10 Liverpool players who might play their first Champions League final

Liverpool have reached their third Champions League final in five seasons - but not all of the current players were around for the 2018 and 2019 games.

Here, we take a look at those who might, with varying degrees of likelihood, make their first appearance in the final of the biggest European competition this Saturday.

Caoimhin Kelleher

Probably the unlikeliest of them all. Kelleher is set to be Alisson's back-up which means that he'll only play if something happens to the No.1. Let's just say that we hope Caoimhin's time will yet come in the future.

Ibrahima Konate

In his first season at Liverpool, Konate put up a serious challenge to Joel Matip's role as Virgil van Dijk's partner in defence.

At this point, it's nearly a toss-up for Jurgen Klopp who must decide which partnership will deal with Karim Benzema better.

Kostas Tsimikas

The Greek proved to be more than a decent deputy to Andy Robertson, but the hierarchy is pretty much set here.

That said, Liverpool will have five subs in the final. Tsimikas could be a great option to freshen things up if necessary.

Naby Keita

Keita was not around for the 2018 final and missed the title decider the following year due to an injury.

As Fabinho and Thiago are doubts for the game, there's a strong chance the 27-year-old will have a role to play in Paris.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

The fate was cruel to Oxlade-Chamberlain: he picked up a terrible injury in the 2017/18 semi-final and remained on the bench for the 2018/19 final.

He has not played a game in two months now which means he is more likely to miss out on the final for the third time.

Curtis Jones

The Liverpool academy graduate broke through into the first team in 2020, a year after Liverpool's last appearance in the Champions League final.

Jones does not play every game now but is certain to be on the bench against Real Madrid.

Harvey Elliott

This would be quite a story: Elliott was at the 2018 Champions League final against Real Madrid as a Liverpool fan - before even joining the Reds.

Now, he can play for Liverpool against Real Madrid in another final. He has only played once in a couple of months but should be at least in the squad.

Luis Diaz

This could be a season of dreams for Diaz: he started the season at Porto and probably could not imagine that he'd be playing in the Champions League final in less than a year.

With his recent performances, the Colombian has surely merited a place in the starting XI. Even if he does not start, there's no way he's not brought in later on.

Takumi Minamino

Minamino has not played an awful lot of games since joining the Reds in January 2020. This season, we could say that he has made the most out of his minutes on the pitch, as he scored 10 goals across all competitions.

Objectively, he is not at the front of the pecking order when it comes to the Liverpool attackers. Still, he could be Klopp's secret weapon.

Diogo Jota

The Portuguese joined Liverpool in September 2020 and has become the first player to break up the Reds' iconic front three.

The competition for places is tough, and Jota is not always a starter but he has not missed a game since February - even though he has not scored since April 10.