Best current XI of ex-Liverpool players

Liverpool currently have the best team that they have had for over 30 years.

Jurgen Klopp's men are the Premier League champions after a record-breaking season.

The team has at least five players who may well be the best in the world in their position.

However, there are some ex-Reds around who could possibly be good additions to the current squad.

The club has shown that they are not afraid to sell megastars if it benefits the rest of the team.

There are also some who flopped at Anfield but have proven their quality elsewhere.

The following is an XI of former Liverpool players that are shining for other clubs.

This season's form is taken into account, but it is not the sole rationale for selection.

Goalkeeper - Peter Gulacsi

The first inclusion here is a rather interesting one.

Despite featuring on the bench on numerous occasions, Peter Gulacsi never played a senior competitive game for Liverpool.

Instead, he spent the majority of his six-year spell at the club with the reserves and out on loan.

He joined Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg in 2013, before moving to sister club RB Leipzig in 2015.

The Hungarian has since starred for Germany's newest force, becoming one of the best goalkeepers in the Bundesliga.

He was a certain inclusion in this XI.

Right-back - Victor Moses

This may be the trickiest spot to select, and not for good reasons.

Liverpool have had three regular right-backs in the last decade. Glen Johnson is retired, while Nathaniel Clyne and Trent Alexander-Arnold are still on Liverpool's books.

So we must take a look at some former fringe players.

We were left with a choice of Martin Kelly, Javier Manquillo or Victor Moses.

Kelly and Manquillo receive regular game time for Crystal Palace and Newcastle respectively, but neither have taken the league by storm by any stretch.

In terms of talent, Moses is the best of the three.

The Nigerian international is a winger by trade, and barely featured during a single season loan spell at Anfield in 2013/14.

However, he won the Premier League in 2016/17 playing as a right-wingback, so we will move him back a few yards to orthodox right-back position.

Yes, his career has stagnated in recent times, but his reunion with Antonio Conte may well lead to Moses finding his best form.

He has reached, and may again reach, heights never seen by Kelly or Manquillo.

Centre-back - Conor Coady

Like Gulacsi, Conor Coady's time at Liverpool was spent in the youth ranks, having joined the Academy as a boy.

The Scouser only made one appearance for the first-team before signing for Huddersfield in 2014.

He moved to Wolves the following summer, where his career has really taken off.

The former midfielder was converted to a centre-back, where he has shone to the point of being made club captain.

Nuno Esperito Santo's men followed up promotion to the Premier League with Europa League qualification, with Coady being a key figure in this growth.

They are in contention to qualify for the Champions League next year.

While he strictly plays in the centre of a back three for Wolves, he will form a partnership in this team.

Centre-back - Sebastian Coates

This is another tough choice, with Mamadou Sakho and Mikel San Jose being genuine contenders to partner Coady at the back.

Sebastian Coates is a tough quantity to gauge due to the fact that he plays in Portugal. This means that he is playing in a weaker league than his competition.

However, he stands out for Sporting CP, while his rivals must be seen as average in their respective leagues. He is the Lisbon outfit's current captain.

The fact that he has 39 caps for Uruguay is a hint at his ability, as he competes with Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez for his place in the team.

The 29-year-old was a bit part player for the Reds but will be remembered for his stunning goal against QPR in 2012.

Left-back - Jack Robinson

Similar to right-back, this position is a hard choice because there are so few standout options.

Alberto Moreno has been half-decent since signing for Villarreal last summer, but the fact that he was so bad for Liverpool in the recent past means that he simply cannot be included.

We'll go for a man that has recently returned to the Premier League in Jack Robinson.

Robinson is the youngest player to ever play for Liverpool in the Premier League.

Despite this record, he failed to make the cut at the club.

He established himself as a good Championship player with both QPR and Nottingham Forest before signing for Premier League high-fliers Sheffield United in January 2020.

He has played at centre-back at times, but can settle in his natural position for this XI.

Central midfield - Emre Can

Now we move onto the stronger positions in the XI.

Emre Can is probably a player that Liverpool would have liked to have kept in 2018.

However, his contract was up and the German decided that he wanted to try his luck in pastures new.

His time with Juventus did not go according to plan as Can could not cement himself in midfield.

He signed for Borussia Dortmund in January on a loan deal that will be made permanent in the summer.

He has settled in nicely in his homeland, forming a strong duo with Axel Witsel at the base of midfield.

The versatile Can may not have become the elite player he could have been, but is still a good, European quality midfielder.

Central midfield - Lucas

Beside Can in the double pivot is Liverpool cult hero Lucas.

The Brazilian gave 10 memorable years of service to the Reds, after being signed from Gremio by Rafa Benitez in 2007.

He went from a young, unfancied attacking midfielder to a fan-favourite, defensive-minded number 6.

Had injuries not slowed him down at times, he could still be featuring regularly for the club.

Unfortunately, Jurgen Klopp did not feel that he could give Lucas the minutes he deserved. He signed for Lazio in 2017.

He has since regained his best form having managed to stay injury-free for the most part.

Lucas won the club's Player of the Season award two years in a row, having formed a fantastic midfield trio with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and the man who will take the number 10 spot in this XI.

Right-wing - Raheem Sterling

This will undoubtedly be the most unpopular choice in this XI.

However, it is also the most obvious one.

Raheem Sterling is one of the few ex-players that is booed when he takes to the Anfield pitch. Perhaps this is fair, due to the circumstances under which he joined rivals Manchester City in 2015.

But he simply cannot be denied a place in this team.

He has become one of the Premier League's finest forwards since his move to the Etihad.

Despite a slight down season this year, he was still a strong candidate for the 2018/19 PFA Player of the Year.

Number 10 - Luis Alberto

Going on this season alone, Luis Alberto could well be the best ex-Red currently playing football.

His 13 assists this season means he has the most in Serie A and the sixth most in Europe.

He also has four goals in 26 starts for Lazio this campaign, helping his team mount an unlikely title challenge.

With Lucas playing behind him, Alberto is allowed attacking freedom in Simone Inzaghi's 3-5-2 formation.

Signed from Sevilla in summer 2013, the Spaniard played only 12 times for Liverpool as a youngster in the 2013/14 season.

After spending two years on loan in his homeland, he was sold to Lazio in 2016.

Left-wing - Philippe Coutinho

One could be forgiven for believing that Philippe Coutinho is no longer half the player he was for Liverpool.

Signed by Barca for well over €100 million, he lasted only a year and a half at Camp Nou.

He is currently on-loan at Bayern Munich, who are not utilizing their option to buy this summer.

However, it is clear that Coutinho is still a top player.

He has nine goals and eight assists this season, despite not consistently being a part of the starting line-up in Bavaria.

Recently linked with a return to Anfield, there is no doubt that Coutinho deserves his place in this XI.

Striker - Luis Suarez

This is a primary example of the form vs quality argument.

Luis Suarez is quite clearly past his best.

At 33-years-old, injuries are mounting up for the Uruguayan. In fact, he has spent much of this season on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, Danny Ings, a player who has been so injury-prone in the past, is in the form of his life at Southampton.

At the time of writing, he rests on 16 league goals, the fourth most in the Premier League.

If he had been able to show this form in previous years, he would be a shoo-in.

Despite Suarez's injuries, he still has 16 goals and 10 assists in all competitions this season, in just 26 games.

While it may be a different story next year, Luis Suarez must still be considered a better player than Danny Ings.

So he takes the final spot in this ex-Liverpool XI.

Bench

Mignolet, Sakho, Moreno, Suso, Kent, Ings, Aspas