COMMENT: Cash. Spending power. It was never the problem at Liverpool. Keeping a team together. Holding onto their best. The key factor was never about money...

Jurgen Klopp's claims last week could come back to haunt him. His assertion of what plagued past Liverpool teams won't hit the current one is challenging fate.

Touching on his transfer plans, Klopp insisted after a year of record spending, the need for a repeat was just not there "I do not think this is a law where we have to spend big money..."

The Reds manager insisting the key to improvement was about keeping the current team together, "...maybe that was the main problem for Liverpool over the past ten years.

"When they had a good team, they all went around the world after a season. It won't happen this year, that's for sure."

A sound approach. And there's certainly a lot room for growth. Progress. Within this current Reds squad. But claiming - with 100% "for sure" confidence - he can navigate successfully what derailed past teams must be questioned.

Liverpool, financially, are in a position like never before. But it wasn't money - or the lack thereof - which broke up that brilliant team of Brendan Rodgers almost five years ago.

Liverpool were still strong enough to turn down Arsenal's £40m (plus a quid) offer for Luis Suarez. And they would've done the same regarding Raheem Sterling and Manchester City. But this wasn't about money. It never really is when you get to the very elite stage. Especially when you're dealing with the sort of characters that thrive at such a level. Suarez left for Barcelona, like Sterling for City, to fulfill his potential. His ambitions. The same ambitions that had previously taken both players to Anfield via multiple clubs. They're footballers on the move. Professionals seeking to get the best from - and for - themselves. It's no coincidence neither have considered another transfer since leaving Anfield. Their aspirations met by their current employers.

Now Klopp, like Rodgers before him, has again assembled a team of individuals coveted across Europe. From top four hopeful to Champions League favourite. All in the space of 18 months. And achieved by breaking spending records over and over again.

Before the transformative arrivals of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson, there was of course Philippe Coutinho. But no amount of money - or strong arming - could convince the Brazilian to stay. That Liverpool were able to extract a 'commitment' from Barca of €140m is great business. Particularly given Coutinho's struggles today. But it remains the case of Klopp failing to convince a coveted to player to stick around. Six months on and another, Emre Can, was doing the same having previously agreed pre-contract terms with Juventus.

And the cycle now threatens to come around again. This time regarding Sadio Mane, Real Madrid and the return of Zinedine Zidane.

In France they insist Mane should already be a Real Madrid player. The former Metz forward agreeing to joining Zidane in Spain ahead of the Champions League final. Respected French dailys, no less, adamant the commitment was made during a phone call between the pair.

Of course, the rest is history. A Real triumph in Kiev. Zidane's resignation. And the prospect of playing for Julen Lopetegui not so attractive as the original pitch. Mane would later pen a new five-year contract in November.

But now with Zidane back, suddenly it's all again in play. Ducking the Real of last summer. The one of Lopetegui. Of post Cristiano Ronaldo. That's understandable. But today? To be at the start of a new era? And playing for Zidane? Well that's something else. Even with that new deal in his safe...

Zidane is a favourite of the Mane family. That famous image of him consoling Mane on the Kiev pitch going down well with those closest to the 26 year-old. Mane's brother thanking Zidane for the gesture, "I'm a Barca fan but you convinced me by your elegance. You will always be a great, but above all an example to all in the world of football".

But it's the former Liverpool and Senegal midfielder Salif Diao who perhaps has nailed why Mane, despite that recently improved contract, could yet be lost to Madrid.

“Of course, if we talk about Ballon d'Or, you talk about trophies and he needs to win trophies," says Diao. "He knows that."

And that's the crux of it. Mane. Like Van Dijk. Bobby Firmino. So many of them. They're aspirations go well beyond being competitive season after season. They want to win things. For the team. But also themselves. It's why Liverpool are where they are today. But also why it can quickly unravel.

For the support. For Klopp. They'll feel Liverpool are again where they belong. Indeed, the manager said as much after victory at Bayern Munich, "We set a mark for LFC tonight that we are back on the international landscape as a football club".

Perhaps. But now the real test must be met. Where do Liverpool stand within that "international" level? Are they a stepping stone to the very pinnacle? Or are they now the summit?

This summer. With Zidane and Real Madrid circling. Sadio Mane could give Klopp his answer.