Liverpool's Week in Review: Talking Hoffenheim, Arsenal and transfers

Liverpool enjoyed one of their most productive and joyful weeks which saw the club clinch a spot in the Champions League group stage, get a relatively easy draw and lay down a marker in the Premier League. Further, Liverpool pushed ahead in their pursuit of top targets rounding off a fruitful period.

There were a good number of top performances on and off the pitch along with interesting transfer talk this week. So, let's take a look at Liverpool's week starting with the Champions League playoff 2nd leg against Hoffenheim.

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Back to the elite with a bang

Champions League nights are back at Anfield.

When Liverpool drew Hoffenheim in the Champions League playoffs, there was a worry among the Anfield faithful. However, the Reds brought back two away goals to Merseyside at the start of the second leg. If there were lingering doubts about the Reds' performance at home, then they were put to bed in a swift manner.

Jurgen Klopp's men raced out of the blocks, taking the game to the Bundesliga side from the off. While Hoffenheim's Serge Gnabry looked threatening, the trio of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, and Roberto Firmino tore Hoffenheim's defence apart.

Julian Nagelsmann's decision to persist with three defenders at the back proved to be the bane as Mane and Salah surged ahead in the space behind the wing-backs at every opportunity.

This pulled the defence out of shape and Liverpool capitalized on the chances. Further, the return of Emre Can to midfield made a lot of difference as he brought in energy, industry and this time around - goals.

Firmino showed his class on the European stage.

The German along with Georginio WIjnaldum constantly made runs into the box, something Klopp highlighted in the post-match conference as well. Can scored the first via a deflection while Wijnaldum's shot off the post was tucked in by Salah.

The Dutchman's pass released Mane before Firmino crossed for Can to tap home the third and bringing Klopp to scream, "That's f*****g football!" at the jubilant crowd.

Nagelsmann immediately brought about a substitution and went to four at the back. They pulled one goal back immediately with Dejan Lovren the guilty party.

The defender was once again beaten at the closing stages as Hoffenheim's Wagner scored through a header. However, the match was done much before that with captain Jordan Henderson's relentless press winning the ball high up the pitch and Firmino doing the honours.

The Brazilian was at the heart of everything and his movement, skill and work-rate came to the fore. After an emphatic win, Liverpool could not have asked for a better draw as they drew Sevilla, Spartak Moscow, and Maribor.

Klopp will be hoping for his side to top the group as his team gears up to avenge the Europa League final defeat to the Spanish club in 2016 in the opening match.

Making a statement in the PL

Liverpool made a statement to the Premier League on Sunday.

Liverpool against Arsenal have become goal-fests in recent times and the Hoffenheim game showed that the home side could cause some serious damage when the opposition play three at the back. In the Gunners' case, it was a complete mismatch with Nacho Monreal facing off Salah while Rob Holding was entrusted to deal with Mane.

The presence of attacking wing-backs in Hector Bellerin and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain only made the situation worse as Arsenal did not look like a team on equal footing at all. As is the norm now in big games, Liverpool took the attack to Arsenal straight away.

Wijnaldum put on his best performance so far in this season.

The star performers on Wednesday were once again on form as Firmino, Mane and Salah all scored while Can bossed the midfield alongside Wijnaldum, who put on one of his best ever performances in a Liverpool shirt.

Both Mane's and Salah's goals highlighted the sheer pace and counter-attacking ability in this side. Daniel Sturridge came on towards the end to add a fourth as Salah delivered an inch-perfect cross from the left. The Egyptian has already been a terrific signing and he playing on the left after Mane's substitution hints at even more fluidity from the team going forward.

Liverpool's defence stood pretty strong throughout the game with Arsene Wenger's side not even registering a shot on target. Joe Gomez and Alberto Moreno had great games while Joel Matip put on a solid display alongside Lovren.

The biggest statistic, however, is that the clear-cut chances (CCC) differential between the sides was 6, higher than any of the Premier League games in the entirety of last season. The CCC differential for the Hoffenheim match was 6 as well, highlighting the domination of Klopp's team.

Busy end to transfer window

Salah is proving to be a brilliant signing

While the performances were definitely commendable, Liverpool's squad is slightly unbalanced and light in a few departments. The defence definitely needs reinforcements and the wait continues for Southampton's Virgil van Dijk. The goalkeeping and full-back departments are well-stocked at the moment.

In the midfield, Emre Can continues to boss games but is yet to extend his contract which expires in 2018. Meanwhile, Philippe Coutinho still refuses to play as he tries to force a move to Barcelona. However, the club has stated that they will not sell the player.

Thus, securing top transfer target Naby Keita in 2018 is a brilliant move by the Reds. The RB Leipzig midfielder is a complete package of attacking and defending ability and Liverpool have done well to pay his release clause in advance with a premium to secure his services.

Further, more signings could follow with Liverpool interested in AS Monaco's attacking midfielder Thomas Lemar, Arsenal's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Bayern Munich's Renato Sanches. The owners, Fenway Sports Group (FSG) have promised Klopp the bigger transfer kitty this summer and the last few days can see it becoming a reality.

Any deal for van Dijk and Lemar will break the club transfer record and the latter can play on the wings as well as in midfield. Thus, he can be another option on the wings as Liverpool do not have enough depth for Mane and Salah. Divock Origi could leave as a part of the deal or otherwise, which balances the number of strikers at the club.

Mamadou Sakho and Lazar Markovic are expected to be moved on while Moreno definitely seems to have earned the boss' confidence and is staying. The arrival of Lemar could see a loan move for the highly-impressive winger Ryan Kent.

Thus, Liverpool had a terrific week in the footballing sense and this week promises to be one to remember for the fans if the Reds land their transfer targets.

There is no footballing action for the Reds this week due to the international break. Nevertheless, there is a lot to look forward to with several Reds taking part in their respective country's World Cup qualifiers along with the transfer deadline day.