Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp admits team lacks confidence
It’s an all-British affair in the Champions League tonight as Liverpool host Rangers in Group A. The Reds bounced back from their opening matchday defeat to Napoli with a 2-1 victory against Ajax - thanks to Joel Matip’s 89th minute winner - and sit second in the group ahead of this evening’s clash.
Rangers, meanwhile, have lost both of their first two fixtures in Europe’s top competition conceding seven goals across ties with Napoli and Ajax. It’s been a bruising return to the Champions League for the Scottish side, but they’ll take some confidence into this fixture thanks to a 4-0 mauling of Hearts in the Scottish Premiership at the weekend.
It’s also a good time to visit Anfield with Jurgen Klopp’s team looking defensively weak and struggling to find any sort of rhythm. Out of the five games they’ve played at home this season Liverpool have kept just one clean sheet, but they’ll be hoping to rectify that against the Gers and get their campaign back on track. Can Rangers capitalise on Liverpool’s frailties, or will the Reds sweep Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men aside tonight?
Follow all the action from the Champions League as Liverpool host Rangers at Anfield:
Liverpool 1-0 Rangers
16 mins: Close! Allan McGregor is called into action after Liverpool flick the ball over to Mo Salah. He receives the ball just past the halfway line and carries up to the penalty area.
He comes inside and rolls it onto his left foot unopposed before firing one towards the far bottom corner. McGregor drops low to his right and gets a glancing touch on the ball managing to push it wide of goal.
Liverpool 1-0 Rangers
13 mins: Chance! Luis Diaz cuts in from the left side and moves the ball into a central area. John Lundstram and Steven Davis drop away from him allowing Diaz enough room to take a shot and he curls his effort just wide of the far post.
Liverpool 1-0 Rangers
10 mins: Darwin Nunez tries to wind up Connor Goldson after Rangers win a free kick from a Liverpool corner. The referee has to intercede and Nunez puts on his best look of innocence.
A long clearance from the Reds comes down the right side but Nunez chases the lost cause and forces John Lundstram to knock it out of play for a Liverpool throw in.
GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 Rangers (Alexander-Arnold, 7’)⚽️
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mo Salah stand over the dead ball but it’s the right-back who belts the free kick at goal. He gets it over the wall and there’s enough dip to sneak the ball under the post and into the nearest top corner.
Allan McGregor shuffles across but he can’t reach the ball and Liverpool take the lead.
Liverpool 0-0 Rangers
6 mins: That’s lovely from Liverpool. Diogo Jota, Kostas Tsimikas and Luis Diaz all combine on the left wing to work the ball up the pitch with slick one-touch passing to move it around the Rangers players.
Tsimikas slides it inside to Darwin Nunez who is taken out from behind by John Lundstram. Liverpool win a free kick right near the left edge of the ‘D’.
Liverpool 0-0 Rangers
3 mins: Save! The ball comes up to Mo Salah on the right wing who drives forward before fizzing a pass into Diogo Jota. He tries to control it on the turn but only manages to knock the ball into the path of Darwin Nunez.
Nunez blasts a first-time shot at goal and forces Allan McGregor into a sharp save at the near post which he palms wide of goal.
Kick off: Liverpool 0-0 Rangers
This is the first meeting between Rangers and Liverpool in European competition. The Scottish club get the match underway and Leon King sends it over to the right wing where it’s cleared but Liverpool’s left-back Kostas Tsimikas.
Another attempted diagonal pass goes out of play and Trent Alexander-Arnold throws it across to Virgil van Dijk as Liverpool take over possession.
Liverpool vs Rangers
Here come the teams!
Jurgen Klopp has changed up Liverpool’s formation electing to go with a 4-2-3-1 set up in the hopes that it makes the Reds more defensively solid.
Let’s see if it works out that way.
Pre-match thoughts of Jurgen Klopp
The Liverpool manager spoke to BT Sport before kick saying: “We expect a really tough game. We’ve looked at Rangers’ line-up, probably a 5-4-1, so they’ll be compact, I don’t know how deep.
“We’ve made changes, we have to make changes, we’ve played so many games.”
Liverpool vs Scottish sides
Liverpool have beaten Celtic (twice), Hibernian (twice), Aberdeen and Heart of Midlothian over two legs.
Their only defeat to a Scottish team over two legs came in the Uefa Cup quarter-final in 2003, when Celtic won 2-0 at Anfield after a 1-1 draw in Glasgow.
However, Liverpool have failed to win their latest three home games against Scottish sides - drawing with Celtic in 1997 and Hearts in 2012 either side of that 2003 defeat by Celtic.