While Liverpool were undoubtedly aided by Brentford’s indiscipline over the weekend, securing a win at the Gtech Community Stadium is no mean feat.
The Reds fought back from a halftime deficit to triumph in west London, with Alexander Isak scoring on his return to the Liverpool team to snatch all three points.
There’s still a sense the Iraola era is yet to get off the ground, but the Reds have just one blemish on their record across all competitions to date. They’ve been perfect in Europe, too, with back-to-back victories against Atlético Madrid and LASK easing the pressure on upcoming continental bouts.
Iraola’s roster management will come to the fore amid a busy period before the November international break, with more changes to his starting lineup expected when Villarreal come to town.
Here’s how Liverpool could line up in the Champions League on Tuesday evening.
Liverpool Predicted Lineup vs. Villarreal
GK: Alisson—While there’s scope for midweek rotation, there’s no clear need for Liverpool’s starting goalkeeper to come out of the side.
RB: Ronald Araújo—The loanee scored his first goal for the club in the hectic triumph over LASK last week and has enjoyed a strong start to his Liverpool career. He’s an option at the heart of Iraola’s defense, but will likely retain his spot at right back after Jeremie Frimpong‘s injury.
CB: Jérémy Jacquet—Jacquet’s importance to the Reds was evident late on in Austria, as his withdrawal led to two concessions.
CB: Virgil van Dijk—The Liverpool skipper has earned more respite than usual at the start of the new season, with Iraola smartly managing the 35-year-old. However, Liverpool’s strongest center back pairing should feature against a dangerous Villarreal side that defeated Napoli last week.
LB: Kostas Tsimikas—Tsimikas is still lingering on Liverpool’s roster. Milos Kerkez’s indifferent start to the new season means the Greek left back is getting chances to impress.
CM: Ryan Gravenberch—Gravenberch’s red card ultimately set the stage for Manchester City’s emphatic victory at Anfield after the international break, but the Dutchman was excellent for an hour. After missing the weekend’s trip to Brentford, he should slot back into Iraola’s engine room.
Pick Your Liverpool XI!
CM: Alexis Mac Allister—Liverpool desperately need an upsurge from Mac Allister after Dominik Szoboszlai pulled up again at the weekend. Trey Nyoni is waiting in the wings.
RW: Víctor Muñoz—The livewire was at it again in west London, drawing Liverpool level with a good left-footed finish. Muñoz has quickly found his feet and feels an obvious solution to the Reds’ right-hand side dilemma. Cody Gakpo may also be ready for minutes on Tuesday.
AM: Florian Wirtz—We’re likely to see the best of Wirtz in Europe, and his most impressive work of the season so far came in Linz, Austria last week. Don’t let the numbers fool you.
LW: Rio Ngumoha—Bradley Barcola earns some respite after notching his first career hat trick on Matchday 2. Ngumoha has only been used sporadically by Iraola, but he should be a prominent figure during the league phase.
ST: Alexander Isak—While Wirtz has struggled to offer an improvement on his debut season, Isak is starting to look like the striker that Liverpool paid $170 million for two summers ago. He was the match winner on Saturday, taking his goal tally for the season up to five in a little less than 600 minutes played.
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