Jurgen Klopp has been "too loyal" to his Liverpool players and should be more like Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
That's the view of ex-Reds midfielder Charlie Adam, after his former club crashed out of the Champions League to Real Madrid 6-2 on aggregate.
Liverpool's exit from Europe's elite competition ended their hopes of any silverware this season and while they languish sixth in the Premier League table, the Reds face an uphill battle just to qualify for next season's Champions League.
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An underwhelming season of disappointment has grown the expectation that Klopp's current squad of players has come to the end of its life-cycle with sweeping changes anticipated in the summer, particularly in midfield. And former Scotland international Adam believes the German needs to be more ruthless when it comes to switching up his squad, just like his opposite number at Manchester City.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Adam said: “I think Jurgen Klopp has been a little too loyal to these players, especially when you look at what Pep Guardiola has done with the likes of Joao Cancelo and moving players on to bring others in. But I think as a manager you also have to respect what the players have done for you and those are decisions that have to be made by the staff.”
A number of Liverpool stars will be out of contract at the end of the season, with departures expected. Roberto Firmino has already confirmed that his time at Anfield is coming to a close, with Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain both expected to follow suit.
There is less certainty over the future of veteran midfielder James Milner, who will be 38 next January but has made 32 appearances for the Reds this campaign.
Writing for Caught Offside, journalist Fabrizio Romano recently claimed: "James Milner will decide in the next months, he will speak to Jurgen Klopp too. For all the other players, it will be decided in May/June ahead of the transfer window. Firmino, Keita and Oxlade will explore options soon but nothing is decided yet."
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