Mark Lawrenson states his prediction for Exeter v Liverpool

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has denied that fielding a weakened team shows a lack of respect for the FA Cup as his side readies for Friday’s tie at Exeter City.

Jürgen Klopp has ruled Toure, Coutinho and Lovren out of trip to Exeter on Friday after the trio picked up hamstring related injuries during the win over Stoke City.

Martin Skrtel, Mamdou Sakho and Joe Gomez are also out injured so Klopp has been forced to recall Thiago Llori from his loan spell at Aston Villa.

Allardyce claimed Klopp had underestimated how “ferocious” the Premier League is, and the spate of hamstring injuries were down to his insistence on a high-tempo pressing game, when he spoke to talkSPORT on Wednesday. The Spaniard’s last game for the club was in January a year ago, in a goalless draw with Bolton in the FA Cup.

Klopp’s men have progressed well in cup competitions this season; they have reached the semi-finals of the League Cup, and have progressed to the last 32 in the Europa League – now they will want to add an FA Cup run to that.

“We have to find a solution to current situation”. Here is the side I think Jurgen Klopp will pick. “I will be there and I will take a few players with me”, he grinned.

“My team will be very young, that’s for sure”, he said. “It is a chance for Exeter and they have to take it”.

Jose Enrique, an isolated figure at the club for months, is set for his first game of the season at centre-back.

“We have to make decisions in this moment for the team, so we have to make changes”, said Klopp.

Naturally, given that the tie will be televised live on the BBC, Liverpool are steeled for some headlines that they are “disrespecting the FA Cup”.

“And with injures we didn’t have to much of this, that’s the truth”, Klopp said.

“Although we have lost games, I don’t think we have looked like a side that has suddenly lost our energy and our goal”.

“There is only one team in the Premier League that had the same number of fixtures as we had and that is Tottenham and they did not play on Tuesday because they were out of the Capital One Cup”. It’s normal, average running. It’s about thinking quicker in the right position.

Exeter boss Paul Tisdale insists he is not reading too much into the Grecians’ recent poor form, after four league defeats in a row. “Phil had played a lot of games and so we planned to change at half-time but then, 18 minutes, bang”.