Liverpool’s XI the last time Stefan Bajcetic played for them is almost unrecognisable

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Liverpool supporters may finally get the chance to see Stefan Bajcetic playing for them on Sunday, after the Spaniard returned to training ahead of the friendly clash against Leeds United.Bajcetic has had a torrid time with injuries over the past few years, with his last competitive appearance for Liverpool coming on May 5th 2024.“Stefan is training basically fully with the team,” Andoni Iraola confirmed on Saturday, with an outing against Leeds potentially in the offing. Pick Liverpool’s new front three with Bradley Barcola in it 👇 Who joins the Frenchman in Andoni Iraola's best attack?

Photo Credit: Getty Images/Sarah Stier/FIFA And as Bajcetic closes in on a long-awaited return, the XI from his last Liverpool match – a 4-2 win over Tottenham at Anfield – shows just how much has changed for the Reds in the last two years.Five players have left Liverpool from Bajcetic’s last appearanceBajcetic came on for the final 26 minutes of his last competitive showing for Liverpool, with the Reds 4-0 up at the time.Two players who have since left Liverpool as all-time legends – Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson – had put Jurgen Klopp’s team into a commanding early lead before half-time.Salah and Robertson are not the only players to have since moved on, though, with three more of Klopp’s XI having also exited in the two years since.READ MORE: Liverpool’s pre-season predicted XI vs Leeds as Andoni Iraola takes a look at exciting duoPhoto by Nikki Dyer/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesOne was Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was set to head into his final summer with the Reds, while Jarell Quansah also started, meaning three quarters of Liverpool’s defence that day have gone.So too has Luis Diaz, who started on the left for Liverpool, before being replaced by another player who is no longer at the club: Darwin Nunez.Who else started against Tottenham?Regardless of those who are now playing for other clubs, some of the members of this Liverpool XI who are still employed at Anfield are not exactly thriving right now.The midfield Bajcetic came into consisted of Alexis Mac Allister – coming off the back of a good first season with the Reds and about to go up another level over the summer, Wataru Endo, who himself has barely played for two years, and Harvey Elliott, who was very nearly a sixth former Liverpool player in this team.Bajcetic came on for Endo in the deepest-lying midfield role, and there is still a chance, albeit a slim one, that we will see him alongside Mac Allister and Elliott at some stage in 2026/27.Elsewhere, the two mainstays Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk were, of course, present, while Cody Gakpo is the only other player still at the club. As rumours that Gakpo could leave for Tottenham persist, however, that may not continue for much longer.Finally, what bigger marker of change than the fact that Klopp was still in charge.

There have been two managerial appointments since Bajcetic last took to the field in Liverpool red, and though his return that day signalled a false dawn in regards to his fitness, he will be hoping that his luck finally changes too as he embarks in another new era.Stefan Bajcetic’s last appearance for LiverpoolJoin Our NewsletterReceive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox