Jurgen Klopp broke Liverpool’s all-time record for starts against Union SG in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
As expected, Jurgen Klopp named a significantly changed Liverpool team for the UEFA Europa League group stage final against Union SG. There is nothing at stake for Liverpool as they are guaranteed top spot in the group after five games.
Player rest is vital over the Christmas period, especially when Manchester United visit Anfield on Sunday. With all this in mind, Klopp has left most of his senior players at home.
Wataru Endo is the only player over 25 years old. Cody Gakpo, Caoimhin Kelleher, Ibrahima Konate, Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott were other team names that started the match. Jarrell Quanza isn’t exactly a first-team name, but he’s done a lot this season. Luke Chambers, Ben Doak, Kaide Gordon and Conor Bradley also received nods. They are all academy players and several young players have joined the team. And this is a very young team. As Michael Reid points out in X, the average age here is 22 years and 156 days.
This makes them the 11 youngest players ever to play in a European game for Liverpool.Interestingly, this is neither the youngest nor the youngest Liverpool XI named personally by Klopp. This was in 2020 when he made a direct appearance for the academy in the fourth round of the FA Cup against Shrewsbury Town.
Liverpool also won the match, with Jones becoming the youngest ever first-team captain in the club’s history. He also played against Union SG and four years later Liverpool also won the same game as Jones became the youngest ever first team captain in the club’s history. Almost four years later, he would take on that role against Union SG. All in all, this is another example of Klopp’s faith in youth and his desire to give the game to kids.
This is something that has worked in the past and is a great example of how Jones, Elliott and Trent Alexander-Arnold work. Maybe today another teenager will be able to make an impact and follow in their footsteps.
