Liverpool are looking for a third win in a row when they host FC Midtjylland on Tuesday night. In the midst of an extremely busy part of the schedule, the match could give Liverpool a chance to rotate their squad against a team that should defeat.
Upon perusing the team news, you’ll see that the Reds do have a few fitness concerns, so some squad rotation here would be optimal.
Goalkeeper
To the surprise of many, Alisson returned from injury to start against Sheffield United. He looked strong in his return, commanding his penalty area and only allowing a controversial penalty in the first half.
After injuring his shoulder in training, Alisson was expected to miss 4-6 weeks, but the Brazilian keeper returned in three. He said Monday he feels 100 percent, and will get the start against Midtjylland.
Defense
Joel Matip is again unavailable due to a muscle injury. Fabinho conceded the penalty against Sheffield, but he and Joe Gomez appear to have a decent partnership at centerback.
Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold have played a lot of matches and are due for a break here coming up. Both Kostas Tsimikas and Neco Williams are available to play.
Williams is more likely than Tsimikas to start in a Champions League game, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Greek left back make an appearance.
Midfield
Naby Keita and Thiago are both unavailable, limiting some of the midfield options Liverpool has.
On Saturday, Liverpool played a 4-2-3-1 against Sheffield, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them try something similar on Tuesday.
But Curtis Jones and James Milner both should get starts, and don’t really fit in a two-man midfield. Gini Wijnaldum or Jordan Henderson will start with them, and Liverpool will go back to its 4-3-3.
Forwards
It is doubtful Liverpool use their normal front-3 for a full 90 in this match.
Klopp could do what he did at Ajax, giving them 60 minutes and then pulling them off, but there is also a strong chance he does the reverse.
Games like Tuesday are perfect opportunities to use your squad depth to keep legs fresh.
Diogo Jota has proved to be a strong signing, scoring the winner on Saturday. This is also a great chance for Takumi Minamino and Xherdan Shaqiri to get minutes.
Predicted Liverpool XI vs FC Midtjylland(4-3-3): Alisson, Andy Robertson, Joe Gomez, Fabinho, Neco Williams, James Milner, Gini Wijnaldum, Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota, Takumi Minamino, Xherdan Shaqiri.