Predicted Liverpool Lineup To Face Watford On The Opening Day Of The 2017/18 Premier League Campaign
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool start their Premier League campaign this weekend as they travel to the Vicarage Road to face a Watford side that have made some decent additions to their squad in the transfer window. Marco Silva will hope to make a strong start at home and it will be a tough test for the Reds, who had a thrilling victory over Arsenal in the first game in the previous season. The German manager will not settle for anything less than three points.
Team News
English stars Nathaniel Clyne and Adam Lallana are both out injured and not expected to feature anytime soon. Star player Philippe Coutinho is still recovering from a back injury and might not be an option from the start while skipper Jordan Henderson, who missed the final pre-season game is expected to be back in action. Danny Ings and Daniel Sturridge are also expected to be available for selection.
Formation: 4-3-3
Manager: Jurgen Klopp
GK – Simon Mignolet
The Belgian international was solid for most of the previous season and should be the first choice for Liverpool yet again this campaign.
RB – Trent Alexander-Arnold
The injury to Nathaniel Clyne should give local boy Arnold a chance to shine and given his previous performances, he should have no trouble in this game.
CB – Joel Matip
The former Schalke man is easily the best centre-back at Anfield at the moment and he will be up against a physical Watford attack this weekend.
CB – Dejan Lovren
The lack of spending in the summer will see Dejan Lovren partner Joel Matip at the back yet again and Lovren will hope to make a strong first impression in this tie.
LB – James Milner
Though Andrew Robertson has been impressive in the pre-season, Klopp might not want to throw him into the mix straight away and should stick with Milner for this tie.
CDM – Jordan Henderson
The skipper missed the last game of the pre-season with a back problem but that was precautionary and he should be fit enough to start as the deepest midfielder for Liverpool.
CM – Georginio Wijnaldum
The Dutch international has established himself as one of the most exciting midfielders at the club and he is expected to be a regular starter for Liverpool until English star Adam Lallana comes back to action.
CM – Emre Can
The German beast should start alongside Henderson and Wijnaldum but he is not the first choice as he could be replaced by Coutinho if he is declared fit to play this weekend.
RW – Mohamed Salah
The new buy for Liverpool, Salah will be the only new addition to start this game for the Liverpool team that played the final game of the previous season.
LW – Sadio Mane
The Senegalese winger is still not fully fit but he is expected to start on the left wing. But he might only last for an hour in this tie.
ST – Robert Firmino
The Brazilian false-9 has worked wonders for Liverpool and he will hope to make a goalscoring start to the campaign for Liverpool.