With a couple of midfield doubts, Jurgen Klopp has some decisions to make as he selects a Liverpool side to beat Toulouse.
With nine points from nine, Liverpool have made light work of their Europa League so far.
This should allow them to rest key players in their final matches, but Klopp will still be conscious of needing to finish top of the group to avoid an extra play-off round.
Here’s how Liverpool could line up vs. Toulouse.
Team news
What we learned from Wednesday training and Klopp’s press conference:
- Curtis Jones missed training on Wednesday due to a hamstring issue and hasn’t travelled with the squad
- Virgil van Dijk is out due to illness
- Ryan Gravenberch is also out with a knee problem
- Luis Diaz should be available to play but that is subject to the ongoing situation with his father
- Conor Bradley took part in light training but is still some way off a return
Liverpool’s XI vs. Toulouse
Midfielders are becoming thin on the ground for Klopp to choose from. With Dominik Szoboszlai arguably needing rest to avoid injury, Wataru Endo should come in to play alongside Harvey Elliott and Alexis Mac Allister.
Klopp also has decisions to make in defence; Jarell Quansah will feel worthy of a start after his performance against Bournemouth in the League Cup.
With Joe Gomez having played the last two matches, and the Premier League centre-back partnership firmly set as Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip is set to play this one.
Here is how Liverpool will likely line up:
- Endo returns to the team after scoring in the home match vs. Toulouse
- Ben Doak is fit to play and replaces Mo Salah on the right
- Mac Allister starts as he is suspended for Sunday’s Premier League match
This is how Liverpool would look:
Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Quansah, Tsimikas; Endo, Elliott, Mac Allister; Doak, Gakpo, Jota
There are, of course, other options for Klopp, and he could opt to give Luke Chambers another chance after the young left-back played 67 minutes in the home match vs. Toulouse, two weeks ago.
- Gomez plays right-back with no international duty next week most likely
- Caoimhin Kelleher remains in goal, having started each Europa League game he has been fit for this season
- Diaz feels ready to start a game – his father is still being held hostage
Here’s how this alternate team would look:
Kelleher; Gomez, Matip, Quansah, Chambers; Endo, Elliott, Mac Allister; Doak, Gakpo, Diaz
In comparison to previous Europa League fixtures, injuries and conspiring factors have meant this team is slightly easier to predict than in recent weeks.
Whichever players Liverpool field, they should have more than enough quality to beat Toulouse. However, we all know football doesn’t necessarily work like that.
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