Overview
After being criticized for fielding a squad of many young players and reserves in the match against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup, Arne Slot was forced to win against Aston Villa in the Premier League to dispel doubts.
The Dutch coach is at risk of becoming the first Liverpool coach to suffer 5 consecutive defeats in the Premier League. However, he eventually received the right reaction.
Mohamed Salah's 250th goal and Ryan Gravenberch's goal helped The Kop defeat Aston Villa, ending a series of gloomy days.
Although Unai Emery's team partly lost the opportunity, Liverpool's clearly improved performance still showed signs of revival. This is only their second win in their last 8 matches in all competitions, but it is enough to ease the pressure on Slot.
Previously, a big 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League helped Liverpool rise to the top group. That win also extended their 15-game winning streak at home in the group stage of their European Cup.
Before Paris St-Germain extinguished Liverpool's Champions League dream last season, The Kop created a memorable milestone. They beat Real Madrid 2-0 at Anfield, ending an eight-match losing streak against Los Blancos.
The Royal team has won all 3 matches in the Champions League this season against Marseille, Kairat and Juventus, and is leading the race for the La Liga championship after a series of sublime matches. In which, there was a resounding 4-0 victory over Valencia just a few days after defeating Barcelona in El Clasico.
Real Madrid have won 13/14 matches in all competitions this season. The only defeat was the confusing 2-5 loss to Atletico Madrid.
Although PSG, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Arsenal all have more impressive numbers than Los Blancos, no one dares to underestimate Real Madrid. Because history has proven that they are always a formidable force in the most prestigious tournament in Europe.
Personnel situation
Ryan Gravenberch's return from an ankle injury is a positive for Liverpool fans. However, Alexander Isak and Curtis Jones are still sidelined with groin injuries, and Slot rated them as having a 0.01% chance of playing.
The 72-hour gap between matches makes both almost certain to be absent in the upcoming match. Meanwhile, Alisson Becker (hamstring), Giovanni Leoni (crossing ligament rupture) and Jeremie Frimpong (hamstring) are still undergoing treatment.
Slot's decision to bench Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez against Aston Villa paid off, so Alexis Mac Allister and Andy Robertson are likely to continue to be in the starting lineup.
On the other side, Xabi Alonso also has a headache when he lost three defensive pillars Dani Carvajal (knee), Antonio Rudiger (ight) and David Alaba (footed). Of these, only Alaba has little hope to return.
Carvajal has already reached the end of his Champions League suspension, but due to injury and a until 2026, Trent Alexander-Arnold is eager to start against his former team.
However, the English defender has not played a single minute since recovering from a hamstring injury. If Arnold's fitness is not guaranteed, Federico Valverde may continue to drop to right-back.
Expected lineup:
Liverpool: Mamardashvili, Bradley, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson, Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo, Ekitike.
Real Madrid: Courtois, Alexander-Arnold, Militao, Huijsen, Carreras, Valverde, Tchouameni, Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Mbappe.
The match between Liverpool and Real Madrid takes place at 3:00 am on November 5 (Vietnam time).
