That’s the opinion of Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp, who believes Everton’s head of recruitment has betrayed the club’s traditions.
Liverpool spent the summer chasing the signature of Virgil van Dijk but Southampton ultimately stood firm on their stance.
But Jurgen Klopp’s failure to sign a centre-back has been highlighted since the start of the season and their defensive woes with Crystal Palace and West Ham the only Premier League clubs to have conceded more goals so far this season.
But Everton’s problems stem from not finding a replacement for Romelu Lukaku, despite having the money to do so.
And Redknapp has condemned the Blue side of Merseyside’s recruitment strategy.
“The problems engulfing Liverpool and Everton stem from their recruitment in the summer,” Redknapp told the Daily Mail.
“Jurgen Klopp failed to land a centre back while Everton’s business has left them in a complete mess.
“The real issue is that Liverpool’s centre backs are not good enough. Klopp will back his players to the hilt but there is a reason he tried to splash out £60million to land Virgil van Dijk.
“It is no surprise Klopp keeps tinkering with his back four and goalkeeper. He is searching for something that is not there.
“It is far too early to count Liverpool out of the race for the top four — and their problems pale in comparison to those at Goodison Park.
“Everton’s muddled recruitment has left them with no balance. They have no width, everyone wants to play centrally and they have nobody up front.
“I cannot understand why, with £45m available, they bought another No 10 in Gylfi Sigurdsson rather than a centre forward.
“Whoever is responsible for Everton’s recruitment has betrayed the traditions of the club by failing to buy a striker.”