Liverpool will play their first pre-season friendly of the summer against Preston on Sunday afternoon, with the match taking place amid a time of extreme sadness for the Reds.
It’ll be the first time that the Premier League champions have played since the tragic deaths of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva in a car crash in northern Spain on 3 July, and a series of tributes will take place at Deepdale prior to kick-off at 3pm.
A few of LFC’s summer signings could make their first appearance for the club tomorrow on what’ll be a hugely emotional occasion in Lancashire.
The nature of pre-season friendlies means that everyone in the matchday squad could be given a runout at some point, but we’ve taken a look at who might be included in the starting XI for Liverpool against Preston.
Liverpool predicted XI to face Preston
Goalkeeper: Giorgi Mamardashvili
The first potential debutant may be the Georgian goalkeeper, who could finally take to the pitch for the Reds almost a year on from signing for them, with his transfer from Valencia officially taking effect at the start of this month.
Alisson Becker is still set to be Liverpool’s first-choice stopper for the 2025/26 season, so Slot might want to have a look at Mamardashvili in non-competitive action before then.
Defenders: Jeremie Frimpong, Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez
There could also be a first LFC appearance for Frimpong – who joined from Bayer Leverkusen within a week of the Premier League trophy being presented at Anfield in May – and Kerkez, who’ll be hoping to establish himself as Slot’s first-choice option at left-back.
In contrast to the firm possibility of two new full-backs starting, the central defensive partnership could comprise two of our longest-serving players in Gomez, who’s now entering his 11th year as a Liverpool player, and inspirational captain Van Dijk.
Midfielders: Alexis Mac Allister, Wataru Endo, Florian Wirtz
Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch formed a Rolls-Royce of a central midfield partnership last season, but with the Dutchman suspended for our first Premier League match next month, Slot might be keen to test out a few candidates to partner the Argentine when we play Bournemouth at Anfield on 15 August.
We reckon the 2022 World Cup winner will start against Preston, and Endo could be the man to partner him. The Japan captain may get an opportunity to feature from the first whistle, having been renowned as a ‘closer’ to come off the bench and help Liverpool to see out narrow victories last term.
We could also get a first look at the Reds’ record signing in £116m man Wirtz, whose arrival in June generated huge excitement among the fan base. At the time, nobody could’ve envisaged his debut coming in such sombre circumstances, but hopefully he can give us a glimpse tomorrow of why LFC broke the bank to bring him in.
Forwards: Mo Salah, Federico Chiesa, Cody Gakpo
Salah’s involvement might be restricted to 45 minutes – he surely won’t play the full match – but a Liverpool team sheet without him in it would raise eyebrows. Regardless of the fixture, he almost always seems to start whenever he’s available. On the other flank, we’re expecting Gakpo to get the nod.
The decision as to who starts at centre-forward will be a poignant one following Jota’s tragic death. Having not had a pre-season last year due to being frozen out at Juventus, and then coming to Merseyside cold, we’d like to see Chiesa getting the nod to start tomorrow.
Other Liverpool players who could feature
Slot might give minutes to either of the other two goalkeepers who signed for Liverpool last month, Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman.
Conor Bradley and Kostas Tsimikas could also feature in the full-back positions, and one academy prospect who could potentially get a runout is Amara Nallo. With the Reds having just three centre-backs after the exit of Jarell Quansah, the 18-year-old might hope to break into first-team contention more regularly during the season.
Curtis Jones, Dominik Szoboszlai and James McConnell could also be given minutes, with our midfield options lessened by the absences of Stefan Bajcetic (still out after hamstring surgery), Harvey Elliott and Tyler Morton (not back training yet due to England under-21 involvement in June).
Amid reports of a potential contract extension, Rio Ngumoha might be hoping to get a runout at Deepdale tomorrow. Elsewhere in attack, two teenagers seeking to make up for lost time are Ben Doak and Jayden Danns, who both suffered season-ending injuries in the winter and are back at Liverpool after their respective loans to Middlesbrough and Sunderland.
Experienced names such as Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, Andy Robertson, Ibrahima Konate, Alisson and Gravenberch could also feature, but Slot may prefer to take a more extensive look at younger or less familiar options in pre-season.
