Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen – LIVE!
Liverpool tonight host German champions Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League. The Reds have won three from three in Europe so far this season as Arne Slot continues to impress and tonight’s clash will be an interesting measuring post.
Indeed, former Reds star Xabi Alonso was initially tipped to be the man to replace Jurgen Klopp when he called time on his tenure at Anfield earlier this year. The Leverkusen boss won this competition as a player at Liverpool and led the German side to an unbeaten domestic double last season, establishing himself as one of the most exciting young managers in world football.
Still, it’s Slot who is taking to life on Merseyside well and a win here would see his Liverpool team take another huge step towards automatic qualification for the knockout stages. Follow all the action LIVE with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog!
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen latest news
Kick-off time and venue: 8pm GMT; Anfield
TV channel and live stream: Amazon Prime
Prediction: Liverpool to win
Confirmed Liverpool lineup
Confirmed Bayer Leverkusen lineup
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
21:17 , Jonathan Gorrie
57 mins: Salah skews a shot way wide after good work from Gakpo.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
21:17 , Jonathan Gorrie
56 mins: It’s relatively flat here.
Liverpool are seeing a lot more of the ball but are being frustrated.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
21:09 , Jonathan Gorrie
49 mins: Much more intense from the hosts in the second half but their final ball is lacking…
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
21:09 , Jonathan Gorrie
Back underway!
HT: Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:50 , Jonathan Gorrie
45 mins: No goals at the break!
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:48 , Jonathan Gorrie
45 mins: Gakpo’s shot at the near post after a Liverpool break is saved by Hradecky.
DISALLOWED GOAL!
20:44 , Jonathan Gorrie
41 mins: Jeremie Frimpong races through after a long ball and finishes well, though it’s ruled out for a handball in the build up.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:41 , Jonathan Gorrie
40 mins: Like against Brighton on Saturday, Slot will be telling his Liverpool players to up the intensity in the second-half.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:37
36 mins: Leverkusen clear the corner and look to counter but hit the ball straight out of play.
Sums up the game so far!
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:36 , Jonathan Gorrie
35 mins: The wall does its job and deflects the free-kick over the bar.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:34 , Jonathan Gorrie
33 mins: Diaz does well to win a free-kick off Xhaka just outside the Leverkusen box…
Trent Alexander-Arnold territory!
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:31 , Jonathan Gorrie
30 mins: Liverpool can’t quite get a foot in here. Leverkusen aren’t giving them a second to think.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:28
25 mins: A lovely outside of the boot cross from Salah is half cleared and Mac Allister looks for a volley, though can’t quite connect.
Slight sign of encouragement for the Reds after a flat few minutes.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:22 , Jonathan Gorrie
20 mins: Good spell for Leverkusen, with Wirtz seeing a lot of the ball.
The Germany star feeds a lovely ball into an onrushing Frimpong in the Liverpool box and Van Dijk comes across, with the Leverkusen star hitting the deck.
Nothing given, however.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:20 , Jonathan Gorrie
18 mins: Fireworks ring out into the Liverpool night but things are yet to really get going here.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:16 , Jonathan Gorrie
15 mins: Tapsoba tries his luck from range but Kelleher is equal to it.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:15 , Jonathan Gorrie
13 mins: Diaz drives infield and finds Salah, who squares back to Jones.
His shot, however, is easily saved. Still, a nice move from the hosts!
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:12 , Jonathan Gorrie
10 mins: Hradecky has just sent a free-kick straight out play, much to the delight of the Anfield faithful.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:10 , Jonathan Gorrie
08 mins: Liverpool are looking very dangerous going forward but Frimpong is giving them something to think about on the counter.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:07 , Jonathan Gorrie
05 mins: First real Liverpool chance as Diaz drives though the middle and frees Gakpo, though his shot back across goal is saved.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:05
04 mins: Gakpo, urged to shoot from range by the Anfield, takes too long on the ball and ultimately sees his shot blocked.
Liverpool 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
20:03 , Jonathan Gorrie
01 mins: First sight of goal for the away side as Frimpong squares the ball across to Boniface, though he skews his shot wide.
KICK-OFF!
20:01 , Jonathan Gorrie
Away we go!
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen
19:51 , Jonathan Gorrie
Closing in on kick-off! Around ten minutes to go.
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen
19:16 , Jonathan Gorrie
Arne Slot’s pre-match thoughts…
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen
19:13 , Jonathan Gorrie
Taking in the surroundings!
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen
19:03 , Jonathan Gorrie
Here come the Reds!
Confirmed Bayer Leverkusen lineup
18:56 , Jonathan Gorrie
Bayer Leverkusen XI: Hradecky, Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie, Frimpong, Palacios, Xhaka, Grimaldo, Wirtz, Garcia, Boniface
Subs: Kovar, Lomb, Hofmann, Andrich, Arthur, Schick, Tella, Onyeka
Confirmed Liverpool lineup
18:49 , Jonathan Gorrie
Liverpool XI: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Gravenberch, Jones, Mac Allister; Salah, Diaz, Gakpo
Subs: Jaros, Davies, Gomez, Endo, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Robertson, Quansah, Morton, Bradley
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen
18:35 , Jonathan Gorrie
Another huge night at Anfield!
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen: Arne Slot sends Xabi Alonso message
18:04 , Jonathan Gorrie
The Liverpool boss was full of praise for Xabi Alonso…
“Bayer Leverkusen are a side which has the ability to hurt any opponent so we have to be ready for this reality and face up to it with as much energy, quality and intensity that we can produce,” said Slot.
“Everyone in football was impressed with what Leverkusen did last season. How could you not be? To become champions of Germany is a wonderful achievement in itself but to do so without losing a single game makes it even more remarkable.
“They also had to show all of the characteristics of champions. There were games in which they were dominant, games in which they were not at their best but still found a way, and games in which their quality was so high that it was impossible not to view them as one of the strongest teams in Europe.”
Arne Slot reacts to Mohamed Salah’s cryptic Instagram post as Liverpool future is questioned
18:01 , Jonathan Gorrie
Arne Slot says he is not reading too much into Mohamed Salah’s apparent cryptic social media post with regard to his Liverpool future.
The Egyptian forward is out of contract at the end of the season and the worry for Reds supporters, as things currently stand, is he will be able to speak to potential suitors outside of England and sign a pre-contract agreement from January 2025.
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen: Latest Champions League odds tonight
17:57 , Jonathan Gorrie
Liverpool to win: 4/6
Draw: 16/5
Bayer Leverkusen to win: 18/5
Odds via Betfair and subject to change.
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen: Head to head (h2h) history and results
17:42 , Jonathan Gorrie
Liverpool wins: 3
Draws: 0
Leverkusen wins: 1
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen: Champions League score prediction today
17:32 , Jonathan Gorrie
The German champions will no doubt provide a stern test but Liverpool have been far too strong to overlook, especially at home.
There are chinks in their armour – with the manner of their victories over the past few weeks not as emphatic as previously – but Alonso’s side are this season struggling to turn draws into wins, which is the opposite of last season, so we’re giving the Reds the edge.
Liverpool to win, 2-1.
Liverpool team news vs Bayer Leverkusen today
17:31 , Jonathan Gorrie
Liverpool have been handed a major injury boost ahead of tonight’s Champions League clash against Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.
Ibrahima Konate is available for selection after he took to social media on Sunday to allay any injury fears after he was forced off at half-time against Brighton.
The defender had used his shirt as a makeshift sling to support his left arm after he came off worse from a clash at a corner.
However, Arne Slot said at his pre-match press conference: “He’s available to play. I think he’s completely recovered so he can play. Then it’s up to me to make the decision if he plays or not. He’s in a good place.”
Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen: TV channel and live stream for Champions League tonight
17:31 , Jonathan Gorrie
TV channel: The game will be broadcast on Amazon Prime.
Live stream: Subscribers will be able to watch on a live stream via the Amazon Prime website and app.
LIVE coverage: Follow all the action with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog!
Welcome
17:12 , Jonathan Gorrie
Good evening and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Liverpool’s clash with Bayer Leverkusen.
Kick-off in the Champions League at Anfield tonight is at 8pm GMT.
