Overview
Liverpool had a not really stable start under Andoni Iraola, but the 2-0 victory over Ipswich Town brought the necessary boost before the Champions League opening match against Atletico Madrid.
The Kop have won 2 points after two comebacks against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest, with a 2-2 draw. In the away match against Ipswich Town last week, Iraola's team had their first victory when Alexander Isak scored a double in just the first 9 minutes of the match.
Isak's performance helped Iraola avoid becoming Liverpool's first coach since Brendan Rodgers to fail in all 3 Premier League opening matches. The Spanish coach admitted that Liverpool "needs that victory with the current situation".
Iraola is now preparing to lead Liverpool for the first time in the Champions League. The team that has won the European championship 6 times aims to go further than the quarter-finals last season and end 8 years of waiting for the most prestigious title at European club level.
Liverpool also possesses impressive scoring efficiency. Including last season, they have scored in the last 9 official matches in all competitions, including 6 matches scoring at least 2 goals. This series of matches started after Liverpool were eliminated by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarter-finals in April with a total score of 0-4.
The Anfield home team also has good results in the Champions League group stage in the past two seasons. Liverpool topped the group stage in the 2024-2025 season and ranked third last season, with 6 wins after 8 matches. They also won 6 consecutive matches against Spanish opponents in the group stage, keeping 4 clean sheets in the last 5 matches.
In the opposite direction, Atletico Madrid suffered a heavy defeat against Athletic Bilbao. After winning 7 points in the first 3 matches in La Liga, Diego Simeone's team lost 0-3 away last week.
Atletico is famous for their aggressive play and solid defense, but Simeone is not satisfied with their performance in the second half. The Argentine coach sees this defeat as "a real warning" as Atletico has conceded 6 goals in the second half in the last 3 matches.
Simeone is the coach with the longest term in office among the teams participating in the Champions League this season. He has led Atletico since December 2011 and is aiming to bring the team that has failed 3 times in the Champions League final, and also reached the semi-finals last season, winning the championship for the first time.
Atletico will be guests against Liverpool with the goal of winning the first victory in Champions League group stage history against an English team. In the previous 10 encounters, they have drawn 4 and lost 6.
However, Atletico still has reason to believe in their scoring ability at Anfield. The Spanish team has only been goalless 2 times in the last 24 matches in the Champions League group stage. They have also only not scored once in the last 5 away games at Anfield, with a record of 1 win, 1 draw and 3 losses.
Expected lineup:
Alisson, Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk, Kerkez, Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Barcola, Wirtz, Gakpo, Isak.
Atletico Madrid: Oblak, Llorente, Pubill, Romero, Grimaldo, Koke, Hjulmand, Simeone, Baena, Lookman, David.
The match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid takes place at 2:00 AM on September 10 (Vietnam time).
