Jurgen Klopp has made five changes to his Liverpool lineup for Saturday’s final clash of 2017 at home to Leicester City in the Premier League.
The Reds will be looking to round off the year with a win as they take on mid-table Leicester at Anfield, with new signing Virgil van Dijk watching on.
Van Dijk, a club-record £75 million arrival from Southampton, is at the stadium to watch his new team-mates ahead of his move being completed on New Year’s Day.
Before the game, Klopp suggested the Dutchman would be carefully managed on his switch to Merseyside, and he will have been given a taste of the manager’s rotation on Saturday.
Klopp has named a much-changed side to that which mauled Swansea City 5-0 at the same ground on Boxing Day.
IN: Karus, Lovren, Gomez, Milner, Mane
OUT: Mignolet, Klavan, Alexander-Arnold, Wijnaldum Oxlade-Chamberlain
Loris Karius comes in to take Simon Mignolet‘s place between the sticks, with Klopp extending his approach to his goalkeepers to accommodate both mental and physical fatigue.
And Dejan Lovren returns to the back four, alongside Joel Matip at centre-back, flanked by Joe Gomez and Andrew Robertson.
With Jordan Henderson absent through injury, Emre Can is retained in the No. 6 role, joined by James Milner and Philippe Coutinho.
Coutinho will provide the ammunition for his fellow ‘Fab Four’ members, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, with Klopp setting his sights on an end-of-year blitz.
Liverpool: Karius; Gomez, Matip, Lovren, Robertson; Can, Milner, Coutinho; Salah, Mane, Firmino
Substitutes: Mignolet, Klavan, Alexander-Arnold, Wijnaldum, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Solanke
Leicester City: Schmeichel; Amartey, Maguire, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Iborra, Ndidi, Albrighton; Gray, Vardy
Substitutes: Hamer, Dragovic, Slimani, Okazaki, James, Thomas, Musa
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