The Liverpool team has left for Austria for its upcoming Champions League clash against local side LASK, weakened by serious squad shortages. Three key players - Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszla - are out of the “Merseysiders” squad due to injuries. All three also missed the heavy 0-3 defeat to Manchester City in the Premier League last weekend.
Captain Virgil van Dijk was included in the squad for the match, despite suffering a painful blow during the clash with the “citizens“ and is still not in optimal physical condition. To fill the vacant places in the squad, the team manager has placed his trust in several of the young hopes of the academy – Jaden Dance, Welty Lucky and Josh Soni-Lambi.
Wataru Endo and Federico Chiesa also did not travel with the team to Linz, as neither of them has a record of playing for Merseysiders in this year's Champions League.
Liverpool started their European campaign with a valuable 2-1 home win against Spanish side Atletico Madrid. Sunday's loss to Manchester City, however, was the team's first defeat in all competitions since the start of the season, making the match in Austria extremely important for restoring confidence in the dressing room.