Liverpool will kick off the defence of their Premier League crown when they welcome newly-promoted Leeds United to Anfield on Saturday.
Liverpool finally ended decades of agonising wait by clinching the Premier League title for the first time last term. That was the Reds’ first top-flight triumph in thirty years and the objective will now be to build a model to sustain the success they have enjoyed in the past couple of seasons.
Jurgen Klopp’s men have already played one competitive fixture this season, losing to Arsenal in the FA Community Shield tie on penalties.
Leeds returned to the Premier League after an excruciating 16-year exile after securing the Championship title last season.
Liverpool were 3-1 victors the last time they hosted Leeds United in a Premier League contest at Anfield, with Michael Owen, Danny Murphy and Florent Sinama-Pongolle on target for the Reds.
Team News & Tactics
Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp does not have many pressing injury issues heading into the first day of the 2020/21 Premier League season. Against Leeds United on Saturday, the Liverpool manager will be bereft of the services of just one first-team player, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain nursing a knee injury. Klopp, though, is sweating over the fitness of three other players.
Those players are summer arrival Kostas Tsimikas and captain Jordan Henderson and Xherdan Shaqiri. Shaqiri and Henderson are on their way back from injuries while Tsimikas has recovered from COVID-19. The Liverpool boss has confirmed that the trio will undergo late fitness tests to determine their availability against Leeds.
Alisson Becker will take his place in goal, with the hosts lining up in a 4-3-3 formation. Andrew Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold are automatic picks as the full-back pairing while Joe Gomez will partner Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the Liverpool defence.
Up ahead in midfield, James Milner has a chance to feature against his former club. If the ex-Leeds midfielder turns out for the Reds, he would have participated in each of the Whites’ last 31 Premier League fixtures. Milner, though, will likely be on the bench, with Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum and Naby Keita starting in the three-man midfield.
Finally, in attack, there is no looking past Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino in the three-pronged unit. Firmino will lead the line for Liverpool against Leeds, playing the false nine role, while Salah and Mane will be the two wide men looking to cut in and look for scoring opportunities.
4-3-3: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson; Keita, Fabinho, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane
Leeds United
Like his counterpart in the Liverpool dugout, Marcelo Bielsa has just one player on the sidelines, with Adam Forshaw missing out. However, in contrast to Jurgen Klopp, the Leeds United boss is on the cusp of having a fully fit squad, with Forshaw nearing his return from a long-term injury
Rodrigo, however, should come off the bench to make his debut, although Patrick Bamford will start as long as the Spanish international is not up to speed. In Koch’s absence, Bielsa has a very tricky decision to make, as to who pairs up with captain Liam Cooper in the central defensive partnership.
The natural options at Bielsa’s disposal are promoted youth players, meaning it is likely that Luke Ayling, the first-choice right-back starts as a makeshift centre-back. Ayling’s temporary move to the heart of the Leeds defence means Stuart Dallas gets a rare chance to play in his natural right-back slot. The jigsaw will be completed by deploying Barry Douglas on the left flank.
The selection in midfield and attack is more straightforward. Kalvin Phillips, who is the beating heart of the Leeds United side, will sit at the base of the midfield, looking to pull the strings when the opportunity presents itself. Mateusz Klich and Pablo Hernandez will be the other two starting midfielders for the visitors.
Klich will provide defensive support to Phillips while Hernandez will provide the creative spark and take up advanced positions during the offensive phase of the game. Bamford will lead the line for Leeds against Liverpool, with Helder Costa and Jack Harrison being the wide duo.
4-3-3: Meslier; Dallas, Ayling, Cooper, Douglas; Hernandez, Phillips, Klich; Costa, Bamford, Harrison
Key Stats
Liverpool are unbeaten in their opening Premier League fixture over the past seven seasons, winning six times.
Leeds United have never lost their first game of a Premier League season, winning five and drawing seven. No team has taken part in as many Premier League campaigns without ever losing their opening match. However, the winner of the previous season’s Championship has not won their first Premier League game since Sunderland beat Tottenham in 2007 (D3 L9).
Liverpool have begun their title defence with a defeat just once before, losing 2-0 to West Bromwich Albion in 1923. Meanwhile, the most recent newly-promoted side to win away at the reigning top-flight champions on the opening day were Notts County against Aston Villa in 1981.
Liverpool are unbeaten in a club record 59 Premier League fixtures at Anfield (W48 D11), with their last defeat coming against Crystal Palace in April 2017.
Mohamed Salah can become only the second player to score in his side’s opening fixture in four consecutive Premier League seasons. Teddy Sheringham did so with Nottingham Forest in 1992 and Tottenham Hotspur from 1993 to 1995.
