Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has expressed his admiration for the departing group consisting of James Milner, Roberto Firmino, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Naby Keita.
As their contracts are set to expire next month, these four players will receive a heartfelt farewell at Anfield during the match against Aston Villa.
Having all experienced success as Champions League and Premier League winners, Firmino and Milner, who joined just before Klopp’s appointment in 2015, have particularly stood out with their impactful performances.
However, Klopp emphasized that each of the four players has made significant contributions to the team’s accomplishments throughout their time at Liverpool.
“We spoke already with the boys earlier this week about it,” said Klopp.
“It is super-important for us and kind of super-emotional as well for different reasons because we say goodbye to, from my point of view, four Liverpool legends.
“Two of them were here when I arrived – Millie (Milner) and Bobby (Firmino) – and nothing of all the good things which happened in the last few years would have happened without them.
“Bobby, my God, how much I love the guy. It is 100 per cent deserved.
“Millie played an incredible number of games, I think I am the manager he played the most games for in his career, and probably the same for Bobby.
“My English is not good enough to really express my respect for them but that’s the same for Ox (Oxlade-Chamberlain) and Naby, for different reasons.
“Ox was unlucky in moments with bad injuries in absolutely the wrong moment. I remember the (2018 Champions League game) against Roma when he got badly injured and I had no clue how to sort that situation as he was that good and pretty much irreplaceable in that moment.
“Everyone knows we spent a lot of money on Naby and there were a lot of expectations and because of injuries in the wrong moments he couldn’t fulfil all of them but go back and look at the football he could play in his good moments.”
Milner has been heavily linked with a move to Brighton, but the futures of the other three are less clear, although they will not be short of offers.
Klopp added: “I wish them all well and hope they find a place where they are as much respected and needed as here and they find their luck again because they had a lot in the last few years.
“All four won pretty much each available trophy and we love them but it is professional football and nothing is forever.
“There is always a moment and it’s a good moment because it means one chapter will be closed and we can start writing a new one, which is good as well for them and for us.
“I will be forever thankful to them because without them nothing would’ve happened. They were super-important in all they did and that’s the farewell they deserve.”