Liverpool announce 22-man Champions League squad as Arne Slot makes shock attacker call

Liverpool have named a 22-man squad for the league phase of the 2025-26 Champions League, but one of Arne Slot's experienced attackers has not made the cut.

The reigning Premier League champions head into another continental campaign seeking a major improvement on last year's disappointment, where eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain dumped them out on penalties in the last 16.

Slot's men have started as they mean to go on domestically, though, sitting at the summit of the Premier League table as the only team with a perfect record from three games of the campaign.

The Reds have an intriguing run of European fixtures on the calendar, starting with a home match against Atletico Madrid on September 17 before their first UCL away game of the campaign away to Galatasaray on September 30.

Eintracht Frankfurt (October 22), Real Madrid (November 4), PSV Eindhoven (November 26), Inter Milan (December 9), Marseille (January 21) and Qarabag (January 28) also await Liverpool, whose squad for the league phase was confirmed by UEFA on Wednesday.

Liverpool Champions League squad: Federico Chiesa misses out as Rio Ngumoha selected

Interestingly, there is no place in the squad for winger Federico Chiesa, who opted to stay at Liverpool during the summer transfer window after a forgettable first season at Anfield.

The Euro 2020 winner came off the bench to score a slick volley in Liverpool's opening 4-2 Premier League win over Bournemouth on August 15, but he will not be involved in the Champions League for the Reds over the next five months.

Instead, 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha has been selected ahead of Chiesa, while new signings Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike also join Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo in the attacking setup.

Teams are only permitted to name a maximum of 17 non-homegrown players on their A list, and Ngumoha takes up one of those spots due to his age; home-grown players must have been trained by any English club for at least three years between the ages of 15 and 21.

Ngumoha is therefore too young to be considered a home-grown player, but Slot's selection of the 2008-born talent over Chiesa will no doubt raise an eyebrow or two.

Any other headlines in Liverpool's Champions League squad?

There are few surprises elsewhere in Liverpool's 22-man Champions League squad, as Florian Wirtz is joined by Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai in midfield.

Trey Nyoni is not part of Liverpool's A list, but the 18-year-old qualifies for the B list, where teams can name an unlimited number of Under-21 players who have trained at the club for at least two years.

Interestingly, Wataru Endo is listed as a defender in Liverpool's Champions League squad, while new signing Giovanni Leoni has also been selected for the league phase.

There is no room in List A for Stefan Bajcetic, Calvin Ramsay or Rhys Williams, though, while Freddie Woodman has been included as Slot's third-choice goalkeeper.