After Liverpool were held by Shrewsbury in their FA Cup fourth-round tie on Sunday, talk has been dominated about their plan for the replay.
The fixture will be played at Anfield on either February 4 or 5, and as noted by BBC Sport, Klopp has suggested that his first-team squad will play no part and will be given permission to take a mid-season break as planned.
SEE MORE: Jamie Carragher on how Klopp and Liverpool should approach FA Cup replay vs Shrewsbury
Further, it’s even suggested that the German tactician himself won’t be on the sidelines for the game, with the report noting that U23s boss Neil Critchley is expected to be in the dugout instead.
It’s a similar situation to that faced by Liverpool last month as they took the majority of their senior squad to the FIFA Club World Cup, and saw their youngsters and reserves well beaten by Aston Villa in their League Cup clash.
While they’ll hope to avoid a repeat of that and stay in the FA Cup, Ferdinand has suggested that Klopp not being in charge of the game is perhaps a step too far as he’s on board with the players getting a deserved and much-needed break at this point in a gruelling campaign.
As seen in the video below, the BT Sport pundit shared his thoughts on the matter but was critical of the suggestion that Klopp wouldn’t be in attendance.
In contrast, Martin Keown believes that Liverpool must show more respect to the competition, but also to the players who he is adamant should be involved as they’ll want to win as many trophies as possible as Liverpool look to dominate domestically and in Europe.
It’s a fascinating argument that has been created and it remains to be seen whether or not Liverpool stick by their stance and carry through with their touted plan.
Evidently, it’s splitting the pundits in the BT Sport studio, but it’s difficult to disagree with Ferdinand’s take on this one, as while the players should be allowed a break if the manager decides so and they agree, Klopp himself must surely be at Anfield next month whatever the circumstances.
"He's taking a liberty in some ways if he's not going to be in the dugout, that's where I draw the line."@rioferdy5 understands the needs for squad rotation for Liverpool but wants to see Jurgen Klopp leading his team at the replay. pic.twitter.com/siOVgVqyFl
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) January 27, 2020