Rafa Benitez’s 12 most expensive Liverpool signings – & how they fared

Rafa Benitez built one of Liverpool’s greatest sides of the Premier League era and took his side to two European Cup finals in three years.

The manager signed 44 first-team players for Liverpool but had to work on a tight budget for much of his six years on Merseyside.

However, he was still allowed to make a few big-money deals and here’s how his 12 most expensive signings fared at Anfield.

Liverpool broke their club transfer record to sign Torres from Atletico Madrid in 2007 and the striker was worth every penny.

He developed into one of the most lethal goalscorers in world football and had a fantastic return of 81 goals in just 142 appearances for Liverpool.

But a series of hamstring and knee injuries led to a loss of form and the Spaniard joined Chelsea in January 2011.

READ: A tribute to Liverpool-era Fernando Torres, a striker who could do it all

Keane was signed from Tottenham in 2008 to ease the burden on Torres, but the lifelong Liverpool fan managed just seven goals in 28 appearances for the club.

Benitez soon lost patience in the striker, and he was sold back to Spurs in February 2009 at a significant loss.

Mascherano originally joined Liverpool on a loan deal in January 2007 despite only making five Premier League appearances for West Ham.

“Rafa Benitez wanted me and believed in me at the lowest point of my career and he was asking me to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world – Liverpool,” Mascherano told Panenka Magazine in 2015.

“He lifted me out of a dark hole, which at the time made me feel like I was 20 metres underground, and he put me in a positive frame of mind.”

The Argentine formed a sensational midfield trio alongside Steven Gerrard and Alonso at Anfield and signed a permanent deal 12 months