Liverpool have confirmed that their Carabao Cup clash with Aston Villa will take place on December 17, thus forcing them to use two different squads due to a fixture clash.
The Merseyside giants are set to feature in the FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar on December 18, and so there had been suggestions that the fixture with Villa may be moved to accommodate that.
SEE MORE: Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp fuels Pep Guardiola row with dig at Manchester City tactics
However, as per the club’s official site, they have now confirmed that they will use two different playing squads, with one travelling to Qatar for the Club World Cup, while another will stay behind in England and travel to Villa Park on December 17.
Naturally, that isn’t the ideal scenario for Jurgen Klopp as he will be desperate to compete on all fronts and win as many trophies as possible, but the club’s statement does go on to suggest that they did discuss other plans with the EFL and even thanked them for considering alternative options.
Despite that, it’s been decided that this is the best plan moving forward for all concerned, and so time will tell whether or not there is enough quality and depth to ensure that they progress in both competitions and edge closer to silverware.
Further, it will be interesting to see what kind of line-up they field against Villa, as it could be a case of prioritising one competition over the other and taking the senior players to Qatar if they are confident enough in their young stars.
In contrast, such is the level of quality and depth that Klopp has in his current group, he could consider leaving certain individuals behind in order to help the youngsters see off Villa and keep their Carabao Cup hopes alive.
