Jurgen Klopp wants 20 academy graduates to fight their way into Liverpool squad

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is hopeful the club's exciting academy can deliver up to 20 players capable of playing in the first-team squad.

Since his appointment on Merseyside, Klopp has regularly turned to the club's youth ranks to bolster his squad. Following a spate of injuries last December, the former Borussia Dortmund manager opted to recall a handful of the club's youngsters from loan spells, including Tiago Ilori, Ryan Kent, Sheyi Ojo and Kevin Stewart, rather than signing proven players during the January transfer window.

Ovie Ejaria, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ben Woodburn were some of the academy products given their chances in the first-team during pre-season and Klopp is keen to ensure that steady flow continues throughout his tenure at the club.

"Last season we had [Sheyi] Ojo, [Cameron] Brannagan, [Connor] Randall, [Brad] Smith, [Kevin] Stewart and [Pedro] Chirivella who played in real games for the first team," Klopp told the Liverpool Echo.

"We've had Ben Woodburn, Ovie Ejaria and Trent [Alexander-Arnold] playing for us in the friendly games. Shamal George has been in a good way too.

"That's eight or nine. What do we want? We want 20 of this quality. It's a big number of players. We have to create better situations to make them better."

While Klopp is keen to have a squad bursting with home-grown talent, the German coach appears set to allow more players to leave the club on temporary deals, despite his early concerns over the English loan system.

Ryan Kent has joined Championship side Barnsley on loan for the 2016-17 season, while goalkeepers Adam Bogdan and Danny Ward have joined Wigan Athletic and Huddersfield respectively.

Jon Flanagan meanwhile has joined Premier League newcomers Burnley.

Ojo, who fought his way into Klopp's first-team plans last season could also still leave on a loan deal. "I don't know. We will have to see," Klopp said when asked about the young forward, Sky Sports reports. "Sheyi is a wonderful player that's for sure and his future is 100% at Liverpool. We don't have to make decisions so early."