Liverpool Face Como: Everything You Need to Know Before Kickoff

With just one week remaining before their Premier League season kicks off, Liverpool wrap up their preseason schedule by hosting Como in a friendly at Anfield this Sunday.

The Reds will actually face the Italian club twice on the same day, starting with a closed-doors session in the morning before a full public fixture takes place in the afternoon.

Andoni Iraola will be keen to end a two-match losing run, which started with a 4–2 defeat to Leeds United in the United States and continued with a 3–2 loss to Monaco at Anfield. Both games saw Liverpool throw away two-goal advantages, placing their defensive setup under growing scrutiny.

Aside from those ruled out through injury, Liverpool will have a full squad at their disposal this weekend, including World Cup finalist Alexis Mac Allister. Iraola will be hoping his best available side can secure a third preseason victory ahead of the league opener against Newcastle United the following Sunday.

Como will not be easy opponents, though. The Serie A club impressed under Cesc Fàbregas last season, earning a Champions League berth. They boast considerable talent throughout their squad and will look to exploit any lingering vulnerabilities in the Liverpool setup.

Here's a preview of Liverpool's second fixture against Como, this time played in front of the home crowd.

Liverpool vs. Como Score Prediction

Chaos Continues in High-Scoring Draw

Following a season of frustration and underwhelming performances under Arne Slot, Liverpool fans have been encouraged by the more adventurous attacking play on display under Iraola. The team has netted nine goals across four matches and will have drawn confidence from the showings of Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz in the Monaco defeat.

That said, the higher tempo has exposed some vulnerabilities in what is admittedly a patched-up backline, with nine goals conceded over the course of the summer. Liverpool have been too easily carved open, and individual mistakes have proved expensive.

Another frantic contest may be in store, and Como will back themselves to earn at least a point—a result they managed in their recent meeting with Arsenal.

Prediction: Liverpool 2–2 Como

Liverpool Predicted Lineup vs. Como

It's reasonable to expect Iraola to field his strongest available side for the second game against Como, with most of his key players set to get time on the pitch in front of the Anfield crowd.

Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, and Ryan Gravenberch all made their first starts of preseason in the narrow defeat to Monaco and are expected to see further action.

Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wirtz, and Isak—who bagged a brace against Monaco—are also expected to feature, with Rio Ngumoha likely deployed out of his natural position on the right flank.

New arrival Ronald Araújo, brought in on loan from Barcelona, could make his unofficial debut, as could fellow center back Jérémy Jacquet, who has been sidelined throughout the summer friendlies with injury.

Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitiké, Joe Gomez, Stefan Bajčetić, and Giovanni Leoni remain unavailable due to injury, though Wataru Endō made his return from a lengthy spell on the sidelines last weekend.

Liverpool Predicted Lineup vs. Como (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Frimpong, Araújo, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai; Ngumoha, Wirtz, Gakpo; Isak.

Como Predicted Lineup vs. Liverpool

Fàbregas may name a largely unchanged side from the one that drew at the Emirates Stadium midweek, though former Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah could be handed his first start for the club.

Nico Paz, Como's standout creative force, may feature in some role, though he returned to preseason training late after representing Argentina at the World Cup final.

Summer additions Yan Couto and Mattia Liberali are also expected to get another opportunity.

Como Predicted Lineup vs. Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Butez; Couto, Ramón, Chalobah, Valle; Da Cunha, Perrone; Diao, Baturina, Liberali; Douvikas.

What Time Does Liverpool vs. Como Kick Off?

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