Liverpool FC Thread #164:- Champions of Europe 2018-19

[NI KI]

Liverpool have named a 29-man squad for the Champions League campaign, with Ki-Jana Hoever missing out.

Former Ajax starlet Hoever made his senior debut in the 2-1 defeat to Wolves in the FA Cup in January and has a bright future at Anfield, but the versatile 17-year-old has been left off the list.

The Reds have named four goalkeepers in their pack for the upcoming continental campaign, with Andy Lonergan named alongside Alisson, Adrian and Caoimhin Kelleher.

Lonergan joined the Reds on their tour of the United States back in July to help ease a goalkeeper shortage but has since been taken on a permanent basis following an injury to Alisson.

Liverpool agreed a one-year contract with the veteran shot-stopper last month and the 35-year-old is now included in the European champions' squad list ahead of their attempts to win a seventh title this term.

Last season's Golden Glove winner pulled up with a calf problem midway through the 4-1 win over Norwich on August 8 and hasn't played since, with Adrian - another summer signing - deputising for the Brazil No.1 in his absence.

Academy graduate Kelleher is also named, making it four keepers in the 29-man squad, with the Reds' attempts to defend their European crown getting underway at Napoli later this month.

Nathaniel Clyne, who suffered a long-term knee injury over the summer, is not included.

Clyne sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in July and could be absent for around six months, which rules him out until the knockout stages of the competition, at the earliest.

List B submitted to UEFA includes players born on or after January 1, 1998 who have been eligible to play for the Reds for an uninterrupted period of two years since their 15th birthday.

UEFA rules state the club can name an unlimited amount of players available for List B, although those players must be registered before midnight the day before a match.

List A: Alisson Becker , Harvey Elliott, Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, Joe Gomez, Jordan Henderson, Naby Keita, Adam Lallana, Andy Lonergan, Dejan Lovren, Sadio Mane, Joel Matip, James Milner, Divock Origi, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Andy Robertson, Adrian San Miguel, Xherdan Shaqiri, Fabinho Tavarez, Sepp van den Berg, Virgil van Dijk, Gini Wijnaldum.

List B: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Rhian Brewster, Curtis Jones, Herbie Kane, Caoimhin Kelleher, Yasser Larouci, Adam Lewis.

[NI KI]

[NI KI]

Congratulations Bobby! WhoScored.com's Premier League Player of the Month for August.

[NI KI]

[NI KI]

[NI KI]

#LFC have been invited to take part in December's FIFA Club World Cup after winning the @ChampionsLeague last season

[NI KI]

Liverpool have been invited to take part in December's FIFA Club World Cup after winning the UEFA Champions League last season.

Jürgen Klopp's side are set to enter the tournament at the semi-final stage and will look to lift the trophy for the very first time in the club's history.

YouTube Video

What is the Club World Cup?

It's a seven-team tournament that pits together the winners of FIFA's six continental confederations and the league champions from the host nation.

This year is the 16th edition of the contest and will be hosted in Qatar.

Who's in it?

Just three participants are confirmed so far, with the Reds joined by Mexican side CF Monterrey, winners of the 2019 Concacaf Champions League, and OFC Champions League holders Hienghene Sport from New Caledonia.

The representatives from CAF, AFC and CONMEBOL will be known in the coming months.

If a team outside of Qatar wins the AFC Champions League, Qatar Stars League champions Al Sadd SC will then feature in the opening match against Hienghene Sport.

When is it?

The first round of the competition kicks off on December 11 before two second-round fixtures take place three days later.

Liverpool and the CONMEBOL representative are already confirmed for the semi-finals, which will take place on December 17 and December 18.

The final and third-placed play-off are to be played on December 21.

As a result, the Reds' Premier League fixture at West Ham United – originally scheduled for December 21 – has now been postponed.

When were Liverpool last in it?

Liverpool travelled to Japan in 2005 for the second edition of the competition.

Rafael Benitez's champions of Europe faced Costa Rican outfit Deportivo Saprissa in the semi-finals, with a Steven Gerrard goal and Peter Crouch double securing a spot in the Yokohama showpiece.

The Reds met Brazilian side Sao Paulo in the final and – despite having three goals disallowed, hitting the bar twice and seeing a strong penalty appeal turned down – lost 1-0 after Mineiro's first-half finish.

[NI KI]

Seven Liverpool stars nominated for FIFA World XI - but Jurgen Klopp's midfielders all ignored



Seven of Liverpool's Champions League winning squad have been nominated for the FIFA Fifpro Men's World11.

Goalkeeper Alisson Becker, defenders Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, and deadly attacking trio Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane make up seven of the 55 nominees.

None of Jurgen Klopp's midfielders have received nominations, though, despite the Reds securing a second place finish in the Premier League and their sixth European Cup after a 2-0 win over Spurs in Madrid.

The final XI will be revealed at the Best FIFA Football Awards in Milan on 23 September and will be made up of a goalkeeper, four defenders, three midfield players and three forwards.

Over 23,000 professional players around the world were asked to choose their best team by Fifpro, the players' union, based on performances between July 2018 and July 2019.

[NI KI]

[NI KI]