Xabi Alonso faces a minor selection headache upon his return to Anfield as Bayer Leverkusen face Arne Slot’s Liverpool in the Champions League.
The Bundesliga champions will be without Nordi Mukiele, who suffered a thigh injury in their 0-0 draw against Stuttgart on Friday night and is expected to be sidelined until after the international break. That means Jeremie Frimpong will be expected to play a more defensive role, countering Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo, with Martin Terrier coming into the squad.
Other than that, Alonso is expected to name the same team that started against Stuttgart in a 3-4-2-1 formation. Bayer’s back three of Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah and Piero Hincapié will likely find themselves up against Salah, Gakpo and Darwin Núñez, while Robert Andrich will likely be tasked with keeping an eye on Dominik Szoboszlai.
Predicted Bayer Leverkusen XI vs Liverpool
Lukas Hradecky – Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah, Piero Hincapié – Jeremie Frimpong, Robert Andrich, Granit Xhaka, Alex Grimaldo – Martin Terrier, Florian Wirtz – Victor Boniface
GGFN | Daniel Pinder