Liverpool predicted line-up vs Crystal Palace - Arne Slot with nine changes as key Florian Wirtz decision made
The latest Liverpool team news, injury update and predicted XI ahead of their Premier League clash against Crystal Palace
Premier League leaders Liverpool are hoping to continue their 100 percent start to the domestic season when they face Crystal Palace in a challenging away match at Selhurst Park this weekend.
Crystal Palace, technically speaking, are the only team to beat the Reds across all competitions. Although it largely depends whether you class the Community Shield as a competitive outing or a glorified friendly. The Eagles came back from behind on two occasions to secure a 2-2 draw with Arne Slot’s side and ultimately proved to be the more composed of the two sides in a nail-biting penalty shoot-out win at the end. It’s not the first time Palace have caused Liverpool problems under Oliver Glasner. The capital side earned a 1-1 draw at the end of last season and notably managed to defeat the Reds at Anfield a year earlier in the 2023/24 campaign.
The fixture is likely to be heavily centered around the performance of centre-back Marc Guehi, The Palace skipper was denied a £35m move to Anfield at the eleventh hour, despite being partway through his medical.
Slot made a number of changes to his team in the Carabao Cup victory over Southampton, but was handed a selection headache late on when Hugo Ektike was sent-off for taking his shirt off while celebrating the winning goal. Ahead of kick-off we take a look at how that might influence Liverpool’s tactical set-up ahead of what promises to be a captivating game of football between the only two unbeaten teams in the top-flight.
Liverpool predicted line-up vs Crystal Palace - goalkeeper and defence
GK: Alisson Becker: The Liverpool number one, who has an excellent track record in between the posts, replaces Georgi Mamardashvili in the starting line-up after the Georgian helped the team to a cup win against Southampton.
RB: Jeremie Frimpong: Liverpool went with Conor Bradley for the game against Everton but it’s likely that Jeremie Frimpong in the long run will be first choice. It’s an interesting battle that one, particularly as Arne Slot has to keep his squad as fresh as possible for the trip to Galatasaray on Tuesday.
CB: Virgil van Dijk: Club captain Virgil van Dijk has been first choice for a number of seasons now. He had a rest in midweek against Southampton but leads the team against Palace where he’ll face the task of trying to silence Jean-Philippe Mateta.
CB: Ibrahima Konate: French international Ibrahima Konate is expected to play alongside Virgil van Dijk. The Reds are without youngster Giovanni Leoni for a number of months now with what’s suspected to be an ACL injury, leaving Joe Gomez as the only reserve in that area.
LB: Milos Kerkez: The Hungary international played the full 90 minutes against Everton and looked more like the player we saw at Bournemouth last term. He’s still settling in but seems to be ahead of Andrew Robertson, who played in mid-week instead.
Liverpool predicted line-up vs Crystal Palace - midfield and attack
CM: Ryan Gravenberch: Netherlands international Ryan Gravenberch was a class above during the Merseyside derby. He scored and assisted in the clash, and is likely to start after being rested in the Carabao Cup.
CM: Alexis Mac Allister: World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister is expected to feature in the heart of midfield. He’s been excellent for the Reds in recent seasons and was a key component in last term’s title triumph.
CAM: Dominik Szoboszlai: The Hungary international was favoured ahead of Florian Wirtz on derby day and could once again start ahead of the German at Selhurst Park. He’s scored one goal in five matches so far - a stunning free-kick against Arsenal.
LW: Cody Gakpo: The Dutchman has struggled for spark in recent matches but remains a vital attacking player. He’s almost certain to start on the wing after being rested in mid-week, particularly following Hugo Ekitike’s red card.
ST: Alexander Isak: The Premier League’s most expensive player scored in mid-week against Southampton and now has a test to prove whether he’s fit enough to play twice in the same week after going on strike in pre-season to force his move.
RW: Mohamed Salah: The best in the business last season. Mohamed Salah may have been snubbed for the Ballon d’Or but there’s no doubting he’s Liverpool’s No.1 attacking player. Two goals and two assists from five matches is his record so far, and most are labelling this a slow start for his standards.