Liverpool FC begin the defense of their UEFA Champions League title Tuesday night with a trip to Napoli, a side that was also in their UCL grouping last term. The two sides split the 2018-19 meetings with each club winning 1-0 in their respective home leg.
The Reds will commence group E play as one of the leading contenders to win the entire tournament, and they’ll achieve their seventh European Cup/UCL title if they do so. However, they will be without the services of midfielder Naby Keita and starting goalkeeper Alisson.
Keita (hip injury sustained in the Super Cup triumph) has already been ruled out of this one, but he is inching closer to returning to full training. He is significantly ahead of Alisson (calf injury sustained in the Premier League season opening win over Norwich City) at this point.
Liverpool started slowly on the weekend versus Newcastle, but eventually got it going and cruised to a victory over the Magpies, in a match that showcased just how much Roberto Firmino is the man who makes the attack go. The European title holders will look to make sure they hit the ground running in midweek.
Of course, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp will also have to approach this match with one eye on the big league fixture next weekend, where they’ll face a Chelsea side that is also in UCL action that evening.
Liverpool FC Starting XI Prediction vs Napoli (UCL Group E Play)
Sadio Mane Roberto Firmino Mohamed Salah
Georginio Wijnaldum Fabinho Jordan Henderson
Andrew Robertson Virgil van Dijk Joel Matip Trent Alexander-Arnold
Adrian
Liverpool vs Napoli FYIs
Kickoff: Stadio San Paolo, Tuesday Sept 17, 8pm
Google Result Probability: Liverpool win 42%, Draw 27%, Valencia win 31%
Odds via Betway: Liverpool win 2.25, Draw 3.4, Napoli win 3.1
Prediction: Liverpool 2, Napoli 0
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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