Neil Critchley: Jurgen Klopp Gave Liverpool Youngsters 'Belief' for FA Cup Win

Jurgen Klopp wasn't present for Liverpool's win in the 2020 FA Cup fourth round on Tuesday night, but his words before and during the game inspired the club's youngest-ever team.

U23 manager Neil Critchley took charge for the replay against Shrewsbury Town, a game Liverpool won 1-0 thanks to an own goal from Ro-Shaun Williams at Anfield. Critchley was in the dugout because Klopp and Liverpool's senior players had foregone the game to participate in a winter break enforced by the Premier League for the first time this season.

It was a contentious decision, but Klopp did at least motivate the all-academy lineup, according to Critchley, per David Maddock of the Daily Mirror:

"The boss was in touch this afternoon with some words of encouragement and advice. He phoned at half time too - technology is a marvellous thing now! What he does is give you total clarity, belief. He told them to play the Liverpool way and go for it.

"That's how the first team plays, so he said this is us, this is what we do what we stand for and what we believe in, and you'd better go for it. And from the first whistle we did that."

Klopp wasn't the only senior figure who did his bit to keep a youthful starting XI fully focused. Midfielder James Milner was in attendance, and the 34-year-old didn't waste a chance to offer his own words of encouragement:

Milner's advice on how to handle the situation was likely welcomed by a refreshed team making history. Maddock noted how there was an "average age of just 19 years and 102 days."

Even the key leadership role went to a teenager when 19-year-old Curtis Jones was handed the captain's armband:

Jones was leading a fledgling group because Klopp opted to rest big names for a replay Liverpool wanted to avoid. League One Shrewsbury Town deserved credit for forcing a replay by coming back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 in January.

Klopp quickly declared he and his senior stars would miss the return fixture because it clashed with the winter break, per BBC Sport. Liverpool quickly endorsed the decision, despite the FA saying clubs in England's top flight were made aware fourth-round replays would need to be played during this week, according to BBC Sport's Simon Stone.

He also noted how the FA and Premier League had agreed with UEFA to ensure clubs still in the UEFA Champions League would not be overloaded with fixtures. Champions League holders Liverpool will face Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the last 16 on February 18.

Klopp has frequently bemoaned the physical and mental demands placed on players in England by fixture congestion. The 52-year-old previously dubbed the festive fixture list, where some games are a mere two days apart, "criminal."

While Klopp's views aren't shared by everybody, his controversial rotation policy paid dividends on Tuesday. It helped Jones and Co. quickly took control of the game:

Even so, it took a misguided header from Williams to finally settle the tie 15 minutes from time. The gaffe continued Shrewsbury's penchant for calamity, after Donald Love's own goal had put the Reds into a seemingly unassailable position during the first game:

Klopp's choice was vindicated by a result a far cry from Aston Villa beating a similarly young and Critchley coached team 5-0 in the Carabao Cup quarter-final back in December. Klopp and his marquee players missed that game while they participated in and won the FIFA Club World Cup.

Things worked out well this time, but Klopp's decision to play reserve players still leaves troubling questions about how top-flight clubs view the oldest cup competition in the game.

There's no doubt Liverpool are closing in on the league title, thanks to a 22-point lead over Manchester City. Defending their crown in Europe will also be important to Klopp and his players, who will consider any chance to rest and stay fresh as invaluable.

Yet his policy in the domestic cups has sent a definite message they rate lowest on the list of Klopp's priorities. Aside from any lack of personal importance Liverpool may attach to the Cup on Klopp's watch, picking weakened teams and not taking part also has a negative impact on how the tournament benefits lower-league teams.

Earning a replay at Anfield was a potentially huge financial fillip for Shrewsbury. However, manager Sam Ricketts lamented how team selection, an absence of television coverage in the UK and reduced ticket prices cost his club as much as £500,000, per Joe Edwards of the Shropshire Star.

Lower-league clubs cashing on the greater exposure of giant-killings and replays is a tradition as proud as the cup itself. Liverpool can still lift the famous trophy for the first time since 2006, and getting gifted youngsters like Jones and Neco Williams minutes is no bad thing, but Klopp's treatment of the early rounds will still leave many traditionalists upset.