Liverpool veteran axed from Europa League squad

Liverpool omit veteran goalkeeper Adrian from their Europa League squad

As confirmed by the club’s official website, Liverpool have opted against picking Spanish star Adrian in their squad for the 2023-24 Europa League Group Stages.

The Reds will play in Europe’s second tier competition for only the second time under Jurgen Klopp. Having made it to the final last time around, they will be hopeful of going one better this time. While the Reds do have bigger fish to fry, bringing in a fourth Europa League/ UEFA Cup will be met with celebration.

While Jurgen Klopp can eb expected to make changes to the playing squad, he has named a full-strength side with both ability and depth in abundance. One could argue that the Reds have one of the best squads of any side in the tournament and have a reasonable chance of going all the way.

One man who will not be part of that journey is Adrian. The veteran has experience of leading the club to European glory having led the Reds to the 2019 UEFA Super Cup. However, his credibility did take a hit following the horror show against Atletico Madrid in the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League knockouts.

At 36, Adrian is no more a regular and is amidst the seniors, offering more off the pitch than on it. Caoimhin Kelleher is largely seen as Alisson Becker’s deputy and has been included in the squad alongside Vitezslav Jaros. Kelleher played a key role in our 2022 Carabao Cup win and has a reasonable chance of securing minutes in the competition.

New signings Wataru Endo, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai have all been included and will be keen to make an impact. After all, European nights sat Anfield hit different and they could all be in line for a pleasant surprise.

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Full Liverpool squad for the UEFA Europa League

Goalkeepers: Alisson Becker, Vitezslav Jaros, Caoimhin Kelleher.

Defenders: Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Kostas Tsimikas, Andy Robertson, Joel Matip, Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Midfielders: Wataru Endo, Thiago Alcantara, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Curtis Jones, Ryan Gravenberch, Bobby Clark.

Forwards: Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, Mohamed Salah, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota, Ben Doak.