Liverpool ended a successful transfer window by finalising a £35m deal for Arsenal midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on deadline day.
The Reds also held an outside hope of luring Thomas Lemar from Monaco. But, with the Ligue 1 club reluctant to sell and the France international playing in a World Cup qualifier against Holland, they conceded time was against them, according to the Independent.
Arsenal made a £92m bid for the 21-year-old, who scored twice in the 4-0 win against the Dutch, which blew Liverpool's £65m offer out of the water. However, the Merseysiders considered the Gunners' move irrelevant knowing a deal could not be done - and the player had already expressed an interest in a move to Anfield.
Oxlade-Chamberlain became their fourth and final signing - although the Reds have already secured RB Leipzig midfielder Naby Keita in a club-record transfer for next season. But they failed to recruit a central defender, with long-term target Virgil van Dijk staying at Southampton who refused to do business.
The England international's move from Arsenal was concluded when he signed a five-year contract having taken a pay cut by accepting a £125,000-a-week offer when the Gunners were prepared to pay more for him to stay.
Manager Jürgen Klopp praised the England international for opting for a new challenge.
"I am really happy we have got Alex signed. Since the last game (a 4-0 win over Arsenal) I have been waiting and hoping we could make this transfer - and when I got the news he was ours it was fantastic," he told liverpoolfc.com.
He may still be young but he has a lot of experience in the Premier League, Champions League and for his country.
"Already he is a very good player and I think he has the mentality and desire to get even better - and that excites me."
Liverpool did manage to offload some players, accepting a £26m bid from Crystal Palace for unwanted centre-back Mamadou Sakho who signed a four-year contract at Selhurst Park.
Striker Divock Origi went out on loan to Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, who paid a £6m fee, with winger Ryan Kent, Allan Rodrigues de Souza and Toni Gomes joining Freiburg, Apollon Limassol and Forest Green in respective loan deals.
