Liverpool Finalises Champions League Squad
The Champions League is nearly upon us, and the world’s most beloved football clubs have been hard at work choosing the players who will represent them there.
Iconic British football team Liverpool has now selected and confirmed its squad for the knockout stages of the upcoming championship. You’ll definitely want to put down your Australian bingo games for this one!
Newly-signed player Takumi Minamino will be taking the place of Sepp van den Berg in the team’s A list players available to Reds chief Jurgen Klopp. Minamino represented Red Bull-sponsored Salzburg in the recent group stages, playing against Liverpool in a bid to gain power for his team.
However, UEFA’s regulations were firm, stating that a player is permitted to play for a different club during the knockout stages. That leaves the skilled footballer open to new opportunities ahead of the League, and Liverpool has taken its chance in its stride.
Rules of the Selection Process
Football clubs have been allowed to register 3 new A list players each. The deadline for their selections passed on Monday, 3 February. The rules also stipulate that at least 2 goalkeepers must be named in each A list, while A lists can feature as many as 25 players each.
Additionally, 8 list spots must also be reserved for locally-trained football players. These stars must either have been trained by clubs or on the books for 3 years, and must be between the ages of 15 and 21. Players who were trained by associations and who were on the books of another side in the same association for 3 years or more are also eligible for selection.
Sepp van den Berg, who joined Liverpool this summer, unfortunately did not fit into either of the aforementioned categories. With that said, clubs can also list an unlimited number of B list players to be added to their squads along with their traditional A list members.
According to the UEFA official website, a player must be registered on the B list if he was born on or after 1 January 1998. This rule also applies to players who have been eligible to play for the club in question for an uninterrupted period of 2 years or more since his 15th birthday.
Liverpool Heading to Madrid Soon
Liverpool will be going head to head with Atletico Madrid in the final 16. They will be travelling to the capital city of Spain for the first leg of the event on February 18, before attending the return fixture at Anfield 3 weeks later on March 11.
Liverpool’s finalised Champions League knockout squad includes Alisson Becker, Adrian, Andy Lonergan and Caoimhin Kelleher as goalkeepers. The club’s selected defenders are Virgil van Dijk, Dejan Lovren, Joe Gomez, Andy Robertson, Joel Matip, Adam Lewis, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Neco Williams, and Yasser Larouci.
The midfielders selected by Liverpool for the League include Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Naby Keita, Jordan Henderson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana, Xherdan Shaqiri, Curtis Jones, and Harvey Elliott. Last but not least are the forwards: Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Takumi Minamino, and Divock Origi.