Where are they now? The 17 Liverpool players who left after winning the 2020 title
Liverpool won their first Premier League title in 2020 – but what happened to the 17 players who left the club before their next triumph five years later?
The Reds swept all before them under Jurgen Klopp in 2019-20, romping to their first league title in 30 years.
We’ve done some digging and found out what those title-winners who have since left Anfield are doing in 2025.
Dejan Lovren
A Premier League and Champions League winner with Liverpool, Lovren has played in three different countries since departing from Anfield.
He initially moved to Zenit St Petersburg, where he played 63 games across three seasons, before moving to Lyon, where he’d played the majority of his football prior to Liverpool.
In the summer of 2024, Lovren moved to PAOK Thessaloniki on a free transfer.
The 35-year-old has started nine games, but has also been hampered by injuries, and was not included in the Europa League squad.
Adam Lallana
Lallana was a key player early on in Klopp’s time in charge, but a string of injuries pushed him further and further down in the side’s pecking order as other players established themselves in the starting XI.
The midfielder left the Reds at the end of the 2019-20 season and became a regular for Graham Potter’s entertaining Brighton side.
Lallana is now back at his boyhood club Southampton, where he is both a player and acting assistant manager.
Nathaniel Clyne
Clyne established himself as a permanent fixture in Klopp’s defence for the first two seasons of the German’s reign at Anfield.
However, severe injuries coupled with the emergence of Trent Alexander-Arnold made Clyne surplus to requirements and he was released before the title was even lifted in 2020.
He’s since returned to his boyhood club Crystal Palace, where he’s been a semi-regular ever since.
Xherdan Shaqiri
Even when he wasn’t getting regular starts at Liverpool, we appreciated Shaqiri’s presence in Jurgen Klopp’s squad as a cube-shaped vibesman.
It made sense for him to go and get more minutes at Lyon back in 2021, but the move didn’t work out and he only lasted six months at the Ligue 1 outfit before departing for Chicago Fire.
The Switzerland international became the MLS outfit’s all-time most expensive signing, but the move would go on to be dubbed “the worst-value signing in MLS history” in The Guardian.
After two and a half less-than-stellar years out in the windy city, Shaqiri returned to his boyhood club Basel and is currently producing moments of throwback brilliance on a regular basis.
Georginio Wijnaldum
Wijnaldum was a cult-hero during his five-year stay at Anfield, although he didn’t seem to feel the love from the fans at the time.
“There was a moment I didn’t feel loved and appreciated,” the Dutch midfielder said after leaving the club.
“I have to say also there was social media. When it went bad, I was the player who they blamed – said that I wanted to leave.
“On social media, if we lost, I was the one who got the blame.
After rejecting a contract renewal offer from Liverpool, Wijnaldum left in 2021 to sign a lucrative deal with PSG – with plenty of fans at the time claiming that money was his only motivation for making the move.
His move to France was a failure and Wijnaldum now plays in Saudi Arabia for Al-Ettifaq.
Sadio Mane
Signed from Southampton for £36million, Mane was a hit with the Liverpool fans from day one.
His post-Liverpool career hasn’t quite had the same shine to it, although he seems to be doing alright in Saudi Arabia these days.
Following a disappointing spell with Bayern Munich, Mane linked up with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr and has scored 30 goals for the Saudi side.
Neco Williams
Williams spent 12 years at Liverpool before he was ultimately sold to Nottingham Forest for £17million back in 2022.
He was in and out of the team as Forest struggled to avoid relegation in their first two seasons back in the Premier League, but the defender has made 33 appearances during their impressive 2024-25 campaign.
Williams is also a regular in Craig Bellamy’s Wales team and is part of a generation of players looking to reach consecutive World Cups for the first time in the country’s history.
Takumi Minamino
With a strong core of players already in place, Liverpool didn’t really push the boat out in 2019-20 as their most expensive signing was Minamino who arrived for just £7.2million in the January window.
The Japanese playmaker showed a few flashes of quality, particularly in the cup competitions, but his chances at Anfield were somewhat limited.
After departing in 2022, he’s since managed to recapture his best form with Monaco in Ligue 1.
Fabinho
Once regarded as the best defensive midfielder in the world, Fabinho looked a shadow of his former self during his final season at Anfield.
Liverpool decided to cash in on the Brazil international in 2023, selling him to reigning Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad in a £42million deal.
After making an impressive debut in their 3-0 win over Al Raed, he was bizarrely presented with a Rolex by an enthusiastic journalist.
The midfielder remains in Saudi Arabia today and has made 62 appearances for Al-Ittihad.
Jordan Henderson
The captain of the 2020 title winners, Henderson is now at Ajax after scuttling back to Europe with his tail between his legs following a disastrous six months in Saudi Arabia.
Now aged 34, the midfielder has captained Ajax to the brink of their first Eredivisie title since 2022 and was recalled to the England squad for March’s World Cup qualifiers.
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Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Oxlade-Chamberlain looked well worth the money in his early days with Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, rubbing salt into Arsenal’s wounds as they took their regular place in the top four.
Injuries dimmed his influence over time, but he did make 30 appearances in the Reds’ Premier League-winning campaign in 2019-20.
By the time of his 2023 departure, though, he’d very much become a fringe player.
Now with Besiktas, Oxlade-Chamberlain has scored five goals in 48 appearances for the Turkish club.
Naby Keita
Keita endured an injury-plagued time in Merseyside after joining from RB Leipzig in 2018, failing to make any sustained impact in five years despite commanding a £52.75million fee.
After being released in 2023, the midfielder returned to the Bundesliga and joined Werder Bremen on a free transfer.
But Keita only started one competitive game for Bremen, refusing to board the team bus after not being selected for a game at Bayer Leverkusen in April 2024 and being suspended by the club.
The midfielder now plays in Hungary for Ferencvaros. He’s still only 30.
Roberto Firmino
Winning almost everything – and playing a key role – Firmino left after eight years at the end of his contract in 2023.
After that, he joined the Saudi league, signing for Al Ahli to play alongside Riyad Mahrez and co, where he’s captained the side and managed 18 goals in 58 appearances.
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James Milner
Back in 2020, Milner was a dependable, versatile, consistent veteran who was bloody good at penalties.
Five years on, the bloke is still a Premier League player at Brighton. He’s still dependable, versatile, consistent, and good at penalties.
He’s more frequently injured these days, but somebody needs to study Milner for science.
Joel Matip
Matip made his Liverpool debut in August 2016 and went on to make 201 appearances for the Reds.
“Look, I cannot help people who don’t see the quality of Joel Matip,” Klopp told reporters in 2021. “He is an incredible player, he was always an incredible player since he joined us at least. So that’s really good.”
The defender retired from professional football in 2024 at the age of 33.
Adrian
After joining on a free in 2019, Adrian was instantly thrown into the deep end when first-choice keeper Alisson picked up a calf injury.
Some minor successes were overshadowed by his presence in infamous defeats to Atletico Madrid and Aston Villa in 2020 and saw Adrian relegated to bench-filler status for the rest of his time at Liverpool.
The goalkeeper returned to Real Betis last summer and has been first choice during the Seville club’s run to the Europa Conference League semis and push for Champions League qualification in La Liga.