The new Premier League season kicks off this weekend with a full schedule of fixtures running from Friday to Monday. Liverpool will get things started when they welcome Bournemouth to Anfield on Friday night (11pm UAE). Here we look ahead to what should be another successful season for the Merseyside club.
Prospects
Liverpool head into the new campaign having powered to a record-equalling 20th English top-flight crown last season, finishing 10 points clear of second-placed Arsenal.
They were the division's top scorers and also had the second meanest defence as Arne Slot enjoyed a spectacular first season in charge after replacing the super successful Jurgen Klopp.
But the joyous celebrations were quickly overshadowed first by the victory-parade attack on fans in Liverpool city centre and then the tragic death of Portuguese attacker Diogo Jota in July after a car accident in Spain. It will be an emotional opening game of the season against Bournemouth at Anfield as players and fans pay tribute to a much-loved player.
The starting XI against the Cherries will have a fresh look with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Luis Diaz having left for pastures new, while more than £260 million has been spent on bringing in the likes of Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike.
If Slot manages to blend these additions into a team that already includes proven Premier League stars such as Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah, then there is little doubt Liverpool will be there or thereabouts in the title race once again.
Last five finishes
- 2024/25: 1st
- 2023/24: 3rd
- 2022/23: 5th
- 2021/22: 2nd
- 2020/21: 3rd
First five fixtures
- August 15: Bournemouth (H)
- August 25: Newcastle United (A)
- August 31: Arsenal (H)
- September 14: Burnley (A)
- September 20: Everton (H)
The manager
Arne Slot: Had big boots to fill when he replaced Klopp last summer but managed it with remarkable ease, leading Liverpool to the title. But whereas that title-winning side was very-much Klopp-built, this campaign has the stamp of Slot after a busy summer in the transfer market – both arrivals and departures.
Slot will have a new full-back partnership to bed in with new boys Frimpong and Kerkez replacing one of the all-time great Premier League pairings in Trent Alexander-Arnold (sold to Real Madrid) and Andrew Robertson (demoted to second choice).
It will be a similar story attacking wise with Florian Wirtz and Huge Ekitike added to the ranks while Luis Diaz has left for German champions Bayern Munich.
As well as defending the domestic title, the Dutchman will be looking for improvement in the Champions League with the Merseysiders having only gone beyond the quarter-finals once in six seasons.
Star signing
Florian Wirtz: The £100m attacking midfielder looked a Rolls-Royce player during his debut in the Community Shield defeat to Liverpool, combining well with Ekitike to set up his fellow new boy's opening goal at Wembley.
Has a Kevin De Bruyne-like aura about him with his ability to pick a pass, while his stats at Bayer Leverkusen – 57 goals and 47 assists in 140 games – suggest he will be a major contributor to the Liverpool scoring chart.
Xabi Alonso, his coach at Leverkusen, described Wirtz as “one of the top players in the world” while also comparing him to the great Lionel Messi. “Why is Messi so good? Because he knows how and when to play simple passes,” said the Spaniard. “It's not always about making the most brilliant move, but the best and smartest. Florian can do that. That's why he's so good.”
Key player
Mohamed Salah: The frenzied transfer speculation that followed the Egyptian around last season should be over after Salah signed a new contract in April.
Liverpool will be hoping he has not lost any of his hunger after agreeing the bumper two-year deal and that his underwhelming Community Shield performance against Palace is merely a preseason blip.
The 33-year-old will be aiming for a repeat of last season's exploits that saw him win the Premier League Golden Boot and Playmaker awards for scoring the most goals (29) and providing the most assists (18).
Across all competitions, Salah's 34 goals was the second highest tally in his eight seasons at the club, bettered only by the 44 he notched in his first campaign on Merseyside.
Hot prospect
Rio Ngumoha: Already the second youngest player to start for Liverpool – he was 16 years, 135 days old when he played in the FA Cup game against Accrington Stanley in January – England youth international winger Ngumoha has just enjoyed an impressive preseason that saw him assist against AC Milan and goal against Yokohama F. Marinos.
He followed that up in the friendly against Athletic Club, scoring one and assisting another in the first five minutes.
Ngumoha, who turns 17 this month, received a standing ovation from the Anfield crowd after his second-half substitution against the Spanish side. Will be interesting to see whether he can force his way into Slot's first-team plans.
