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Arne Slot has been criticized for "asking for trouble" after fielding a less experienced Liverpool team in the Carabao Cup defeat against Crystal Palace.
The Reds' boss chose a youthful squad for Wednesday's fourth-round tie, following his team's streak of four consecutive Premier League losses. Milos Kerkez was the only player retained from Saturday's defeat at Brentford, with three teenagers included in the starting XI at Anfield.
A double from Ismaila Sarr before half-time and a late goal from Yeremy Pino ensured Palace knocked out last season's runner-up. Former Liverpool striker Dean Saunders has now questioned Slot's selection decisions, suggesting he has an oversized squad at his disposal and remains unsure about his strongest team.
This comes after the Reds spent around $600 million during a summer spending spree that broke club records.
The ex-Wolves and Wrexham manager also suggested the Dutchman should have taken a leaf out of Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta's book by keeping experienced players amongst the substitutes to ensure Liverpool's progression.
The Gunners secured their place in the last eight with a 2-0 victory over Brighton, thanks to goals from Ethan Nwaneri and Bukayo Saka, the latter coming off the bench.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Saunders said: "He is asking for trouble picking a team like that. Straight away, as soon as I saw the team, two thoughts came into my head.
"You're either trying to get out of the cup or looking forward to the next five games, thinking that's what matters. But when you pick a team like that as a manager, it sends a message. The bench tells me everything.
"You look at what Arteta has done, he had the bench stocked up just in case it's going wrong.
"Normally, the best players are sitting there, and if it starts going wrong, you can put it right. Palace are a good team, and he's basically playing the under-23 team against Crystal Palace. Why he didn't have some ammunition on the bench, I don't know.
"The argument from the fans will be, 'Hang on a minute. You spent half a billion quid on your squad and you've got a squad where you can't get everybody on the pitch.'
"They're queuing up on the bench. Wasn't it a chance to give some of them a game?"
He added: "Football management is just finding a formula to get results, and sometimes you stumble upon it, and sometimes you make it happen. At the moment, he's struggling to find the formula because he's got too many ingredients. He's signed too many players."
The Reds are currently enduring a five-match losing run in domestic competitions, a dire sequence not witnessed since 1953. Although Slot secured the Premier League title in his first campaign at Anfield, his team's present form is raising serious questions.
The Reds have tumbled from the summit of the league to seventh place, and their Carabao Cup aspirations have been dashed by Palace, who have bested them thrice in a span of three months.
Looking forward, Liverpool will square off against Aston Villa on Saturday in a bid to arrest its concerning slide.
This match is succeeded by two formidable fixtures, with Real Madrid descending on Anfield in the Champions League on November 4, followed by a journey to Manchester City pencilled in for November 9.
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