier of English football, proved to be the point of no return despite Klopp's rallying defence.

For all the Liverpool manager's public protestations, he has wasted little time bulking up other departments that were previously considered too lightweight, not least in central midfield.

The addition of two ball-winners in the form of Naby Keita from RB Leipzig and AS Monaco enforcer Fabinho, signed barely 48 hours after May's ordeal in the Ukrainian capital, will provide a level of authority last exuded by Javier Mascherano, close to a decade ago.

Xherdan Shaqiri's £13.7m capture also affords Liverpool a much-needed alternative in their attacking outlet that acts as an insurance policy should Salah struggle to reignite past glories.

Last season, the Egyptian took up the mantle which Sadio Mane had assumed in his own debut campaign, but there are no guarantees that he will return from a shoulder injury to his former free-scoring ways after failing to salvage his country's dismal World Cup campaign.

VOID OF CREATIVITY

But replacing the void of creativity left by Philippe Coutinho's departure to Barcelona remains an ongoing search.

Resurrecting a deal for Lyon's World Cup-winning captain Nabil Fekir could feasibly solve that quest despite an eleventh-hour collapse in negotiations last month.

Klopp previously insisted that Liverpool would not join their EPL rivals by investing heavily in single-player outlays.

Less than 18 months after maintaining that such a time would signal a death knell to his time in football, he sanctioned the £75m signing of Virgil van Dijk.

Sometimes, it is impossible to beat your rivals without joining them - and Liverpool's time to again be first among equals is long overdue.