Coutinho in, Clyne out as Liverpool names Champions League squad

Philippe Coutinho’s dream move to Barcelona might not have panned out this summer, but the Brazilian maestro won’t be in a Diego Costa-esque exile for the season, as Liverpool’s No. 10 was named to Jurgen Klopp’s squad for the 2017-18 Champions League campaign.

Right full-back Nathaniel Clyne was not named among Klopp’s group stage options, however, perhaps indicating a more serious development surrounding the back problem he had been dealing with through pre-season. Clyne played just 45 minutes of pre-season football for Liverpool and has been absent since picking up an injury against Tranmere Rovers.

Fellow Englishman Adam Lallana did make the team despite battling a similar mid-to-long term injury. He’s missed the start of the 2017-18 Premier League season with a thigh injury and will likely be out for another couple of months.

Newcomer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made his way into the final selection with no problems, as did the rest of Liverpool’s new recruits in Andy Robertson, Dominic Solanke and star winger Mohamed Salah.

However, Danny Ings and Lazar Markovic were both left out of the team.

If Klopp wants to make any changes, he’ll need to wait until January, when clubs can register three new non-cup tied players.