Liverpool player removed from Europa League squad by Jurgen Klopp

Jurgen Klopp faces a tough decision when naming his Europa League squad as the Liverpool boss is forced to leave out one of his most experienced players.

Clubs must submit their final squads for this year’s Europa League group stage by Monday at 11:00 p.m. BST.

Matches will then begin on September 21, with Liverpool facing LASK, Union SG and Toulouse in Group E.

Ahead of the opening match against Austrian club LASK, the Reds’ UEFA squad will be confirmed by club officials.

However, unlike the Premier League, whose parameters mean that any player currently available to Klopp can be classified as over or under 21, UEFA’s rules make this more difficult.

Before Liverpool’s squad is announced, the manager must remove a player from the European squad.

This is because both Ryan Gravenberch and Ben Doak, who qualify as under-21 players in the Premier League, must be on List A.

Europa League teams are split into two lists, with List A containing all players who are ineligible for List B – either due to their age or tenure at the club.

Although Gravenberch and Doak meet the List B age limit, neither player has been in the Liverpool books for two consecutive years.

The UEFA rules read:

“A player may be placed on List B if he was born on or after 1 January 2002 and is eligible to play for the relevant club on or after his 15th birthday for an uninterrupted period of two years, or a total of three years consecutive periods with a maximum of one loan period at a club of the same association for a maximum period of one year”.

He will therefore need to be placed on list A to be eligible for the Europa League group stage, with seventeen ‘foreign’ and eight ‘locally qualified’ places available.

Doak is not considered a homegrown player as he was brought into the Scottish FA system before moving to Merseyside in 2022.

Homegrown Liverpool players not eligible for List B are Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Curtis Jones and Caoimhin Kelleher.

Unfortunately, Klopp’s squad has 18 players classified as ‘outsiders’ this season, with just 17 places.

It remains to be seen who will be left out, although many would argue for third-choice keeper Adrian to be left out.

Doak could well be left out but it was hoped chances would open up for the winger and while Thiago’s injuries could force a decision, his importance to the team when fit needs to be included .

In the past, Klopp’s side have been “helped” by the sackings of the likes of Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, but Liverpool now have a leaner and more reliable squad.

Perhaps there will be a surprise and a key player rested for the Europa League, although this option is unlikely.

More news…….

Europa League group stage draw: who can Liverpool face and when?

Liverpool will determine their opponents for their first Europa League season since reaching the 2016 final in Friday’s draw. Here’s who they can face.

The Reds were knocked out of Champions League places last season for the first time in seven years as they are used to dining at the top of European football.

Jurgen Klopp led his side to three Champions League finals between 2018 and 2022, but he is due to play football for the next European Championship on Thursday night.

Despite dropping a notch for the 2023/24 season, there are still a number of top clubs Liverpool could face if they are to progress to the knockout stages of the competition.

The groups will consist of one team from each of the four pots, with Liverpool unable to meet another English side until later rounds.

The Reds are the highest ranked team in the competition and are therefore in the first pot. Here’s a look at who we could face in the Europa League group stage this year.

Europa League group stage winning pots

Here are the 32 teams in the Europa League. Liverpool will be drawn in pots two, three and four. They cannot be drawn with Brighton, meaning there are 23 potential opponents in Friday’s draw.

Pot 1: Liverpool, West Ham, Roma, Villarreal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atalanta, Ajax, Rangers

Pot 2: Sporting CP, Slavia Prague, Rennes, Olympiakos, Real Betis, Marseille, Qarabag

Pot 2 or 3: Molde

Pot 3: Brighton, Sheriff Tiraspol, Union Saint-Gilloise, SC Freiburg, Sparta Prague, Maccabi Haifa, Sturm Graz

Pot 3 or 4: Toulouse

Pot 4: AEK Athens, TSC, Servette, Panathinaikos, Rakow Czestochowa, Limassol

TBC: BK Hacken, LASK

When and where is the draw?

The draw will be taking place in Monaco on Friday, September 1 at 12pm (BST).

It will also be streamed live on UEFA‘s website and on TNT Sports 1.

Group Stage Schedule

Matchday 1: September 21

Matchday 2: October 5

Matchday 3: October 26

Matchday 4: November 9

Matchday 5: November 30

Matchday 6: December 14

The Round of 16 will then begin with a play-off in February, which Liverpool can circumvent by finishing top of their group.

The final will take place in Dublin on May 22, where Liverpool will be hoping to do better than their previous appearance at Basel eight years earlier.