Rhian Brewster scored his fourth goal in 120 minutes of pre-season on Friday, but Liverpool suffered their first loss of the summer at the hands of Dortmund.
Liverpool 2-3 Dortmund
Pre-Season Friendly (3), Notre Dame Stadium
July 19, 2019
Goals
Alcacer 3′ (assist – Clyne)
Wilson 35′ (assist – Fabinho)
Delaney 53′ (assist – Hazard)
Bruun Larsen 58′ (assist – Wolf)
Brewster pen 75′ (assist – Woodburn)
The blistering heat in Indiana seemingly affected the Reds in the early minutes, as a sleeping Nathaniel Clyne allowed Dortmund into a dangerous position in the box and, with Joel Matip also slow, Paco Alcacer hammered home.
Liverpool looked to peg their opponents back immediately, and Matip sent a powerful header just wide of goal, before a lightning break from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain saw Ryan Kent denied by Marwin Hitz.
Oxlade-Chamberlain showed some bright touches and a nice burst of pace which suggests he has not lost it following his long injury layoff, but Dortmund remained in control up to the half-hour water break.
When they returned, the Reds pressed hard for a leveller, and it soon came after more great work from the No. 15, with Fabinho eventually threading the ball through for Harry Wilson, via Kent’s dummy, with the Welshman slotting it past Hitz.
That saw the two sides into half-time at 1-1, after a strong save from Simon Mignolet to keep out Mario Gotze.
- Alcacer opens scoring within three minutes after comical defending
- Wilson restores parity following intelligent dummy from Kent
- Delaney and Larsen put Dortmund two goals up, Klopp makes 10 changes
- Brewster hammers in expert penalty; his fourth strike of pre-season
- Sevilla next for Liverpool in Boston, July 21
Dortmund made an array of changes at the break but Klopp opted to send out the same XI, as the senior players and youngsters who reported back for the first day of pre-season hit the next level of fitness.
Mignolet was drawn into another stretching save in the opening stages of the second half, but his goal was breached once again soon after as Thorgan Hazard’s cross evaded a sloppy Liverpool back line and Thomas Delaney tapped in.
Jacob Bruun Larsen made it 3-1 after some more lax defending from the Reds, before Klopp made 10 substitutions on the hour, with Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson, Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum all on.
A top-class cross from Adam Lewis caused havoc in the Dortmund box, and with Ben Woodburn brought down in the aftermath, Brewster stepped up to fire in a perfect penalty for his fourth goal of pre-season.
It wasn’t enough to inspire a comeback, and Mignolet kept himself in the shop window with another great stop to keep out Manuel Pherai, as Liverpool fell to a first loss of pre-season.
TIA Man of the Match: Rhian Brewster
Liverpool: Mignolet; Clyne (Alexander-Arnold 60′), Matip (Van Dijk 60′), Gomez (Lovren 60′), Larouci (Robertson 60′); Fabinho (Wijnaldum 60′), Oxlade-Chamberlain (Henderson 60′), Milner (Lewis 60′); Wilson (Jones 60′), Kent (Woodburn 60′), Origi (Brewster 60′)
Subs not used: Lonergan, Atherton, Phillips, Hoever
Next Match: Sevilla (N) – Pre-Season Friendly (4) – Sunday, July 21, 11pm (BST)
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