Liverpool have named their 25-man squad for the 2026 Champions League league phase, with Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo left out.
Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo have been left out of Liverpool's Champions League squad
Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo have been left out of Liverpool's Champions League squad (Image: Getty)
Liverpool confirmed their 25-man squad for the Champions League but senior players Federico Chiesa and Wataru were left out for the league phase. However, injured stars Giovanni Leoni, Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitike have all been included ahead of the Reds' opening match against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday evening.
They will also see them take on LASK (away), Villarreal (home), Fenerbache (away), Club Brugge (away), Porto (home), Inter Milan (away) and Lens (home). Forward Chiesa and midfielder Endo will be absent, however, having been left out of the squad Liverpool submitted to UEFA.
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This marks the second consecutive year that Chiesa, who is currently sidelined with a pre-season injury, has been excluded from the Reds' league phase squad. The 28-year-old was, however, brought back into the fold last season after Leoni suffered a devastating knee injury on his debut for the club in September of last year.
Despite not having featured since, Leoni is expected to return to training during this month's international break alongside Chiesa and appears likely to play some role in Liverpool's Champions League fixtures before the year draws to a close. The same, however, cannot be said for Bradley and Ekitike, who remain sidelined with serious, long-term injuries.
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Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill spoke about his skipper Bradley yesterday: "Conor is where I expected him to be. I knew the injury was going to take longer than maybe some people were thinking.
"He's making good progress. It has to be managed very, very carefully, an injury of that nature. He's just become a dad as well so he's got other things to worry about as well, so congratulations to him.
"But Conor will be with us when he is ready and fit, and we'll be delighted to have him back."
When questioned whether Bradley might remain unavailable for Northern Ireland for the remainder of this year, O'Neill responded: "I think I'm comfortable with that.
Andoni Iraola manager / head coach of Liverpool during the Premier League 2026/27 match between
Andoni Iraola's squad has been confirmed. (Image: Getty Images)
"If we see him this side of Christmas, it will be a real bonus but if not then we look forward to March (international games)."
Endo has now recovered from an extended absence of his own but, like Chiesa, is excluded, with James McConnell preferred instead.
Sides participating in the Champions League are permitted to register a squad of 25 List A players - Wednesday's deadline has now passed - and an unlimited number of List B players. A minimum of eight spots in List A must be allocated to homegrown or 'locally trained' players.
The sole deadline for the B list is to submit it to UEFA no later than 23:59 CET the evening before a fixture. A player qualifies for the B list if they were born on or after January 1, 2005; have been eligible to represent the club for two consecutive years since their 15th birthday, or have been eligible to play for the club for three consecutive years, including a loan spell within the same association, since their 15th birthday.
Players aged 16 may also be registered, provided they have been registered with the club for the preceding two years without interruption.
The likes of Rio Ngumoha and Trey Nyoni will therefore feature among Liverpool's B-list players.
Liverpool's 25-man Champions League squad: Alisson, Mamardashvili, Woodman, Jaros; Gomez, Van Dijk, Jacquet, Kerkez, Bradley, Leoni, Tsimikas, Frimpong, Araujo, Chambers, Mabaya; Wirtz, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Munoz, Gravenberch, McConnell; Isak, Gakpo, Ekitike, Barcola.