Liverpool will be aiming to continue its winning start to this season's Champions League when it faces Villarreal, although Andoni Iraola will have some big calls to make with his team
Liverpool's Swedish striker #09 Alexander Isak attends a team training session at their training ground in Kirkby, Liverpool, north-west England on October 19, 2026, the eve of their UEFA Champions League, league phase football match against Villarreal. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images)
Liverpool will have a decision to make over Alexander Isak against Villarreal(Image: Getty Images)
Another European night awaits at Anfield, with Liverpool looking to make it three out of three in this season’s Champions League.
Villarreal are the visitors later, with the Reds aiming to add another Spanish side to its list of scalps after beating Atletico Madrid in their league phase opener before dismissing Austria’s LASK last week.
Andoni Iraola’s side should be presented with a tougher test compared to the one it faced just six days ago, which would normally mean the Spaniard will go with his strongest possible side. With a meeting with an impressive Brighton awaiting at the weekend though, it’s not all that simple.
For starters, the Liverpool boss will be forced into at least one change from the weekend’s win over Brentford, with Dominik Szoboszlai once again out of the question. Jeremie Frimpong is also out, which limits the amount of changes that could be made at the back.
We’ll start with some of the easier decisions to make - Alisson Becker starts in goal, Virgil van Dijk captains the side as usual, and Ronald Araujo remains at right-back.
Milos Kerkez also seems like the most likely choice on the left, which just leaves a choice over the one remaining center-back. Jeremy Jacquet has been extremely impressive so far, but his fitness will be in the back of Iraola’s mind, especially after that scare during the international break.
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BRENTFORD, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 17: Jeremy Jacquet of Liverpool celebrates with teammate Victor Munoz after Yehor Yarmolyuk of Brentford (not pictured) is awarded a red card following a VAR review during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Brentford and Liverpool FC at Gtech Community Stadium on October 17, 2026 in Brentford, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
BRENTFORD, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 17: Jeremy Jacquet of Liverpool celebrates with teammate Victor Munoz after Yehor Yarmolyuk of Brentford (not pictured) is awarded a red card following a VAR review during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Brentford and Liverpool FC at Gtech Community Stadium on October 17, 2026 in Brentford, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
With that in mind, and considering the French international played the full 90 at Brentford, it might be time for Joe Gomez to start - if nothing else, just to make sure there are no doubts over Jacquet for Sunday’s game against Brighton.
It could be a simple case of one in, one out in midfield. With Szoboszlai out injured, Ryan Gravenberch comes back in following his suspension at the weekend. He starts alongside Alexis Mac Allister, although expect Trey Nyoni to be given more minutes at some stage.
Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola hold onto their places, and with Victor Munoz missing training, Rio Ngumoha can come in on the right-hand side.
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Cody Gakpo might be under consideration for a return, although considering he didn’t make his way off the bench on Saturday, it might not quite be the right time for him to start just yet, and maybe easing him back into the fold from the bench might be the better option.
Then it’s just a question of who starts up front. With Alexander Isak back, it feels like it should be an easy choice, although there’s always a worry of overloading the Swedish striker, especially after playing nearly 80 minutes at the weekend.
We’ll stick with him for today’s game, although it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Lewis Koumas given another chance, or even maybe Gakpo to share the workload.
Liverpool predicted line-up vs Villarreal: Alisson; Araujo, Gomez, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Ngumoha, Wirtz, Barcola; Isak.