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Liverpool’s 7-2 Carabao Cup victory in Lincoln City on Thursday night reminded us that now, perhaps more than ever, the Reds team has genuine depth.
You could choose a starting lineup for a Premier League game, add seven substitutes and still be left with players on the sidelines who would make the first team of many other clubs on a regular basis.
The end of last season gave Jürgen Klopp the opportunity to use his equipment to the fullest, with the English top flight allowing all teams to make five substitutions per game as part of Project Restart, and Klopp has been among the most vocal critics. of the league. decision to abandon focus for 2020/21 campaign.
However, while English clubs may not have that opportunity, the five secondary rules remain for this season’s Champions League, and that should be good news: not just for the Liverpool manager and his peace of mind, but for several of the players. players who savored the action at LNER Stadium.
With the exception of the arrival of Thiago, Liverpool’s transfer business this summer appears to be geared towards what promises to be a season of physical testing.
After a shorter preseason break and match congestion at the end of last season and in the first months of the current campaign (particularly for a team full of players who will have international responsibilities), it’s easy to see why Klopp was so willing to use the sub-five rule to give his players rest whenever possible.
The additions of Diogo Jota and Kostas Tsimikas point to a desire to ensure that Liverpool not only have substitutes, but also substitutes who could possibly have been starters in the team Klopp inherited from Brendan Rodgers in 2015.
It’s what you would expect from a team with Liverpool’s trophy cabinet in recent years, and if it feels strange it’s only because the transformation at Liverpool in 2020 has happened in such a short time.
Given this scenario, it is not surprising that Klopp is in favor of any measure that allows him to fully utilize his squad. We’ve seen in recent months that academy graduates like Curtis Jones can benefit from having established players around them, with the young man growing in stature with each performance.
The start of this season has also shown the benefit of the preseason for Takumi Minamino, who is starting to look a lot more like the player we saw impress for Red Bull Salzburg, and his path, up to Lincoln’s game included, gives him an advantage. an indication of how immersion in the system can help Jota and Tsimikas make meaningful contributions sooner rather than later.
And having five substitutions will naturally make this easier than a three substitution approach where each change carries more pressure. Even Marko Grujić and Xherdan Shaqiri, two players whose future has been uncertain heading into the new season but who impressed on Thursday night, could benefit from the additional opportunities offered by the European model.
As Liverpool continue to defend the Premier League title in which every match will be high pressure, the Champions League group stage may allow for more experimentation if the Reds receive a friendly draw.
Certainly, if Klopp’s team can make a quick start to their European games, the ability to use five substitutes per game can benefit them directly on the continent and indirectly at home, ideally preventing the kind of burnout that might otherwise arise from a game. full match list.
Klopp has been one of the biggest defenders in leagues persisting with the five sub-region rule for the 2020/21 season. Now that you have him in an arena, you can try to show why he has been so expressive in his support.
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