Federico Chiesa Excluded from Liverpool's Champions League Squad

Federico Chiesa has been dealt another brutal Champions League setback. The Italian forward has been left out of Liverpool’s squad for the upcoming league phase, with manager Andoni Iraola also omitting Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo from his final European list.

For Chiesa, it is a familiar and bitter story. Left off the Champions League roster last season as well, he only found a way back into the European picture when compatriot Giovanni Leoni suffered a serious long-term injury, opening up a registration slot. Opportunity arrived not through form, but through misfortune elsewhere.

This time, there is no such opening. Despite making his Liverpool debut off the bench in a Champions League tie in Italy in September 2024, shortly after his £10m move, his involvement on the continent has stalled. That cameo hinted at a bigger role; instead, he now watches from the outside again as Liverpool gear up for another intense European campaign.

Iraola’s call underlines the ruthless level of competition inside a Liverpool squad reshaped by heavy recruitment and constant recalibration. Registration rules force hard decisions. In a dressing room packed with attacking options and a midfield still being fine‑tuned, Chiesa and Endo are the ones squeezed out as the club tries to keep balance across every line.

The message is clear. With his Champions League route temporarily closed, Chiesa’s fight shifts fully to domestic football and the training ground. Every session, every league minute, becomes an audition to convince Iraola he cannot be ignored when the list is revisited.

Liverpool’s calendar offers little breathing space. The club faces a demanding run across multiple fronts, building towards a marquee Champions League showdown with Inter on January 19. By then, the landscape could look very different. Form fluctuates. Squads take hits. Injuries reshape plans.

Last season proved that for Chiesa. An unexpected gap appeared and he stepped back into the European frame. Now he waits again, on the wrong side of the glass, hoping that when the door opens this time, he is impossible to leave out.