Liverpool without young duo for Europa League clash with Atalanta BC

Liverpool will make the trip to Atalanta BC for the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final without two prominent young players.

The Reds have a mountainous task ahead of them to reach the semi-finals of Europe's secondary competition, having been embarrassed in a 3-0 first-leg loss at Anfield last week.

Ex-West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca marked his return to English shores with a brace, before Mario Pasalic - once of Chelsea - put Gian Piero Gasperini's men further out of sight.

In order to retain hope of continental glory, the Reds must do something no team has ever done before - win a two-legged knockout tie in the Europa League after losing the opening fixture at home by at least three goals.

AC Milan and Barcelona have already fallen victim to sensational Liverpool fightbacks in Europe, though, and Jurgen Klopp's men stormed to a 5-0 win over Atalanta in Bergamo during the 2020-21 Champions League.

The Reds have named a 24-man travelling party for the Europa League clash with Atalanta on Thursday night 🔴

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) April 17, 2024

Conor Bradley, Stefan Bajcetic left out of squad

The Reds confirmed their 24-man travelling squad for the trip to the Gewiss Stadium on Wednesday afternoon, but fledgling duo Conor Bradley and Stefan Bajcetic have not made the cut.

The former picked up an ankle injury in the second half of the weekend's 1-0 Premier League loss to Crystal Palace, and reports have claimed that he could now be missing for up to three weeks.

Neither Liverpool nor Klopp have confirmed the length of Bradley's absence, but the right-back was not pictured in training on Wednesday, and as expected, he will not be involved in the second leg.

On the contrary, 19-year-old midfielder Bajcetic was seen being put through his paces on the Kirkby pitches as he regains full fitness following his serious calf injury, which has limited him to just two senior appearances this season.

Bajcetic did make the bench for last week's first leg, though, and he made his first appearance in nearly seven months last Friday, coming on as a second-half substitute for the Under-21s in a 3-0 win over Manchester United.

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The Spain Under-21 international played just over half an hour of that Premier League 2 match and even registered an assist for Kaide Gordon's goal, but he has seemingly not been deemed ready for a senior return just yet.

Long-term trio still absent for Liverpool

In addition to Bajcetic and Bradley, Klopp must also cope without his three known long-term absentees, including ACL victim Joel Matip, likely to miss the remainder of the campaign.

Another player out of contract this summer - Thiago Alcantara - may have also played his last game for the club as he recuperates from a severe muscle problem, while Ben Doak is on the mend from a knee operation.

However, the latter's fellow youngsters Jayden Danns, Bobby Clark and James McConnell have all made the cut; Clark was an unused substitute in the first leg, in which Danns and McConnell did not make the matchday squad.

Liverpool squad in full:

Alisson, Gomez, Endo, Van Dijk, Konate, Diaz, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Mac Allister, Salah, Adrian, Jones, Gakpo, Elliott, Jota, Tsimikas, Robertson, Gravenberch, Clark, McConnell, Kelleher, Alexander-Arnold, Danns, Quansah