Liverpool have confirmed a 31-man squad for the start of their pre-season tour to the United States, which includes a group of injured players and several surprise selections. The Reds departed for their base in Chicago on Monday afternoon to begin preparations for friendly matches against Sunderland, Wrexham, and Leeds United.
Injured Players Included for Team Bonding
Centre-back Giovanni Leoni, forward Hugo Ekitike, and right-back Conor Bradley are all included despite recovering from long-term injuries. They will continue their rehabilitation in the US alongside midfielders Wataru Endo and Stefan Bajcetic, and goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros. New head coach Andoni Iraola is keen to use the trip to build team cohesion.
Jaros is expected to be sidelined until Christmas after suffering knee ligament damage that ended his loan spell at Ajax in February. New centre-back signing Jeremy Jacquet, however, is available after undergoing shoulder surgery in January, shortly after Liverpool agreed a £60 million deal with Rennes.
World Cup Absentees and Returning Stars
Liverpool are without their eight-strong World Cup contingent for the start of the tour. However, Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, and Ryan Gravenberch are expected to join the squad ahead of the second game against Wrexham. Alisson Becker could return for the final match. Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo are both in line for extended breaks, while finalists Alexis Mac Allister and £34.5 million winger Victor Munoz will not report back to the AXA Training Centre until well into next month.
Academy Players Get Their Chance
The absences have prompted Liverpool to bolster their numbers with a raft of academy players. The most prominent is highly-rated 16-year-old Josh Abe, who committed his immediate future to the Reds earlier this summer amid strong interest from Chelsea, Manchester United, and Manchester City. Ifeanyi Ndukwe, an 18-year-old centre-back who arrived from Austria Vienna this summer, is also part of the touring squad. However, Jayden Danns has not been included after suffering a setback in his recovery from a long-term hamstring issue.
Another 18-year-old, Will Wright, is included and could be given extended minutes due to a lack of available senior attacking options beyond Federico Chiesa. Academy forward Josh Sonni-Lambie is also travelling.
Full Liverpool Squad for US Tour
The full 31-man squad is as follows: Gomez, Endo, Jacquet, Kerkez, Szoboszlai, Bradley, Chiesa, Leoni, Jones, Elliott, Tsimikas, Ekitike, Mamardashvili, Woodman, Frimpong, Abe, Nyoni, Bajcetic, Chambers, Ramsay, Scanlon, McConnell, Jaros, Koumas, Morrison, Ngumoha, Wright, Hall, Sonni-Lambie, Ndukwe, Davies.
