It's Liverpool versus Monaco at Anfield today
It's Liverpool versus Monaco at Anfield today
Welcome to our live coverage of Liverpool's pre-season friendly against Monaco at Anfield. Kick-off is 2.30pm.
The match marks new Reds head coach Andoni Iraola's first at home since he took over from the sacked Arne Slot.
The Spaniard has already oversaw three games in charge, all of which came on the tour of the US, where Liverpool beat Sunderland 4-2 and Wrexham 1-0 before letting a two-goal lead slip in going down 4-2 to Leeds United.
And Iraola will be boosted by the availability of captain Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Cody Gakpo and new signing Victor Munoz for the first time this summer.
Paul Gorst, Ian Doyle and Theo Squires are at Anfield to bring you all the build-up to the friendly, including team news when it drops, followed by an in-game commentary stream and the best post-match reaction and analysis.
Details on how you can watch the game can be found HERE.
Today is the first time Andoni Iraola has managed Liverpool at Anfield. And, writing in his programme notes for the game, the Spaniard has expressed his pride:
I hope you all enjoyed a good summer break, and I hope you are all looking forward to Sunday’s game as much as we are.This fixture, plus the games we have scheduled next week against Como, will be hugely beneficial for us as we start to look ahead to our first Premier League game, up at Newcastle, in a few weeks’ time.Our tour of the USA was a positive one, and also a really important introduction to the club for me and my staff.It was great to see the supporters in Chicago, in Nashville and in New York – a reminder of the size and appeal of the club, for sure – and we were able to get a lot of really good work in on the training pitch, which will benefit us a lot as the season progresses.Now we are home, it is time to step up our preparations further and continue the hard work we put in over in America.We now have virtually our entire squad together, which of course will be very important in the coming days and weeks. Victor Munoz, our new signing, joined us at AXA this week having been part of the Spain squad which won the FIFA World Cup last month, as did Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Alisson Becker.Alexis Mac Allister, the last of our World Cup players, will link up with us on Monday, also.Sunday is, of course, going to be a very proud day for my staff, and for me, as we take charge of our first home game.I have experienced Anfield before from the other side, and that was pretty special (even if the results didn’t go the way I would have liked!) but I know that it will be a completely different feeling as the head coach of Liverpool, and that is something I am really excited for.I spoke when I first arrived at the club about emotion, about the connection between the players, the staff and the supporters. That is extremely important and will be even more so going forward.We want to give you guys a team you can really identify with and be proud of, and we will be doing everything we can, every day, to make that happen.Sunday, therefore, is an important step on that journey. It is a journey I want us to all enjoy together, and which I hope and believe will lead to success and to many happy and memorable moments in the future.
Given Ronald Aruajo will not have signed in time to play today, it leaves Andoni Iraola with the option of playing a youngster at centre-back alongside returning captain Virgil van Dijk, or instead playing a Ryan Gravenberch a fit-again Wataru Endo out of position.
We'll know soon enough when the line-ups are announced.
But for now our Reds writers have had a go at picking Iraola's team for him. See their selections HERE.
With Jeremy Jacquet still on the sidelines, along with Joe Gomez, Giovanni Leoni and Conor Bradley, it leaves Liverpool desperately short at the back - thus explaining the shock move for Barcelona captain Ronald Araujo.
The Uruguay international is set to undergo a medical with the Reds today with Barcelona boss Hansi Flick having allowed his skipper to leave.
Welcome to our live coverage of Liverpool's pre-season friendly with Monaco.
The Reds' preparations for the new Premier League season are already well under way having played three matches on their tour of America.
But this will be the first time that the home supporters will be able to see just how their side are shaping up under new head coach Andoni Iraola.
It will be first time that Iraola has taken charge of Liverpool at Anfield and he is sure to be given a warm reception from fans.
We could also see one of the club's signings of the summer so far, in the shape of World Cup winner Victor Munoz.
However, the other new recruit, Jeremy Jacquet, has yet to feature in pre-season and is not expected to play any part this afternoon.