Liverpool make the travels to the English capital on Saturday to kick-start their 2022-23 Premier League campaign against the newly promoted Fulham.
Jurgen Klopp’s men will look to make amends from last season’s second-place finish with only a point separating them from Manchester City who were crowned the top flight champions once again.
Fulham, meanwhile, were at their brilliant best during their Championship-winning campaign last term with 90 points to their tally as Marco Silva’s men made their way back to the Premier League in style.
The Craven Cottage outfit, however, will be keen to avoid a swift drop down to the second tier inside the next 12 months and Silva will hope for his players to put out a solid display against Liverpool this weekend after the manager forked out the money this summer to bring in the likes of Manor Solomon, Kevin Mbabu, Bernd Leno, Andreas Pereira and more recently Joao Palhinha to bolster the ranks.
Liverpool’s first competitive outing of the new season came against arch rivals Manchester City in last weekend’s Community Shield clash at the King Power Stadium and Klopp’s Reds clinched the trophy after 16 long years with a convincing 3-1 victory.
Goals from Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez sealed the win for the Merseysiders with the latter, on his competitive debut outing, making a fantastic impression after coming off the bench in the second period.
Injury concerns, however, are on the rise at Anfield with Curtis Jones, Ibrahima Konate and Naby Keita the latest names to join the recovery table list which sidelines them from the opening day fixture in west London.
Klopp has sounded confident in his pre-match remarks that his first-choice shot-stopper Alisson Becker, who sat out the Manchester City clash, will be in line for a return to the XI which ensures much-needed respite for the Liverpool head coach.
WHEN & WHERE?
Next up… our @premierleague opener ✊🔴 #FULLIV pic.twitter.com/cdlYBoKBiV
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 3, 2022
Date: Saturday 6 August 2022
Time: 12:30 PM GMT
Venue: Craven Cottage
TEAM NEWS
French centre-back Ibrahima Konate picked up a knock in Liverpool’s last pre-season game against Strasbourg and joins midfielder Curtis Jones and wing-back Kostas Tsimikas on the injury list.
Naby Keita’s illness could force him to sit out the upcoming game but there is hope that the maestro returns in time for the opening day fixture.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Diogo Jota and Caoimhin Kelleher are long-term injury absentees and will not play any part in Saturday’s showdown.
KEY BATTLE
Andreas Pereira vs Mohamed Salah
Pereira’s move to Craven Cottage from Manchester United this summer has sparked off talk that the Brazilian attacker could prove to be an influential performer for Marco Silva’s side in their promotional campaign.
Liverpool will depend upon their talisman Mohamed Salah to deliver in front of the goal to claim a big win to kick off their league campaign in style.
MATCH PREDICTION
The visitors look much stronger out of the two teams and it will not come as a surprise should Jordan Henderson and Co. walk away with a big scoreline.
Fulham 0-3 Liverpool
