LIVERPOOL VS. REAL MADRID
| Tuesday, November 4th |
Champions League, League Phase | Anfield
8PM BST/3PM EST
Last season the Reds played Real Madrid in a Champions League match in the midweek and played Manchester City at the weekend,
and last season the Reds beat them both.
This one will be much more of a challenge, and not just because of Liverpool’s form: as Arne Slot has pointed out in his pre-match press conference, the Real Madrid his side will face tomorrow is not suffering from the injury crisis that kept their best players out last season.
Real Madrid have won all three of their matches in this competition thus far this season, dispatching Juventus, Kairat Almaty, and Marseille (who are the only side who have managed to score on Madrid). They also sit first in La Liga having won 10 of the 11 played, losing only to Atletico Madrid 5-2 back at the end of September and beating both Barcelona (in second) and Villarreal (in third), albeit both at home.
In defense, Antonio Rüdiger should be unavailable for this one, and David Alaba is a doubt. The return of Trent Alexander-Arnold is of course the story of the matchweek, though it’s worth noting that he hasn’t been starting since his September injury — club captain Federico Valverde has been available, with the Uruguayan also putting in quite a few high-rated performances in recent weeks. Indeed, Valverde managed an 8.9(!) on FotMob in Real Madrid’s 4-0 demolition of Valencia this past Saturday, providing an assist to Jude Bellingham for Madrid’s third goal in a one-sided game that also included a missed penalty (incidentally, last time the Reds played Real Madrid, Kylian Mbappé and Mohamed Salah both missed penalties).
Real Madrid are in-form, and their best players are fully firing (though there is some chat about how the centrality of Kylian Mbappé has led to challenges for the formally central Vinicius Junior). Though imagining discord is certainly fun, it’s worth noting that what’s actually happening is that Madrid have accumulated an attack absolutely full of stars, with Bellingham, Mbappé, and Vinicius providing their own unique threats bolstered by dangerous fullbacks and the generally able hands of Aurélien Tchouaméni at the base of the midfield. Arda Guler is also one to watch, as he’s established some serious attacking chemistry with Mbappé. This is a formidable side, though it’s worth noting that Liverpool have tended to be better against the teams they know will be a challenge.
Come what may, it’s perhaps telling that the Reds have not drawn a single match in the last four against Real Madrid. More broadly, there have been no draws in any of Liverpool’s last 29 European group stage/league phase matches. Expect goals, expect a winner.
Predicted Liverpool Lineup (4-3-3)
Mamardashvili; Bradley, Konaté, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Wirtz; Salah, Ekitiké, Gakpo
Alisson Becker, Jeremie Frimpong, and Alexander Isak are all unavailable for Liverpool for the Tuesday evening kick-off, though Slot listed no other players with fitness concerns. The Liverpool manager will likely stick as close as possible to the line-up from the weekend’s Premier League win to build on the momentum, with perhaps a few minor tweaks. Florian Wirtz would want to come back in for Alexis Mac Allister, who will himself argue that his performance at the weekend — much improved as it was — should earn him another start.
A potential drawback for Wirtz’s inclusion is Xabi Alonso’s familiarity with the player: Alonso certainly knows what to expect from Wirtz, and thus may be more capable than most of planning to minimize his impact. Curtis Jones is back in training and will be in contention to start this one should Slot want to go for a taller XI, though Jones has also proven adept at making an impact off the bench.
Slot has been unwilling to rely on Andy Robertson over-much, likely balancing concerns for the older man accumulating too many minutes and a desire to get Miloš Kerkez up to speed. Fans would likely want to see Robertson here given Madrid’s skill in attack, but Kerkez being rotated back in would not be a surprise.
The returning Ryan Gravenberch and the ever-reliable Dominik Szoboszlai should start, though the latter looked exhausted at full time against Aston Villa and the former is returning from injury. As such, one or both might not play the full 90. Given Isak’s fitness, we can expect the front three will remain unchanged.
Last time these two teams met Liverpool did win, even if injuries affected the opposition — and that win ended an eight-match winless run against Madrid (D1 L7)
The Reds looked much improved at the weekend, and not just in the result: the communication seemed effective, in possession players seemed to know where to expect their teammates to be, and there was real fight and effort when it came to pressing and winning the second ball. This is a much bigger challenge, but the hope is that Liverpool will relish the challenge.
The Managers Have Their Say
Arne Slot: “It’s hard to compare this game with last season [when Liverpool won 2-0] because last season when they played here they had many injuries and now they don’t. Xabi [Alonso] is doing an incredible job, but Carlo Ancelotti did the same. They’ve added a few new players so that can always influence playing style a little but I saw last season a very good Real Madrid and I see that again now. They’re a very good team, but we are a very good team as well.”
Xabi Alonso: “It’s a European Clásico. Games against Liverpool was, because of their history, one of the games the fans look forward to seeing. Trent [Alexander-Arnold] and myself have our history here and it is always great to come to a place where they have loved you so much. We want a result.”
The Officials
Referee: István Kovács (ROU) Assistants: Mihai Marica (ROU), Ferencz Tunyogi (ROU) Fourth Official: Marcel Birsan (ROU) VAR: Bastian Dankert (GER) Assistant VAR: Fedayi San (SUI)
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