Liverpool: Mane brings Minamino over to fans to sign shirt
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has changed his Champions league squad with Takumi Minamino taking the place of defender Sepp van den Berg. Minamino joined the Reds during the January transfer window from Red Bull Salzburg in a £7.25million deal and is likely to take part in the knockout clashes against Atletico Madrid after being added to the 25-man 'A' list.
It's not reshaping, but Taki is for sure a player who can help us immediately in the short term and the long term, from an age perspective
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp
The Merseysiders will take on Atletico in the competition’s last 16 round on February 18 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium and will then collide on March 11 in the return fixture at Anfield.
Minamino faced Liverpool in the Champions League group stage but UEFA’s new rules state a player who appeared during the first round of the final stage is eligible to feature for another club during the latter part of the tournament.
Klopp is confident the Japan winger will cope just fine and expects great things from him in the near future.
The German manager previously said: “It's not reshaping, but Taki is for sure a player who can help us immediately in the short term and the long term, from an age perspective.
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
The 25-year-old ace scored a total of 64 goals in 199 appearances with the Austrian giants where he formed a stunning partnership with Erling Braut Haaland and Hwang Hee-chan in attack.
He made his Liverpool debut in January against Merseyside rivals Everton at the FA Cup and has since played four times for Klopp’s side.
Goalkeepers: Alisson Becker, Adrian, Andy Lonergan, Caoimhin Kelleher*
Defenders: Virgil van Dijk, Dejan Lovren, Joe Gomez, Andy Robertson, Joel Matip, Adam Lewis*, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Neco Williams, Yasser Larouci
Midfielders: Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Naby Keita, Jordan Henderson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana, Xherdan Shaqiri, Curtis Jones*, Harvey Elliott