If Liverpool are going to properly replace Mohamed Salah, then the chequebook will have to come out this summer.
Steven Gerrard said last week that to succeed one of the greatest players of his generation, you need to look at a marquee name, and he is right: Liverpool need to go big this coming transfer window.
That will mean Champions League qualification but looking at the net spend from last summer and it wasn't quite the extraordinary summer window as many would have you believe.
Arne Slot has always professed that the club brought in £300m after spending £440m and the truth is about half of what was spent on the likes of Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak and co was recouped in player sales.
And hey, don't forget Liverpool also lost some superb players last summer. Trent Alexander-Arnold left for Real Madrid, for example, and Luis Diaz was quite the player at Anfield too, wasn't he? He's been one of the outstanding performers at Bayern Munich since he moved on and he has been missed.
It goes under the radar but Arsenal outspent Liverpool net-wise last summer, so the ability to spend again has to be there for the Reds and it looks like they will need to do just that once more.
We know there will be some big names leaving to free up the wage bill. Andy Robertson looks like he will be one and Ibrahima Konate is no closer to a new deal either, so he is set to walk away as a free agent as things stand.
And then there is Mo Salah, whose contract should cover the weekly cost of two top players at Liverpool. All of that needs reinvesting because Salah isn't the only one who needs replacing.
For me, looking at Liverpool's squad now, they need a holding midfielder, a right-winger and a centre-back. At a club of our size, you know those players must be the best in class. That, inevitably, means money must be made available.
As a successor to Salah, Michael Olise at Bayern Munich appears to be the ideal candidate. The France international is top class and has improved significantly since leaving Crystal Palace for the Bundesliga giants. They won't want to sell and he would cost an arm and a leg, I'm sure.
Where I think Liverpool blundered was not being at the table for Antoine Semenyo when he was due to leave Bournemouth in January.
Given Richard Hughes, Liverpool's sporting director, was working at Bournemouth when Semenyo was down south, he will have known all the details regarding that contract, so I was surprised we were not making serious advances there. He is a fantastic winger who can get you 15 goals and assists a season, ideal for what they will be looking for this summer.
Liverpool's loss has been Manchester City's gain in that regard and there's a lot of pressure of Hughes and CEO of football Michael Edwards to get this squad rebuilding right now this summer.
It's looking like a lot of work needs doing to it and they don't yet know what European competition they are going to be playing in next season. That has to be a major concern right now.
Looking at the gross spend and net spend figures, though, Liverpool should be out to spend some real money this summer as life after the great Mohamed Salah really begins.
The Liverpool FC, Tranmere and Republic of Ireland great, Aldo's lively and opinionated weekly column on LFC is a must read for all Reds fans.
