Florian Wirtz, pictured during his unveiling as a Liverpool player, could feature in today's friendly at Preston North End
Florian Wirtz, pictured during his unveiling as a Liverpool player, could feature in today's friendly at Preston North End
Liverpool play their first pre-season friendly of the summer today (July 13) when they travel to Deepdale to take on Championship side Preston North End (3pm kick-off). It will be a match tinged with sadness for the Premier League champions.
For it will be their first since the tragic death of their striker, , and his brother, Andre Silva, in a car crash in Spain on Thursday, July 3.
while it was announced on Friday (July 11) that have taken the decision to .
Now life for the devastated Reds squad has to move on. They on Tuesday (July 8) and now must return to the field of play against Preston this afternoon.
Ahead of the game, our writers take a look at the line-up Liverpool head coach could name.
Theo Squires
Beyond very emotional scenes as Liverpool take to the field for the first time since Diogo Jota's tragic passing, it is very difficult to predict what to expect from the Reds against Preston.
I'm going to take a punt and suggest that Arne Slot might use the box midfield formation, as he did at times last pre-season and during the campaign.
Such a set up would see and start on the wings, with record-signing making an unofficial debut alongside as the two number 10s. and , assuming he has fully shaken off the niggling injury that ruled him out at the back-end of last season, to complete the box.
This is purely speculative but because was the only Liverpool player in his own clothes rather than training wear when they paid a group visit to the memorial site in honour of Jota and his brother, Andre Silva, on Friday afternoon, I wonder if he started pre-season a little later than his team-mates. He was reportedly in Portugal for his late team-mate's seventh day mass on Wednesday.
As a result, I'm going to start in goal as the Georgian also gets an unofficial debut from the start.
will have to wait, though not very long for a substitute appearance. can start at right-back with making a maiden appearance on the opposing flank. and then complete the XI.
My team (4-2-2-2): Mamardashvili, Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Szoboszlai, Wirtz; Salah, Gakpo.
Paul Wheelock
This feels strange to write and almost trivial to write. But as the brave Liverpool players are showing by returning to training and now returning to action, life must indeed go on.
Understandably there has been no footage from the AXA Training Centre this week. Instead, the focus has quite rightly been on Diogo Jota and Andre Silva, and the tributes that continue to be paid outside to the brothers.
That makes it difficult to predict a line-up. But in that same spirit of trying to return to some kind of normality, here goes.
There is a debut in goal for Giorgi Mamardashvili, a debut at right-back for Jeremie Frimpong and a debut at left-back for Milos Kerkez. Captain Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate start in the middle.
There is a two-man midfield partnership of Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister with debutant Florian Wirtz playing ahead of them. It will be great to see Liverpool back playing again and particularly exciting to see Wirtz, the £116m signing who no doubt would have provided chance after chance for Jota.
Either side of Wirtz will be Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah, with starting through the middle.
My team (4-2-3-1): Mamardashvili; Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Wirtz, Gakpo; Chiesa.