Tuesday brought the deadline for the 16 European teams still alive in the UEFA Champions League competition to name their rosters for the knockout round. Liverpool added three players to their full official roster- Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ben Woodburn and Ki-Jana Hoever.
Oxlade-Chamberlain is the undisputed headliner of the trio, as he just resumed training with the team a fortnight ago. The Ox suffered a horrific knee injury in last year’s UEFA Champions League semifinal against AS Roma that cost him the opportunity to compete in both the UCL final and the 2018 World Cup.
This devastating setback was initially thought to be serious enough to keep him out for all of the 2018-19 season, but as you can see from his inclusion on the UCL roster, it is hoped he will get the opportunity before the end of the season. Among the top gambling games in UK is wagering on the Champions League, regardless of which teams are in it, and this year is certainly no exception. There figures to be plenty of action on the UCL in the United Kingdom with all four of England’s qualifiers in this year’s field having advanced to the round of 16.
“He is in a very good way,” said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
“That will still take a couple of… last time I put a bit of pressure on the medical department, but when I see him moving the ball and what he’s doing already it looks really good, promising, close to a return.”
“But after so long out – April, against Roma – he will be fine, he looks completely without any problems at the moment, no swelling any more, so he can really work on his fitness issues.
“It’s a surprise. He’s ahead of schedule. That’s always good news. We try not to push him too much but we don’t want to hold him back.”
“If he makes further steps like he did in the last few weeks he can play Premier League football this season which is nice to know. I think we will see him this season.”
Liverpool resumes their Euro campaign with last-16 tie against Bayern Munich, the first leg of which takes place at Anfield on Tuesday February 19.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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