Jurgen Klopp has hailed his recruitment team at Liverpool for Diogo Jota's impact, believing the club signed the forward at exactly the right time.
Jota arrived at Anfield from Wolves in September 2020 for a fee reported to be in the region of £41million, potentially rising to £45m.
Some eyebrows were raised at the time at the size of the fee for a player who had scored 16 goals in 48 games in all competitions in the 2019-20 season.
However, Jota has thrived at Liverpool under Klopp, scoring 13 in 30 appearances in his first season on Merseyside and 17 in 30 this term.
In the Premier League, the Portugal international has 12 in 2021-22, trailing only team-mate Mohamed Salah's 16 after his brace in Thursday's 2-0 win against Leicester City.
Ahead of Liverpool's trip to Burnley on Sunday, Klopp was asked what the key to Jota's signing and development have been.
"It is timing," he replied. "I am 100 per cent sure Diogo Jota a year later would have had offers from other top clubs; maybe in the year we wanted him that was not the case.
"Similar with Mo, if Mo had played another season at Roma in a similar manner, there would have been other clubs in.
"It is about what you need in the moment... The most important thing for a signing is that the team they join is in a good place. It means they don't have to change the world straight from the first day.
"Since I was here the team was always already good before a new player arrived, so they could settle in. Some quicker, some needed a bit more time.
"Fabinho was an example. When he came here it was really tricky to adapt to the way we play, the system we play. We tried to help him but it was not that we could do that overnight.
"If you have time, any player with the value of £40m, £50m, £60m or whatever, they are all quality, but you can't create a situation for them. The situation has to be there. When they arrive they have to join a settled team, and then they can help them to make the next step."
New Liverpool signing Luis Diaz impressed on his Premier League debut against Leicester, and Klopp was asked more generally about the success of the club's recruitment in recent years.
"There is no key apart from having smart people in the right positions, though I'm pretty sure other teams have that as well," he said.
"The boys we brought in, it is not that we bought bargains. Alisson was expensive but everyone sees how good he is, similar to Virgil [van Dijk].
"It is no secret that our transfers here have to hit the ground. It's not as if, as we say in Germany, we don't 'swim in money'. We are a wealthy club, no problems, but the policy is clear that we spend what we earn. For us, it is very important that we have to do absolutely the right thing.
"We have to think [many] times about it, and it might be that the player goes to another club, and we cannot change that, that's what we did so far. The club had incredible free transfers with James [Milner] and Joel [Matip] and we brought clear talents in with Robbo [Andrew Robertson] and other boys.
"I think transfers are very emotional. Fans think about it a lot with their heart, and we just have to think about it. It's not easy to ignore public pressure. It's almost like if you don't sign, you don't work, and we see it slightly different.
"We have brilliant people here who make really good proposals and we as coaches make good proposals as well and, in the end, so far we found, more often than not, the right solutions for this team."
Heidenheim 0-2 Chelsea: Nkunku and Mudryk edge Blues closer to last 16
Chelsea maintained their perfect start to their Europa Conference League campaign by beating Heidenheim 2-0 on Thursday.
Two second-half strikes from Christopher Nkunku and Mykhailo Mudryk kept the Blues top of the pile after four games, taking their total to 18 goals in this year's competition.
The visitors thought they had been awarded a penalty when Mudryk was tripped inside the box, and despite being told to go to the monitor to review the decision, referee Serdar Gozubuyuk stuck with his original call.
However, the Blues found themselves in front six minutes after the break when Jadon Sancho's cross was gathered by Nkunku, who finished with aplomb from inside the area.
Heidenheim continued to ramp up the pressure late on and thought they had levelled through substitute Maximilian Breunig's diving header, but the offside flag was raised on the far side.
The victory was sealed in the 86th minute after fine build-up play between Sancho and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall saw the ball pulled back for Mudryk, who rifled into the top corner.
Cesare Casadei's sending off in second-half stoppage time took the gloss off an otherwise impressive display, with the Blues' focus now turning to Aston Villa this weekend.
Data Debrief: Blues march on
Following Chelsea's 8-0 thrashing of Armenian minnows Noah in their last game, many placed the Blues as favourites to win this year's competition, but they were made to work for their triumph in Germany.
While the Blues accumulated an expected goals (xG) total of 2.9 to Heidenheim's 1.97, the hosts registered more shots on target (11), but were foiled by the brilliance of Filip Jorgensen, who made 11 saves during the encounter.
Nkunku also continued his scoring streak in the competition, netting his fifth Europa Conference League goal, while also producing more shots on target (three) than any of his team-mates.
Wood feeling the appreciation of Forest boss Nuno
Chris Wood says he is flourishing at Nottingham Forest because he feels the appreciation of boss Nuno Espirito Santo.
The New Zealand striker, 32, has been the surprise story of the Premier League season, scoring eight goals in 12 top-flight appearances – a tally bettered only by Erling Haaland and Mohamed Salah.
Indeed, since Nuno took over at Forest Wood has netted 19 in 28 Premier League games and puts that down to finding a manager who knows how to get the best out of him.
In an interview with BBC Sport, he said: "You have to find where you are appreciated. Managers have their own style and how they want to play games.
"That's not anything I can control. It just means you might not be in the right area or the manager's cup of tea. There's always a manager who likes a number nine, or a false nine.
"I'm not a man who is going to beat two or three players and stick it in the top corner, I'm a man who relies on service. If they can't supply me, I can't score.
"It's about trying to find the role which fits everyone and fortunately under Nuno it has.
"The six or seven loans I had as a youngster taught me a lot about being appreciated and valued. It's not always about you as a person or player, it's how you connect and build with a team. A lot of it is out of your control."
Wood also credited now Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth for some useful advice when he was technical director at West Brom, one of the 11 English clubs Wood represented before landing at a 12th with Forest.
He added: "It's about making coming down the other side as small as possible to bounce back up and make a new mountain.
"Mentality is huge in sport and in football. If you can control that side of the game it helps.
"You go through these mountains and waves through the whole season. It's not just a case of skyrocketing. That's what I got told by [former technical director] Dan Ashworth when I was at West Brom. It's not always going to be plain sailing.
"There are going to be those waves and you have to ride with them and hope the downside is as small as possible to get the upsides as big as possible."
Camavinga joins Vinicius and Rodrygo on growing Real Madrid injury list
Real Madrid have confirmed that midfielder Eduardo Camavinga sustained a hamstring injury during their Champions League defeat to Liverpool.
Camavinga was replaced by Dani Ceballos in the 56th minute during Wednesday's 2-0 loss at Anfield, and the club revealed he is expected to spend a period on the sidelines.
The Frenchman adds to Madrid's already extensive injury list, joining the likes of Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo, David Alaba, Eder Militao, and Dani Carvajal on the injury table.
An official club statement read: "Following tests carried out today on our player Eduardo Camavinga by the club’s Medical Services, he has been diagnosed with a muscle injury in the femoral biceps of his left leg. Pending evolution."
This growing list of absentees has raised serious concerns about the team’s depth and their ability to compete effectively both domestically and in the Champions League.
The loss against Liverpool has already left Madrid’s Champions League qualification hopes hanging in the balance, finding themselves 24th in the new 36-team table after five games.
Carlo Ancelotti's side welcome Getafe to the Bernabeu this Sunday, hoping to close the gap to rivals Barcelona at the summit of the LaLiga standings, who are just four points ahead, with Madrid having played a game less.
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