Slimming the squad or setting themselves up for regret? Rating Liverpool FC's summer youth clear-out

With all of the club's business centred around the sale of youngsters, Mentality Giants takes a look at the benefits and potential risks of these departures.

Fabio Carvalho - 8/10

The Portuguese youngster enjoyed a fruitful pre-season under Slot, but was eventually let go for close to 30 million pounds.

The fee, reported by Sky News, includes add-ons worth £5 million and a 17.5% sell-on clause. This means that the Reds would pocket 17.5% of any profit that Brentford make, should they sell the midfielder.

While hypothetical transfers that don't involve Liverpool might not be too exciting, fans only have to look as far as Solanke's move to Spurs to see how this can play out. The Reds could pocket as much as £9 million from the incoming.

Although this financial footwork represents a savvy piece of business by Hughes and Co., it is true that Liverpool have lost a promising talent. At 21-years-old, the youngster has a huge ceiling, and has already shown glimpses of his capacity to play at the highest level.

Carvalho's struggles during his maiden season at Anfield, compounded with a disappointing loan spell at RB Leipzig, were reversed with his switch to Hull at the start of this year. He enjoyed great success as a No 10, playing almost as a second striker, and this month showed that he is equally adept on the left wing.

Unfortunately, however, team selection is about other players, no matter how well you perform. Carvalho recognised this himself in an interview with Sky Sports.

Explaining his change of heart after pre-season, Carvalho said "you get that feeling where you know certain players aren’t back and when they come back things change."

Despite the social media buzz around Carvalho's fine performances, made all the sweeter by the fact he netted against rivals Arsenal and Manchester United, the harsh truth is that he was never going to be first-choice on either the left flank or in attacking midfield.

Gakpo and Diaz (in addition to Jota and Núñez, who can also play on the left) would be difficult to displace, while Elliott and Szoboszlai are contending for the No 10 spot. Carvalho may hit a meteoric rise at Brentford and bang in goals and assists, but it is simply improbable that he could do this in Liverpool's current system.

Never say never of course, but it is highly likely that, had Carvalho tried to fight for his place, in three months time we would be lamenting his lack of game-time and wishing he had sought out a loan or a permanent transfer.

For this reason, as well as the clever sell-on clause and the sizeable transfer fee, it looks like a great move for both club and player.

Sepp Van den Berg - 6/10

Another player who gained minutes during pre-season, Van den Berg will be following Carvalho to the G-Tech Community Stadium.

Brentford signed their second Red this summer in a deal worth £25 million, which also includes £5 million in add-ons and a 17.5% sell-on clause.

Like his Portuguese team-mate, Van den Berg spent last season away from Anfield, plying his trade at Mainz. His second spell in the Rhineland in as many years, Van den Berg excelled in a poor side, helping The 0-Fives stay up with a goal on the last day of the season.

Fast and excellent in the air, Van den Berg represents a fantastic asset in defence. His aerial supremacy in particular should have put him in contention at Liverpool, given the success of other players with big verticals like Matip and Van Dijk.

Like Carvalho, however, it seems that the problem was the players in front of him. Van Dijk, Quansah and Konate were always going to be above him the pecking order. Slot explained there was no guarantee of minutes in a press conference.

Speaking on both departures to Brentford, Slot explained "there is so much competition in the positions that they play that they wouldn’t play every minute of every single game." He said that it was a good deal for both parties, and cheekily added "everybody’s happy, unless they do too well on Sunday!”

On this front, however, Slot may have failed to see the bigger picture. Van den Berg may not have been the first name on the team sheet, but he would have provided good cover for a position that has been rocked by injuries in recent seasons.

Aside from the 20/21 season, which was freakish in the occurrence of season-ending injuries for both first-choice centre backs, the club has not been able to rely on a clean bill of health in central defence.

Konate has been superb since signing from RB Leipzig in 2021, but has missed 21 matches across two seasons for Liverpool according to Transfermarkt. While less than a third of those games missed took place last campaign, the Frenchman's fitness can not be taken for granted.

Likewise, even though Van Dijk has been imperious over the last couple of seasons, and has only missed a few games, it would be unfair to rely on a 33-year-old to stay totally fit in such a gruelling league.

Quansah alone has never missed a game for Liverpool through injury, although his recent knock against Ipswich has suddenly made this a real possibility. Fundamentally, Liverpool lack cover in this department, and sanctioning the departure of a young, promising backup could prove reckless.

And so, despite the hefty price tag for a player they only signed for £4 million in 2019, Slot may well rue this transfer if his side are devastated by injuries in defence.

Harvey Blair - 8/10

The 20-year-old has brought a nine-year spell on Merseyside to a close, managing one senior appearance.

Blair will join Portsmouth in a deal that could reportedly rise to £600,000. The transfer includes a 20% sell-on clause.

The youngster came through the Liverpool youth system, but his opportunities with the senior side were always restricted by injury problems. His time on the sidelines prevented him from securing a loan move last season.

Playing the majority of his football on the left, Blair would have had to compete with Diaz and Gakpo, so game time would have been extremely limited for the winger.

Pompey manager John Mousinho is a young gaffer who likes to provide opportunities for youth players, so Blair will be in safe hands as far as his development is concerned.

The package deal looks good and the transfer is sweetened by a significant sell-on clause, which would guarantee a moderate portion of any profit that Portsmouth make on a future sale. More importantly, however, Blair will get minutes, and no footballer deserves to just sit on a bench, even if it is at Anfield.