Liverpool have spent an enormous amount of money on their first-team squad over the last couple of summers.
Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak and Bradley Barcola have all arrived for fees of more than £100m, depending on how the deals are calculated.
But while those signings grab all the headlines, something else is happening behind the scenes at Liverpool.
The club are going after the next generation.
And I find that side of Liverpool’s recruitment really interesting.
Liverpool have made more than £230m since 2020 from players who came through their youth system, according to the BBC’s reporting. Those sales have become an important part of Fenway Sports Group’s self-sustaining model, with academy graduates generating significant transfer income that can then be reinvested elsewhere.
The problem is that you can’t keep selling young players without eventually having to replace them.
Liverpool now recognise that.
That’s where the club’s global talent department comes in.
Matt Newberry has led that operation since 2024, with Liverpool increasingly looking beyond the traditional European markets for young players who could eventually develop into first-team footballers.
Brexit has changed the landscape considerably.
Premier League clubs cannot simply go into Europe and sign under-18 players in the way they could previously, while young English players now command what Liverpool academy director Alex Inglethorpe described as a premium.
Liverpool’s answer has been to widen the search.
And Mor Talla Ndiaye might be the best example of what that looks like.
From Senegal to Liverpool
Ndiaye’s story is already fascinating.
He grew up playing football in the Senegalese village of Sandiara before progressing through Bousports Academy and Amitié FC.
Liverpool’s scouts spotted him at the Under-17 World Cup in Qatar in 2025, where he represented Senegal.
The club then did something that I really like.
They didn’t just watch him on a screen and throw a contract at him.
Liverpool opened discussions with his academy and representatives, arranged video calls and then sent people to Senegal. They visited the places where Ndiaye trained and met the people who had helped him develop.
They even sat down with his family to understand his background and the environment he had grown up in.
Eventually, Ndiaye chose Liverpool and completed his move in January 2026. The club’s official profile confirms that he joined the Under-21s from Amitié FC after representing Senegal at the Under-17 World Cup.
That isn’t just scouting.
It’s selling a pathway.
And Liverpool have one of the biggest selling points in football when it comes to developing young players.
Ndiaye has already had a taste of first-team football. He was included in the senior matchday squad towards the end of last season and featured during Liverpool’s pre-season under Andoni Iraola.
I’ve watched enough of the young players coming through to know that you shouldn’t get carried away too early, but Ndiaye is certainly one I’m interested in.
He’s a centre-back, he’s physically imposing and, most importantly, Liverpool clearly believe there is something there worth developing.
He’s not the only one
Ndiaye is part of a much wider strategy.
Liverpool also moved for 18-year-old centre-back Ifeanyi Ndukwe, who arrived from Austria and impressed during pre-season before going out on loan to Levante as he works towards the requirements needed to play regularly in England.
Then there is Samuel Martinez, the Colombian midfielder who is due to join Liverpool next summer.
Liverpool have also secured deals for Belgian goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans and French forward Djylian N’Guessan. Brughmans will remain with Genk before moving to Liverpool, while N’Guessan is spending time with Brest after Liverpool agreed his deal with Saint-Etienne.
N’Guessan is particularly interesting because Liverpool have agreed a deal for an 18-year-old who was already attracting attention after his performances for France at youth level.
This isn’t Liverpool randomly collecting teenagers.
There is a clear strategy.
Find them early. Understand their background. Convince them that Liverpool is the place where they can develop. Then give them the time and support required to have a chance of making it.
Of course, most won’t become stars.
That’s football.
But Liverpool don’t need every one of these players to become the next Steven Gerrard. If even a few make the first team — or become valuable players who can eventually be sold — the investment can make a huge difference.
Liverpool are trying to get ahead of the market
This is probably the bit I find most interesting.
There aren’t many genuine hidden gems anymore.
The best teenagers are being watched by everyone.
Liverpool therefore need to be better at identifying them, but also better at convincing them to choose Anfield.
That’s where the club’s global network becomes important.
Julian Ward’s return as sporting director only adds another interesting layer. Ward already knows Liverpool’s recruitment operation and has a huge network of contacts around the game.
And Liverpool clearly aren’t restricting themselves to the markets supporters traditionally associate with the club.
Senegal.
Colombia.
Austria.
Belgium.
France.
The search is getting wider.
For me, Mor Talla Ndiaye is the player who makes the whole strategy feel real rather than just something written down in a recruitment document.
An 18-year-old centre-back from Senegal arrived at Liverpool having barely begun his journey in professional football.
A few months later, he’s training around the first team and getting opportunities to show Iraola what he can do.
Nobody knows where this ends.
Maybe Ndiaye becomes a Liverpool regular. Maybe he doesn’t.
But that’s the gamble Liverpool are taking.
And after watching the club sell so many young players over the last few years, I think replenishing that talent pool makes complete sense.
Liverpool can’t rely forever on spending £100m-plus to solve every problem.
Sometimes the smartest signing is the one you make before everybody else knows the player’s name.
Mor Talla Ndiaye could be one of those players.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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