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This article is part of Football FanCast's Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba's haircuts to League Two relegation battles...

After winning the Champions League at the end of last season, Liverpool really do seem proud of their players.

So proud, it seems, that the Reds are banking on those same players to do it all again next season after a quiet summer window - actually, they're relying on less players after allowing Daniel Sturridge and Alberto Moreno to leave.

Only Adrian - signed as Simon Mignolet's replacement - as well as teenage duo Harvey Elliott and Sepp van den Berg have been brought to the club, so no new faces who will directly influence the starting XI, it seems.

So, Jurgen Klopp will need some of his existing players to step up - let's take a look at who they could be...

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Xherdan Shaqiri

After an initial bright start, the Switzerland international barely featured after the turn of the year.

Shaqiri made just 11 appearances in 2019, with only four of them coming as starts. The former Stoke man has a bundle of talent in his locker, but needs to become less of a peripheral figure at Anfield and begin making more significant contributions on the pitch.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

We are by no means saying that the England international needs to step up based on his form last season, as the bulk of last term was plagued by injury and his consequential recovery from a serious knee issue.

However, Oxlade-Chamberlain does need to step up in the sense that he must rediscover the form from his debut campaign at Liverpool that made him such a key player in Klopp's system.

Yasser Larouci 

A name that some of you may not have heard until this summer is Yasser Larouci, but you may be hearing a lot more about him soon.

The teenager impressed for the Reds in his five pre-season games this summer, and drew praise from Klopp for his performances.

Whilst other impressive youngsters at the club may not get a first-team chance this season, Larouci could be one to watch due to the shortage of left-backs currently at Liverpool - Andy Robertson is the only senior option in this position.

The Scot is remarkably healthy and rarely misses games, but Larouci must step up so he can be on standby if something happens.

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