James Milner has aimed a cheeky dig at Trent Alexander-Arnold after the 35-year-old deputised at right-back against Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon.
The Reds saw off their opponents 3-0 at Anfield, but the Wilfred Zaha vs Milner battle was a talking point among supporters pre-match.
Milner has filled in for Alexander-Arnold on a number of occasions and has done so against Palace once before, when the Reds edged past them 4-3 back in January 2019.
The 22-year-old's absence was explained by manager Jurgen Klopp ahead of kick-off: “It was one [team change] we weren’t expecting.
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"Trent woke up this morning and wasn’t feeling well so we had to send him home. It’s not Covid, though, to be clear.”
Goals from Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita saw the Reds earn their fourth league victory of the season, but the scoreline was a little harsh on Patrick Vieira's side, who caused Liverpool a number of problems at times.
Zaha is regarded by many as one of the most dangerous attackers in the league and Milner was asked post-match how he found out he'd be up against the Ivory Coast international.
"Trent's definitely going to get some ribbing for that," he told the club website. "A bit of Zaha-itis or something like that!"
"It was probably three, two-and-a-half hours before the game really. But that's what we're prepared for and the training is done so anyone is ready at any time. That's my job when I'm needed."
Kostas Tsimikas also came in for Andy Robertson as Ibrahima Konate made his competitive debut alongside Virgil van Dijk in the heart of the defence.
Klopp will continue to rotate his squad in the coming weeks as the fixture schedule intensifies.
Milner continued: "We're getting into that period now where you have a game every three days and the manager will change a lot.
"It's tricky but it's tricky for everyone. We're used to it now but hopefully we can keep this momentum going and keep churning out the results."
