Liverpool Omits Naby Keïta And Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain From Initial Champions League Squad

Believe it or not, the UEFA Champions League kicks off this week. Because of the FIFA World Cup occurring in the winter, group stage play is commencing earlier than usual and is compressed into a shorter timeframe to account for the break in play for club football.

Liverpool have named their squad for the group stages of the competition ahead of their match against Napoli on Wednesday, and there are two notable exceptions. With the squad currently light on fit midfielders, both Naby Keïta and Alex Olxade-Chamberlain were left out of the 25 man list. While Ox was expected to be out for some time, but the omission of Keïta came as a surprise to many. With the group stages taking place over the course of the next two months, and Liverpool naming only 24 players to the A-List squad, it seems Keïta’s injury (strained relationship muscle or otherwise) will keep him sidelined for more than just a few weeks.

A few other notes about the Champions League squad. Nat Phillips is in the squad with Ibrahima Konaté still working his way back from injury. 17 year old Stefan Bajcetic was also named to help round out the midfield with no Keïta or Ox.

The A list includes all players over the age of 21, as well as younger players who have been with the club for less than two full seasons (Carvalho, Ramsay, Bajcetic). B-list players are those 21 and under who have been with the club for more than two years, and can be named the day before individual matches. Teams can change their A-list players again in January for the knock out stages should they progress.

Below are Liverpool’s A-list players named for the group stages, as well as B-list players who are senior team regulars.

Goalkeepers
Alisson Becker, Caoimhin Kelleher, Adrian

Defenders
Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konaté, Kostas Tsimikas, Calvin Ramsay, Andy Robertson, Joel Matip, Nat Phillips, Trent Alexander-Arnold

Midfielders
Fabinho, Thiago, James Milner, Jordan Henderson, Fabio Carvalho, Arthur, Stefan Bajcetic

Forwards
Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Darwin Núñez

Notable B-List
Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones