By Thursday night, Liverpool's Europa League fate for next season could be official.
Having charged their way to three of the last five Champions League finals, Jurgen Klopp and his players are now relying on Manchester United losing their final two games of the Premier League season to have any chance of just re-entering the European Cup next term.
United need just one point from their final fixtures - at home to Chelsea and Fulham - to officially consign their arch-rivals to Europe's secondary competition for the first time since 2016. It would represent a significant blow for Liverpool, regardless of how it is sugarcoated.
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The Champions League remains the most prestigious and lucrative competition in football and an absence away from it will be tough to take for Liverpool given both their recent history and more long-term legacy in the tournament.
With a final in nearby Dublin and the chance to lift the only trophy that has eluded Klopp during his time on Merseyside, the Europa League, however, still has plenty to offer for those whose glasses are half full.
That may include a handful of players whose re-emergence in the Liverpool squad could be built upon regular game-time in the competition next term. Here, the ECHO looks at three players who could benefit most.
Joe Gomez
After starring alongside Virgil van Dijk for Liverpool's historic, title-winning campaign of 2019/20 - when he played 28 times in the Premier League and 43 overall - it's largely been a difficult three years for Joe Gomez.
A serious, career-threatening knee injury picked up on England duty in November 2020 can be traced back as being the root cause behind the problems faced since. It limited him to just seven league appearances the following season before he returned to a squad that had signed Ibrahima Konate and once more had Van Dijk fit and raring to go alongside an injury-free Joel Matip.
As a result, Gomez made just 15 league appearances across two seasons prior to the start of this term when Liverpool's general form nosedived. What might surprise is that the former Charlton Athletic youngster has made more Premier League appearances this term than both Konate and Matip, even if the former has very much established himself as Van Dijk's go-to partner when fit for Klopp.
For a player whose time at Liverpool pre-dates Klopp, Gomez only turned 26 on Tuesday and is less than 12 months into a five-year deal that was signed when the club were still wrapped in the afterglow of last season's incredible efforts. Despite his experience, there are still many more miles left on the clock for the Londoner.
It's been spoken about how Gomez's ability to play both at full-back and centre-half make him a worthwhile option for the new way of operating defensively at Anfield now where Trent Alexander-Arnold is afforded more freedom to move into midfield when in possession.
A run of consistent games in the Europa League could afford Gomez the opportunity to rediscover the sort of rhythm and momentum that, for several reasons, he has simply been unable to build back up to those 2020 levels.
Stefan Bajcetic
One of the bright points of a difficult campaign was the sudden emergence of Stefan Bajcetic, who went from being officially recognised as an Under-18s defender on the club's official website to shining in the centre of Premier League midfields.
The Spanish youth international made 19 appearances for the senior side before injury curtailed his campaign in March. The elevation of Bajcetic, for all his potential and quality, however, highlighted the struggles of the senior members of Liverpool's squad at times and despite Klopp playing him 11 times in the league, a more in-form and functioning midfield department might have seen the 18-year-old eased into proceedings in a more gentle fashion.
Bajcetic, though, has ensured that he will be considered a member of the first-team from the summer onwards as Klopp gets set to restructure an engine room department that won't have James Milner, Naby Keita or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain available to it next term. A run in the Europa League feels like the ideal time and place for Bajcetic to resume his sharp ascent.
Starts against Everton, Newcastle and Chelsea this season have shown that Klopp more than trusts the teenager but his already rapid rise could continue in Europe's secondary competition.
Darwin Nunez
Fifteen goals in his debut season in English football is a more than respectable return for Darwin Nunez, but the Uruguay forward has found himself on the sidelines looking in more often than not in recent months.
A shoulder injury, picked up in the 5-2 defeat to Real Madrid, forced him to miss the visit to Crystal Palace, while more recently he has sat out the last two games with a toe injury.
When fit, however, Klopp has often preferred to use the former Benfica man off the bench following the returns to fitness for Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz. Nunez has started just three of the last 11 games.
The ongoing language barrier and a need to grasp the defensive side of the game are two aspects holding Nunez back to an extent, according to his manager, but a lack of minutes and loss of rhythm as a result have also hampered the £64m striker at times this term, despite his healthy goal return.
Knowing he is set to lead the line for the upcoming European campaign might be conducive towards him realising his undoubted and obvious potential for the new season.
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