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Liverpool predicted XI for Premier League opener vs Bournemouth, Alexis Mac Allister returns as four stars debut

Liverpool will begin their defence of the Premier League title when they host Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday evening.

The Reds lost the Community Shield against Crystal Palace in the first competitive fixture of the campaign after Mohamed Salah, Alexis Mac Allister, and Harvey Elliott failed to convert in the penalty shootout.

Now, after a summer spending spree conducted by Richard Hughes, supporters who did not make the trip to Wembley will have the opportunity to see the Reds’ new signings in action under the Anfield lights.

Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike were sensational against Palace, and the pair, alongside new full-backs Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez, will be looking to endear themselves to the supporters.

Hugo Ekitike of Liverpool celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the 2025 FA Community Shield match between Crystal Palace and Liverpool at Wembley Stadium.

Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images

As the defending Premier League champions look to kick-start the 2025/26 campaign in winning fashion, here is how Liverpool could line up on Friday.

Predicted Liverpool XI vs Bournemouth

The Reds left London completely unscathed after the Community Shield, meaning Slot will be able to name a near-full-strength line-up to face Bournemouth.

Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker will keep his place as the undisputed number one and will be expected to start at Anfield despite the arrival of Giorgi Mamardashvili this summer.

Defence: Conor Bradley is the only confirmed absentee in the Reds’ squad after missing the trip to Wembley with a fresh injury setback. Frimpong is expected to start at right-back after the Dutchman scored a wonder goal against Palace.

Exit-linked Joe Gomez is in contention to return to the matchday squad but will likely only make the bench with captain Virgil van Dijk expected to line up alongside Ibrahima Konate. With Kerkez completing a new-look backline.

Midfield: Mac Allister earned some much-needed game time on Sunday as he returned to match fitness and should replace Curtis Jones in the line-up to start alongside Dominik Szoboszlai in the heart of midfield.

Ryan Gravenberch missed the Community Shield due to the birth of his daughter and will be suspended for Friday’s clash as he serves a suspension following his dismissal in the final match of the 2024/25 campaign. New arrival Wirtz will complete the midfield three.

Forwards: Salah will be eager to prove the critics wrong after Chris Sutton questioned the Egyptian’s confidence following his crucial penalty miss at Wembley.

Nevertheless, Salah will line up alongside new star signing Ekitike, who scored four minutes into his Liverpool debut against Palace, and Cody Gakpo.

Arne Slot believes it will be difficult to win the Premier League

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Slot believes it will be difficult and it would be an “unbelievable” achievement if the Reds are able to win consecutive league titles this season.

“The reason why that is so difficult (to retain the title) lies mainly in the fact that there’s so many competitors that can also win the league over here. To win it once is already very special, let alone if you can win it twice in three, four or five years, or as we did, twice in five years and [Manchester] City did even better than us in the last few years.

“So that’s unbelievable if you’re able to do this in this league. And probably this year is going to be harder than every year before, because every team brings in new players but our main competitors definitely did as well.

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