Liverpool have submitted their 25-man squad to UEFA for the Champions League, and both Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo have been omitted. The Reds open their campaign at home to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night (8pm kick-off).
Chiesa and Endo left out
Chiesa has missed the first two Premier League games of the season with a lower back injury but is expected to return this month. Endo has been an unused substitute in both matches so far.
Chiesa reportedly earns around £150,000-a-week at Anfield after a £10 million move from Juventus in 2024, but he has struggled to secure a regular starting place.
Others preferred
Despite the Italian's expected quick recovery, he has fallen behind players returning from longer-term problems. Hugo Ekitike, Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni are not expected back until later in the year, yet all three made the squad ahead of Chiesa and Endo.
Academy graduate James McConnell, who last played for the club two seasons ago and was linked with a summer exit, is also included.
Carragher's verdict
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher said on the Overlap: “Liverpool have got two players in the squad who are never going to play. And there are all these quotas, you can only have 17 players and all that. They have got Chiesa and Endo. It’s like they are never going to kick a ball. Endo should have been moved on. He has done great, a bit of a cult hero.”
Endo will hope to make his first appearance of the season when Liverpool face newly-promoted Ipswich Town at Portman Road on Friday night (8pm kick-off). The Reds are still searching for their first win after a 2-2 draw with Newcastle United and the same scoreline against Nottingham Forest. Ipswich beat Sunderland in their opener before losing 5-2 to Manchester United.
