Liverpool 3-0 Bournemouth: Five things we learned as the machine gathers momentum

Klopp will continue to rotate heavily

After spending much of 2019/2020 picking the same side – nine players have already played over 1,000 minutes of Premier League action – Klopp has pulled the wool over our eyes with his last two selections.

These are decisions that signal the German’s intention to continue rotating the squad around as we get into the middle of a hectic December and January. We can expect to see Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita and James Milner start to play heavier roles moving forward, especially with the injury Fabinho picked up against Napoli.

Before this week, the last time Milner started a top flight game was the win over Leicester in October. Now the 33-year-old has played 180 minutes in three days as his leadership and versatility has become more important.

The Bournemouth game was the first time we’ve seen Sadio Mane denied any action this campaign, while Xherdan Shaqiri was also handed his first start of the season as Klopp has shuffled his forward three extensively over the past two matches.

Defence is one of the only areas the German will maintain consistency. There is no real strength in depth, especially at full-back, and with Joel Matip out and Gomez a rotation option on the right flank, we’ll be able to predict the back four most games.