Overview
After the penalty defeat against Crystal Palace in the English Super Cup match - the first official match of the 2025-2026 season - Liverpool immediately responded strongly with a series of 7 consecutive victories in both the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup.
However, even in that sublimation phase, worrying signs appeared. Liverpool had to wait for late goals many times to finalize the results, and dependence on the final moments of the match also caused their form to decline significantly.
Crystal Palace once again defeated Liverpool, thereby causing the first defeat of the reigning Premier League champion in the sixth round. After that fall was a series of gloomy days. They only had 3 wins in the next 12 matches in all competitions, along with 9 defeats - a statistic enough to turn The Kop's season into an urgent problem.
Arne Slot finally helped Liverpool escape that "tunnel". Currently, his team is on a 10-match unbeaten streak in all competitions (5 wins, 5 draws). However, the question has not disappeared. Liverpool drew all 3 recent matches before this confrontation. Slot certainly wants his players to return to the winning streak, and avoid the scenario of being eliminated from the FA Cup for the second consecutive season.
Last season, Liverpool became a victim of one of the biggest shocks in the FA Cup when losing to Plymouth Argyle 0-1 in the 4th round. Therefore, the third round this year is not only a story of going further, but also a test of bravery and concentration against lower-rated opponents.
In the opposite direction, Barnsley entered the match with a challenging 2025-2026 season. They are ranked 17th in League One after 21 matches, with 8 wins, 5 draws and 8 losses. However, Barnsley still has a chance to improve their rankings thanks to playing fewer than some opponents around them, with at least 3 unbeaten matches compared to many teams right above.
The problem lies in current form. Barnsley has not won in their last 4 matches (3 defeats, 1 draw), and their away record is particularly alarming. They only have 2 wins in their last 12 away trips, with 6 defeats and 4 draws.
In that context, welcoming a Liverpool that is eager to cut the draw and relieve pressure at the FA Cup, Barnsley understands that they need an almost perfect performance if they want to dream of surprise.
Personnel situation
Liverpool entered the match with a significant injury list, when Alexander Isak, Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, Hugo Ekitike, Stefan Bajcetic and Wataru Endo were all unprepared. Mohamed Salah is also still on duty in the African Cup, making Arne Slot's attacking options narrower.
In the context of being clearly rated higher and only having to face a lower-ranked opponent, Slot is likely to rotate the squad. This opens up the opportunity to start for some young or less used faces such as Trey Nyoni, Rio Ngumoha and Calvin Ramsay.
On the other side, Barnsley suffered an important loss when Luca Connell was suspended due to a direct red card in the most recent match against Wigan Athletic.
In addition to this case, the rest of the squad is expected to be in good physical condition, because Barnsley has not played since the beginning of the new year due to 2 matches against Port Vale and Wycombe Wanderers being postponed.
Expected lineup:
Mamardashvili, Ramsay, Gomez, Robertson, Kerkez, Nyoni, Mac Allister, Frimpong, Jones, Ngumoha, Chiesa.
Mahoney, Watson, Gevigney, Shepherd, Earl, Phillips, Bland, Jalo, Kelly, McGoldrick, Keillor-Dunn.
The match between Liverpool and Barnsley takes place at 2:45 AM on January 13 (Vietnam time).
