Would any of Liverpool’s latest Champions League winners make a Jurgen Klopp team for the ages?

Whenever a team experiences success, people ask where today’s players rank in the pantheon of club greats. This is as true of Liverpool’s Champions League winners as any side.

A more interesting approach is to frame the question the other way round: if Jurgen Klopp had access to the heroes of Liverpool’s past, who would suit his team? The answers are not straightforward. Klopp favours 4-3-3 and is keen to apply a press. His style might not suit some of the most obvious choices. Here are some suggestions. They will only include players I’ve seen. Feel free to argue.

Let’s start with the easy bit. The only real competition for Alisson Becker would be Ray Clemence, the goalkeeper who anchored the 1970s teams. Clemence was a great shot-stopper and dominated his area. Where Alisson has the edge is the modern game requires him to be good with the ball at his feet. Alisson would keep his place with ease.

Sorting out the central defence is another relatively simple task. Virgil van Dijk’s presence changed the nature of Klopp’s team and created the foundation for success. With longevity, the Dutchman can join Anfield’s giants.

The perfect partner for Van Dijk would be Alan Hansen. The Scot is one of the game’s finest central defenders. His tackling was precise, his distribution exceptional and he was breathtakingly cool under pressure. Hansen was not dominant physically but Van Dijk could handle that side of the game. They would make a magnificent pairing.

The full back positions have been one of Liverpool’s strengths over the past 18 months but Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are the latest in a fine tradition. The obvious choice to compete with Alexander-Arnold is Phil Neal, who made the right back position his own during the most successful 10 years in the club’s history. Neal was dependable and used the byline superbly. He was good going forward but did not have Alexander-Arnold’s dash. Steve Nicol, on the other hand, is the sort of player the 20-year-old should aspire to become.

Nicol was so good that it worked against him. He could play anywhere and was used to plug any gaps in the team. Had the Scot remained at right back for his entire career there would be no debate about the best of all time in that position. He could run all day and few players have got up and down the line like Nicol. His crossing was splendid and he could score goals. He won the footballer of the year award in 1989 in a team that contained John Barnes and Peter Beardsley but is often overlooked because of his versatility. He should be a fixture in any all-time Liverpool team.

On the left, the obvious competition for Robertson is Alan Kennedy. The Geordie was another player with an impressive engine. He scored crucial goals, too. Kennedy would suit Klopp but the verdict has to go to Emlyn Hughes.

Like Nicol, Hughes was adaptable and a brilliant midfielder. Wherever he played he was classy and relentless. His appetite for the game and his enthusiasm would make him a perfect match for Klopp – the German might even feel like an introvert in Hughes’s presence.

It sounds harsh but the none of the modern midfield would get anywhere near this team. Look at the two Champions League finals: in Kiev, Real Madrid overran the central areas with ease and in Madrid against Tottenham the plan was to go long and bypass the battleground in the middle. It is a department that Klopp can – and will – improve.

Yet dipping back in time to find the right three players has its own difficulties. It’s tempting to select Steven Gerrard as a starting point but there may be men better suited to the way Klopp plays. On the left Ronnie Whelan would be a fine choice. The Irishman started his career as a dashing forward-looking player but he peaked in a different role. Few players have used space so well when the opposition had possession. If a rival full back had the ball and looked up the line, Whelan would be in the area where the defender was aiming to pass. Whelan did not have to touch the ball very often to influence the game. He stopped trouble at its source.

Graeme Souness would have to claim the central role. Notwithstanding Gerrard, Souness is the club’s finest midfielder and captain. Bob Paisley said: “Most midfields are made up of a buzzer, a cruncher and a spreader. This boy is all three.” The most successful Liverpool manager of all time was right. The Scot had everything – including a mean streak that would make Luis Suarez look like a saint. Would he be mobile enough? Souness was always quicker to the ball than most. Would his robust style work today? Yes, because he was sly as well as nasty. He’d get away with it.

So Gerrard on the right, then? Perhaps not. Terry McDermott might suit Klopp’s plans even more. The man from Kirkby was a magnificent up-and-down midfielder and another whose stamina was almost inexplicable. He was tactically disciplined but what made him so dangerous was the timing of his runs into the penalty area. McDermott broke with frightening pace and would cause havoc in the Premier League.

Up front things are straightforward but controversial. Mo Salah is a no-brainer. Sadio Mane deserves a slot on the left. He was Liverpool’s best attacker last season. Both men are made for a Klopp team. The manager could dip back into history in the centre, though. Ian Rush would be ideal. The Welshman was clinical, quick and clever. But, for this team’s purposes, he was also Liverpool’s first line of defence. He was pressing before anyone used the term.

There are some shocking exclusions here. Perhaps Barnes could replace Mane but the spellbinding England winger does not quite suit the shape of the team. Should Kevin Keegan be shoehorned in? The Kop hero of the 1970s had the energy and appetite but just misses the cut. Robbie Fowler was arguably the purest goalscorer of all but he was a poacher. Klopp may have demanded more.

The most startling omission is Kenny Dalglish, the best player to wear a Liver Bird on his chest. Could he play in the midfield? Certainly, but there are others better equipped for the part. Should he replace one of the forwards? He could perform the Roberto Firmino role but that would mean leaving out Rush. If Klopp had a player as good as Dalglish it is almost certain that he would change the template but, within the strict constraints of 4-3-3, the side could well function more effectively without him. In almost any other system Dalglish would be first on the team sheet.

So this is my team:

Four of the Champions League-winning team make it. That’s a pretty good return in any era.