Jürgen Klopp Says Fringe Players Will Be Given Chance to Impress

While many of Liverpool’s players arrived in Austria at the start of the week to begin their pre-season preparations ahead of the 2021-22 campaign, the club’s Euros and Copa America stars won’t be joining up with the team for another three weeks.

According to Jürgen Klopp, that’s not just a chance for youth players to step up—it’s a chance for fringe players to do the same. For players like Takumi Minamino, Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Naby Keïta, and Marko Grujic, it’s a chance to impress.

“There’s a chance to make steps in the right direction,” the manager noted. “They were close to the first team but didn’t play often, so now the door is open. A lot of midfielders are not here, so take the chance and play the best football you are able to.

“Do and then it’s always like having new signings. I’m really not in a rush about it. If somebody wants to leave, he can come to me and can tell me and then I think about it. Nobody came so far, so obviously no rush from the players’ side as well.”

No rush doesn’t mean no new signings will arrive—beyond Ibrahima Konaté, who has been training this week—or that none of those fringe players will depart. Klopp, though, wants to give them all a chance to change his mind before making changes.

And they can likely expect to have until Jordan Henderson, Thiago, and Liverpool’s Brazilian stars return to do just that, with the Liverpool manager pointing to a transfer market that so far has been moving a little bit slower than it might usually do.

“The market is a really calm one in the moment,” Klopp added. “There was [Jadon] Sancho and Konaté we did early, but it’s a really calm window. Let’s see what happens, but in the moment everybody has the chance to impress and I hope they do.”