Liverpool only completed one signing in the recently concluded transfer window, preferring to keep their powder dry and not sign players for the sake of it. "We know its not popular on social media but we wont buy just to satisfy peoples irrational lust for a transfer, a club source recently told the Echo. Whoever provided the quote was not wrong about fan desire, as many supporters have been grumbling about the Reds lack of activity. Yet how many signings did the club actually need? Football writer and Kopite Paul Tomkins has recently claimed that he believes the current Liverpool squad is the strongest ever, and if you stop and consider what has gone before at Anfield then its not an easy notion to argue against. But that does not mean that the Liverpool roster could not be stronger still. The main concern for many fans seems to be that the club have left themselves a little short in the forward department. Yes, they have four top class options for the three berths in the starting XI, but what happens if one of the main men is unavailable? As Roberto Firmino went off injured in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea, we may be about to find out. Its not that his absence would mean Liverpool dont have fantastic players for their front three, its that they then lose an option for the bench if the game needs rescuing. Only Manchester United got more league goals from their substitutes than Jürgen Klopp managed to in 2020/21, but six of his seven were scored by Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah. If they are already playing, the burden from the bench looks likely to fall upon Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi.Where the latter already feels like yesterdays man, the former needs to show he has something to offer. Minaminos record of one goal from 19 substitute appearances does not inspire confidence, though as those run-outs only amount to 315 minutes, at an average of under 17 minutes each, we shouldnt be too harsh.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated ArticlesAnd in his limited starting opportunities last season he showed that he can contribute. His star performance was undoubtedly in the 7-0 win at Selhurst Park shortly before Christmas. The Japanese international scored the opener and later played a pass in the build-up to a further two goals.Those were his only three involvements in the league or Europe, but as he only got 474 minutes of playing time in those competitions it means he played some part in a goal every 158 minutes last season. That put Minamino in a similar ball park to Divock Origi (an involvement every 131 minutes) and Xherdan Shaqiri (141), despite having enjoyed far less time playing with Liverpool to learn the team's patterns and movements.We probably dont need to dig too deeply into advanced statistics to determine why Minamino prospered at Crystal Palace when a simple glance at the team sheets will suffice. It was the one Liverpool match last season in either of the two main competitions in which the former Salzburg man started in the front three alongside two of the Reds established forwards.In the home game with Midtjylland, Minamino was the central forward, flanked by Jota and Origi. He then started on the right of the midfield three for the trip to Brighton, before switching to the left for the return fixture with the Danes. Only in South-East London on a cool December lunchtime did he get to line up in the attacking trident alongside Firmino and Sadio Mané, starting on the left with Liverpools number 10 in Salahs regular position on the right.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated ArticlesRead that preceding paragraph again and what do you notice? It might be the most difficult four-game sequence Only Connect would dream of calling upon for their second round, but it shows that Minamino had to play four slightly different roles in his four starts in the Premier League and Champions League. Considering that, should we be surprised he only scored or assisted a single goal? It cant be easy to perform to your best in such circumstances. Despite this disruption, 'Taki' was able to put in decent shifts off the ball, particularly in the away match against Midtjylland. Minamino made 37 pressures that night, a tally which was only topped twice by any Liverpool player in any match in 2020/21, and his total of 28 specifically in the middle third was the joint-most alongside Fabinhos efforts at Molineux (per FBRef). It is perhaps this level of commitment which explains why Minaminos teams play better when he is included. Southamptons league goal difference was 0.54 per 90 minutes higher when he was on the pitch last season, and Liverpools improved by 1.27. Its only his relatively small sample with both teams which undermines what initially appears a very impressive record.Barring injury to one of the main forwards, it seems unlikely that Minamino will ever be a regular starter for the Reds. But he has shown flashes of what he can do when he has been in the XI, so its up to Klopp to figure out how to draw out those abilities when the 26-year-old is summoned from the bench.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated Articles