Liverpool travelled to Austria for their Champions League clash with LASK short of options. Head coach Andoni Iraola could have only 15 senior outfield players available.
Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo are not in the club’s Champions League squad. Hugo Ekitike, Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni remain out long term.
The trio picked up problems during the international break and missed Sunday’s 3-0 Premier League defeat to Manchester City, Liverpool’s first league loss of the season.
Andoni Iraola has filled the 23-man travelling party with youngsters.
Josh Sonni-Lambie, who has yet to make his senior competitive debut, and Wellity Lucky are included alongside Lewis Koumas, Trey Nyoni, Rio Ngumoha, James McConnell and Luke Chambers.
Iraola could not guarantee that Isak, Gakpo or Szoboszlai would be back in the coming days. The shortage in attack has sharpened attention on one of Liverpool’s most expensive signings.
According to Sports Mole, citing reports from Spain, Liverpool want competition for Florian Wirtz. They have 23-year-old Villarreal midfielder Alberto Moleiro in their sights.
The reports say the club are considering strengthening their attack in the upcoming transfer windows. They began tracking Moleiro at Iraola’s request, as the manager wants another creative player to compete with Wirtz.
Wirtz joined from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2025 in a deal worth up to £116m. He has not scored in Liverpool’s opening six Premier League games and has one assist.
Jamie Carragher said Wirtz had been given enough chances and should drop out of the starting line-up for a while.
Iraola has backed him. Ahead of the LASK game, he said Wirtz and Bradley Barcola are “players that I trust 100 per cent”.
The manager admitted both have had good and bad games this season. He also said their contribution should not be judged on goals and assists alone.
Moleiro joined Villarreal from Las Palmas in the summer of 2025 for around £13.6m (€16m). Sports Mole says he scored 10 league goals and added five assists in his first season.
He has two goals and three assists in eight La Liga games this term. He plays mainly on the left wing or in central midfield and is known for his technique, ball control and chance creation.
Villarreal do not want to sell. Moleiro is under contract until June 2030, and the club made clear last season that they see him as an important part of their squad.
Any suitor would have to pay between £42.5m and £51m (€50m and €60m). Arsenal, Manchester City, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund are also reportedly monitoring him.
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