On 9 December 2020, Liverpool drew 1-1 away to Danish side FC Midtjylland in a Champions League game which should’ve been of no consequence to the Reds, who’d already ensured top spot in their group beforehand.
However, it was arguably the night that a hitherto promising season, encompassing part of a glorious calendar year in which the three-decade wait for a league title ended, began to unravel into a debilitating mess from which Jurgen Klopp’s side barely recovered.
For reasons best known to the manager, an in-form Diogo Jota was selected to start in Denmark, only to incur a knee injury which’d sideline him for three months. In his absence, LFC went from top of the Premier League to seventh, losing six top-flight matches and dropping to 22 points off the summit.
Three years on, Klopp has the perfect opportunity to prove that he’s learned from that fateful error, with Liverpool again going into their final European group game confirmed as winners of their four-team pool.
It’s exactly the scenario that every Reds fan would’ve wanted immediately before a crucial domestic showdown against eternal rivals Manchester United.
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The manager has already hinted that he’ll rotate heavily for tomorrow’s clash away to Union Saint-Gilloise, having already made an abundance of changes for LFC’s five previous Europa League matches, so expect none of Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold or Dominik Szoboszlai to feature.
With that in mind, here’s the team we’d like to see taking to the pitch in Belgium.
Goalkeeper
Marcelo Pitaluga/Fabian Mrozek
Now that Alisson is back from injury, Caoimhin Kelleher could justifiably start against Union SG. However, there’s an argument to be made that the Irishman needn’t be risked for a match with nothing at stake, while his colleague’s absence has recently seen the 25-year-old get some welcome game-time.
Klopp may decide to go with one of Liverpool’s under-21 goalkeepers in either Pitaluga or Mrozek, who’ve both been included twice in senior matchday squads this season and played 540 minutes each for the underage team so far this term (Transfermarkt).
Defence
Conor Bradley, Joe Gomez, Jarell Quansah, Luke Chambers
The full-back positions offer plenty of scope for Klopp to give youngsters a go, with Bradley and Chambers both already featuring in the Europa League campaign and primed to come in for Trent and Kostas Tsimikas respectively. Calum Scanlon is also a viable option at left-back.
Unfortunately, the depth at centre-back is far less plentiful, so the manager might have no choice but to go with two members of the first-team squad in Gomez and Quansah. The 26-year-old may well be the most experienced starter for Liverpool tomorrow and duly be given the captaincy for this fixture.
Midfield
James McConnell, Harvey Elliott, Melkamu Frauendorf
Much like Gomez in the back four, Klopp might like to have one established first-team name in the midfield as a guiding hand for the players around him, so Elliott could get the nod in Belgium.
The 20-year-old will be on a high following his stoppage time winner against Crystal Palace last weekend, while he’s only started one Premier League game all season and might have to be content with a place on the bench once again for the Man United clash.
Elsewhere, McConnell seems a likely starter, having looked impressive when featuring for the first team in pre-season, and it could also be the perfect opportunity for Frauendorf to get a third senior appearance for the Reds, and a first in 13 months (Transfermarkt).
Alexis Mac Allister’s injury means that Wataru Endo should not be risked, particularly with Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic continuing to contend with lengthy layoffs.
Attack
Ben Doak, Lewis Koumas, Kaide Gordon
Klopp only has four fit senior attackers at Liverpool in Salah, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo, all of whom have been kept busy during Jota’s recent absence, so none of that quartet should be anywhere near the starting XI tomorrow. At best, some might be required to supplement the substitutes’ bench.
Doak has featured a few times for the senior side this season and will surely be brought in to start. It could also be the right time to hand Gordon a long-awaited first-team outing to cap his comeback from his injury nightmare, even if he’s playing slightly out of position on the left flank.
At centre-forward, there could be an opening for Koumas to be given a senior Liverpool debut, with the 18-year-old netting four times in nine games at underage level so far this term (Transfermarkt).
There seems no point in risking Nunez or Gakpo when Klopp could go with a youngster who’d be striving to make an impression on the first-team management.
Predicted Liverpool XI v Union Saint-Gilloise
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