Liverpool have confirmed that new signing Bradley Barcola will start tonight's Champions League tie against Atletico Madrid, as part of a radical new squad policy that sees the club register 85 players for every match, with all of them required to complete the full warm-up routine simultaneously on the Anfield pitch.
«We have moved beyond the outdated concept of a starting eleven and a bench,» said a club spokesman, gesturing to a laminated pitch map divided into 85 numbered zones. «Every registered player is a starter. They all start warming up. They all start the match, in a manner of speaking, by being present and extremely limber.»
The warm-up, which began at 6:15 PM and is scheduled to last 90 minutes, has required the installation of 340 cones, 170 training bibs and a temporary public-address system so that all 85 players can hear the same stretching instructions at the same time. Goalkeepers are warming up in the Kop goal, the Anfield Road goal, and two additional goals erected in the corners for the purpose.
«The medical team has been expanded to 40 physios, one for every two players, plus a dedicated ankle specialist for each penalty area,» the spokesman added. «We have also hired a second groundsman to water the sections of turf that are being used for the first time in club history.»
Atletico Madrid, who have named a comparatively modest squad of 23, have requested that the pre-match coin toss be conducted over a video link, as the Liverpool captain is currently engaged in a hamstring stretch on the far side of the pitch and cannot reach the centre circle before kickoff.