Liverpool will play their friendly pre-season moment against a rival in Salzburg, where a small amateur organisation is expected to be present.
The Reds began their pre-season program on a winning note on Saturday, scoring three unanswered goals beyond Stuttgart on a rainy afternoon in Austria.
And just three days after their first 90 minutes, Jurgen Klopp’s men will return to the court in front of a team they know too well.
Former club Sadio Mane, Naby Keita and Takumi Minamino will host the Premier League champions, 8 months after the champions league.
Much has happened since Liverpool placed two beyond the Austrian aspect to secure their position in the 16-year circular, and a small step towards a return to ‘normality’ deserves 1250 enthusiasts to serve for the friendly.
It will be the first time in 167 days that the Reds will play in front of the spectators, and Salzburg will hold a vote for season ticket holders.
It will be a welcome show for everyone amid Liverpool’s arrangements for the new season, a season that will likely see Klopp regain the intensity of his team.
Salzburg is a different team from the one seen in Europe last season, but it will provide difficult control for the Reds as they hope to increase the intensity at the time of the summer departure.
Since Liverpool’s last visit to the Red Bull Arena in December last year, Salzburg has noticed the pass of the three attacking players that night.
Minamino, of course, landed at Anfield in January, while Erling Haaland moved to Borussia Dortmund at the same time before Hwang Hee-Chan followed him this summer to be the last to replace Salzburg in Leipzig.
On the arrivals side, Salzburg joined two exciting young customers this summer: striker Federico Crescenti and defender Oumar Solet, who signed from Lyon for 4.5 million euros.
Jesse Marsch remains in charge and aims to retain the Salzburg name for the sixth consecutive season.
Both were tied in Group E of the Champions League last season, with Liverpool winning at home and away in the first-round matches between the two clubs.
The first clash, at Anfield in October, was a backhand as goals from Sadio Mane, Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah gave them a 3-0 lead before half-time, only for Salzburg to regain the bar.
Liverpool’s number 11 would have the final say in just over 20 minutes for the pass before it proved decisive in Austria with an astonishing purpose from almost an angle in December, adding to Keita’s goal for a 2-0 win.
The Reds would qualify as the organization’s most sensitive before being eliminated in the next circular for Atletico Madrid, when they fell in the Europa League and fell to Eintracht Frankfurt in the 16th circular.
The Reds are expected to call the same team that opened their pre-season count with a 3-0 win over Stuttgart, with Ki-Jana Hoever in doubt after twisting his ankle on Saturday.
Klopp named two other XI in the clash with the German team and may only look to do the same again, but it would be a wonder if he kept his first education in the field for 60 minutes.
Everything will be balanced with the assembly of Community Shield with Arsenal in mind, a match that arrives just 4 days after red Bull Arena.
It is very likely that Xherdan Shaqiri, Divock Origi and Loris Karius will fail again, while Jordan Henderson and Joel Matip continue their rehabilitation in Austria.
An opportunity will come for Minamino to play against her former team after impressing at the time of this weekend.
With the team still in the match, Klopp knows that his team will still feel the effects of intensity, but he is still eager to see how his players react, especially with the approaching season.
Salzburg is a new entity for the Reds, the chief knows what to expect and looks to the future, but he can do without that downtime:
“It will be difficult, Salzburg. Every year they find exciting players from all over the world.
“I’m very happy to see you all because the taste you play is clear. It’s going to be pretty intense.
“I hope it doesn’t rain much; I have no challenge with the rain, but you have to adapt and judge the scenario differently. I think he’ll be older and then everything will be fine.”
Salzburg vs Liverpool will be broadcast on LFCTV, with policy starting at 2.30pm (Paris time) before the start at 3 p.m.
Henry Jackson will entertain you and tell you all the action on this is Anfield live blog, at 2:30 p.m.