Dominik Szoboszlai is the most notable absentee as Liverpool take on Greuther Furth in their latest pre-season friendly this lunchtime.
But fellow summer signing Alexis Mac Allister will make his first start for the Reds, who welcome back three players for the behind-closed-doors match in Germany (kick-off 12pm).
Szoboszlai, a £60million arrival from RB Leipzig, rolled his ankle during training and has sat out the last few sessions, although the problem is not thought to be serious.
Alisson Becker, who missed the 4-2 win at Karlsruhe on Wednesday as a precaution, returns in goal, while Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott – who joined up with the squad on Thursday having helped England win the UEFA Under-21 European Championships earlier in the month – are on the bench
Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic are still not involved as they build up fitness after being sidelined for lengthy periods through injury, while centre-back Nat Phillips and goalkeepers Caoimhin Kelleher, Fabian Mrozek and Viteszlav Jaros are also not in the matchday squad. Kelleher’s absence is purely to ensure minutes for the other senior goalkeepers Alisson and Adrian, who also didn’t play on Wednesday.
Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson, who initially travelled with the squad to Germany, left the camp on Wednesday as he nears a move to Saudi Arabia side Al-Ettiffaq.
LIVERPOOL: Alisson; Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Alexander-Arnold, Mac Allister, Gakpo; Doak, Diaz, Jota. Subs: Adrian, Pitaluga, Gomez, Nunez, Salah, Jones, Elliott, Tsimikas, Matip, Clark, Scanlon, McConnell, Koumas, Quansah, Frauendorf
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Liverpool had been considering a third midfield signing prior to Saudia Arabia’s surprise swoop for Jordan Henderson and Fabinho in the market.
The days of uhming and ahing are now firmly over, of course, with the expected departures of the Reds’ skipper and first-choice No.6 leaving the side with arguably little in the way choice other than to bring in two further additions to the middle of the park.
In the meantime, limited available options (coupled with the recent returns of Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott from international duty) have forced the coaching staff into making some interesting calls.
One such decision that could be worth pursuing come the start of the season proper was the placement of Cody Gakpo in the midfield (as was noted in a tweet by Liverpool.com’s @MattAddison97)
