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The Reds are expecting a busy window as Jurgen Klopp looks to strengthen his defence and midfield significantly

There's no denying it; Liverpool are set for a busy summer transfer window. The disappointment of this season, in which the Reds have somehow managed to miss out on Champions League qualification, has focused minds at Anfield, with significant moves expected in the close season.

Departures have already been confirmed. Roberto Firmino, James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will all leave on free transfers, while others could follow, as Jurgen Klopp looks to build a squad capable of challenging for major honours once more.

That means signings, and good ones at that. Midfield is an obvious target area, but don't be surprised to see Klopp looking to reinforce his defence too, given some of the struggles of key personnel this term.

Links with potential targets, as they always are with Liverpool, have been plentiful. Here are the players most likely to end up at Anfield this summer…

GettyAlexis Mac Allister (Brighton)

We'll start with the obvious. Mac Allister has, following the decision to walk away from a potential deal for Jude Bellingham, emerged as Liverpool's top summer target, the Reds impressed by the Argentina World Cup winner's superb form for Brighton.

It is understood that the 24-year-old would be keen on a move to Merseyside, although Chelsea, Manchester United and even Manchester City have also been linked. Anfield sources have dismissed recent speculation that a £70 million ($87m) deal is close to being agreed, but it is clear that Mac Allister is high on Liverpool's list, and it would be no surprise to see this transfer completed.

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesMason Mount (Chelsea)

Another player to have been repeatedly linked with Liverpool in recent months is Mount, the Chelsea and England attacking midfielder. The 24-year-old is about to enter the final year of his contract, and talks over an extension are understood to have stalled some time ago.

Liverpool are long-time admirers, and have received encouragement that Mount would be open to the idea of moving to Anfield. Arsenal and Manchester United have, though, also been linked, and recent reports have since suggested that a move to Old Trafford would be Mount's preferred choice if a deal could be struck.

Regardless, much will hinge on how hard Chelsea and new manager Mauricio Pochettino push to keep their academy graduate, or indeed how much they demand for the player should they look to sell up.

GettyRyan Gravenberch (Bayern Munich)

Having been linked with Gravenberch in the summers of both 2020 and 2022, Liverpool have completed the hat-trick this year. The Dutch international has endured a disappointing first season at Bayern Munich, and reports suggest the 21-year-old is eager to move in search of more regular football.

Representatives from the Reds are believed to have met with the talented midfielder's father back in March, though the mood music since has suggested that Bayern, understandably, are reluctant to sell the former Ajax man after only one season in Bavaria. Any move may depend on Gravenberch's desire to make life difficult for the Bundesliga giants.

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Jurrien Timber (Ajax)

With Trent Alexander-Arnold revelling in a new hybrid full-back/midfield role, finding defenders capable of covering for the England international will be key this summer. And in that sense, Ajax and Netherlands star Timber fits the bill.

His ability to play as both a right-back and a centre-back, his pace and his ball-playing ability make the 21-year-old an interesting option, with reports in the Netherlands suggesting that contact has already been made by Liverpool.

A move, however, could depend on what happens with both Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, neither of whom have had the best of seasons, and both of whom could have opportunities to move in the summer.

Who will Socceroos boss Graham Arnold pick for their round of 16 clash against Argentina?

Australia are getting ready for their first round of 16 appearance since 2006 in the World Cup as they are set to face the mighty Argentina.

The Socceroos' best performance in the competition is getting to the round of 16 in Germany in 2006.

They will be hoping to do better this time around after beating Tunisia and Denmark in the group stages.

Head coach Graham Arnold will be relying on experienced players such as Mathew Ryan and Aaron Mooy to lead the way, but there are some exciting youngsters coming through as well who could make an impact.

ALSO READ:World Cup 2022 Group D: Fixtures, results, standings, squads & full details

GettyGOALKEEPERS

Mathew Ryan is both the captain of the team and top choice between the sticks.

Andrew Redmayne was the penalty shoot-out hero that helped Australia beat Peru in the qualifiers, while Danny Vukovic has experience from the previous World Cup.

Name

Club

Mathew Ryan

FC Copenhagen

Andrew Redmayne

Sydney FC

Danny Vukovic

Central Coast Mariners

AdvertisementGettyDEFENDERS

Aziz Behich boasts plenty of experience and gets the nod for Qatar, with Bailey Wright and Milos Degenek also making the cut.

Harry Souttar, Joel King and Nathaniel Atkinson represent younger, but promising options in defence.

Trent Sainsbury, however, was somewhat surprisingly left out.

Name

Club

Milos Degenek

Columbus Crew

Nathanial Atkinson

Hearts

Joel King

OB

Fran Karacic

Brescia

Bailey Wright

Sunderland

Harry Souttar

Stoke

Kye Rowles

Hearts

Aziz Behich

Dundee United

Thomas Deng

Albirex Niigata

GettyMIDFIELDERS

There's no looking past Aaron Mooy in midfield, with the talented playmaker having proven that he has what it takes to shine at the highest level.

Ajdin Hrustic and Jackson Irvine have also shown what they're capable of in Europe, with a number of less experienced options keen to break into the team, too.

Tom Rogic did not make the cut following his controversial decision not to make himself available for selection for the decisive qualification play-offs.

Name

Club

Aaron Mooy

Celtic

Craig Goodwin

Adelaide United

Jackson Irvine

St. Pauli

Cameron Devlin

Hearts

Riley McGree

Middlesbrough

Ajdin Hrustic

Eintracht Frankfurt

Keanu Baccus

St Mirren

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MUSTAFA ABUMUNES/AFP via Getty ImagesATTACKERS

Mathew Leckie offers experience out wide, while Awer Mabil represents another strong option on the wings.

Jamie Maclaren, meanwhile, will fancy his chances of seeing game time as well, having impressed through the middle previously.

A lot of eyes will be on Garang Kuol, with the promising youngster recently earning a move to Newcastle United after enjoying a bit of a breakthrough season at Central Coast Mariners.

Name

Club

Mathew Leckie

Melbourne City

Marco Tilio

Melbourne

Jamie Maclaren

Melbourne City

Craig Goodwin

Adelaide United

Mitchell Duke

Fagiano Okayama

Jason Cummings

Central Coast Mariners

Garang Kuol

Central Coast Mariners

Awer Mabil

Cadiz

Eddie Howe's team have gone from first to third in Champions League Group F because of a poor performance in front of their own fans

Newcastle United's hopes of reaching the last 16 of the Champions League were dealt a heavy blow by Borussia Dortmund, who claimed a fully deserved 1-0 victory at a rain-soaked St James' Park on Wednesday evening.

The Magpies had gone into the game flying high at the top of Group F but they have fallen to third in the standings after succumbing to a solitary strike from Felix Nmecha, with BVB's No.8 doing an excellent Jude Bellingham impression by sweeping home a cut-back from Nico Schlotterbeck after a brilliant break that the latter had sparked with a terrific tackle on Anthony Gordon on halfway.

Newcastle fought gamely to try to turn the game around in the second half and struck the bar twice in the dying minutes, through the shoulder of Callum Wilson and a deflected effort from Gordon. However, the reality is that the hosts, who were second-best for the majority of the 90 minutes, deserved nothing out of a game that Dortmund would have won comprehensively had it not been for the first-half heroics of Nick Pope.

Below, GOAL rates all the Newcastle players on show on a disappointing night at St James' Park as Eddie Howe's strangely out-of-sorts team saw a nine-game unbeaten run come to an end…

Getty Goalkeeper & Defence

Nick Pope (8/10):

Called into action three times in the opening 10 minutes alone, with his double-save one of the game's highlights. If it hadn't been for Pope, Newcastle would have lost heavily.

Kieran Trippier (6/10):

As usual, a good outlet down the right flank, but this was a tough evening for the England international, as nearly all of Dortmund's best attacks came down his side.

Jamaal Lascelles (5/10):

No major errors but never quite looked comfortable at the heart of the defence.

Fabian Schar (7/10):

The home side's best defender, winning possession back several times, while he also passed the ball well – unlike many of those in front of him.

Dan Burn (5/10):

Offered next-to-nothing going forward, so was hauled off with just under 20 minutes of normal time remaining as Newcastle chased the game.

AdvertisementGetty Midfield

Sean Longstaff (4/10): Looked utterly lost as Dortmund dominated in midfield and unsurprisingly hooked midway through the second half.

Bruno Guimaraes (5/10):

Played a lovely lofted ball over the Dortmund defence for Almiron during the first half and kept working right until the end but, truth be told, he was nowhere near his best.

Joelinton (4/10): Put himself about, as always, but there was also the usual lack of quality. Rightly taken off at the same time as the equally ineffective Longstaff.

GettyAttack

Miguel Almiron (4/10):

Very lively early on, with his direct dribbling provoking panic in the Dortmund defence, but there was no end product.

Alexander Isak (N/A): Sadly saw his night come to a very premature end, with the Swede forced off with an injury inside the opening 15 minutes. A major blow for Newcastle, in hindsight.

Anthony Gordon (5/10):

Made himself a real nuisance at times and struck the bar in the dying minutes but squandered a great chance to break the deadlock with a finish that was straight at Gregor Kobel, while it was his loss of possession that led to Dortmund opening the scoring.

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Getty Subs & Manager

Callum Wilson (4/10):

Came on for Isak early on but missed a gilt-edged opportunity to level the game from point-blank range just before the hour mark and then struck the bar with an effort off his shoulder that could have gone in had he connected with his head.

Sandro Tonali (5/10):

In what may well be his last appearance for Newcastle for some time, the Italian showed plenty of endeavour but was unable to turn the game around.

Jacob Murphy (N/A)

Introduced in the 64th minute as part of a double substitution with Tonali but was almost immediately replaced after hurting his shoulder.

Joe Willock (5/10):

Sent on in place of the unfortunate Murphy but failed to make his presence felt.

Joe Targett (6/10):

Only saw around 20 minutes of action after being subbed on for Burn.

Eddie Howe (3/10):

Completely outfoxed by Edin Terzic, the Magpies boss had absolutely no answer to Dortmund's daring approach to the game and now has plenty to ponder ahead of their return fixture at Signal Iduna Park.

Michael Clarke believes his players have improved in Asian conditions since their horror tour of India last year, despite the scorecard in Dubai showing a 221-run victory for Pakistan

Brydon Coverdale in Dubai26-Oct-20141:43

‘We can play a lot better’ – Clarke

Michael Clarke comparing this performance to the ones in India last year: “I think as a team in general we’ve improved out of sight since that series”•Getty ImagesMichael Clarke believes his players have improved in Asian conditions since their horror tour of India last year, despite the scorecard in Dubai showing a 221-run victory for Pakistan. Clarke faces the prospect of becoming the first Australian captain since Mark Taylor in 1994 to lead his side to a series loss at the hands of Pakistan, unless the team can dramatically turn things around in Abu Dhabi.That would require a far sturdier batting effort than what was put forward in Dubai, where they were dismissed for 303 and 216. At least there was some fight on the final day from Steven Smith and Mitchell Johnson, who made 55 and 61 respectively, but what really hurt their chances of salvaging a draw was the four wickets for five runs that fell late on the fourth afternoon.”I’m obviously very disappointed with the result but really impressed with the way Steve Smith and Mitchell Johnson in particular showed a lot of grit today and fought their backside off,” Clarke said. “That’s part of the Australian way. We certainly weren’t going to turn up here today and throw our wickets away. We were going to fight as long as we could and I thought those two played really well in tough conditions.”I think you have a look at [Alex] Doolan, Clarke, [Nathan] Lyon, [Brad] Haddin, [Mitchell] Marsh, I don’t think any of us faced more than 25 balls [in the second innings] did we? So it’s probably a fair indication in these conditions it’s really hard to start your innings. The longer you bat, the more time you spend there, the easier it gets. I think Younis [Khan] was a good example of that, the way he played in both innings. He took his time early and gave himself a chance. Once he was in he capitalised on that.”There were some positives from the Australia batsmen, most notably David Warner’s 133 in the first innings, but by comparison there were four Pakistan centuries scored during the Test. In India last year, Clarke scored a hundred on the first day of the series and it was the only Australian ton for the whole tour, and Clarke firmly believes that his side has improved in Asian conditions since that 4-0 loss.”I think we’ve certainly improved as a team,” he said. “I think we obviously have more work to do in these conditions. But you’ve seen some examples – Davey making a hundred, Smith making 50, the way Mitch played today – you’ve seen some examples of players certainly improving in these conditions. Unfortunately the result is the same as what it was in India. But I think as a team in general we’ve improved out of sight since that series, for a number of reasons.”What troubled the Australians most in India was the spin in the pitches, but what caused problems in Dubai was often playing for spin that did not eventuate. Zulfiqar Babar’s wickets largely came with deliveries that slid on with the arm and the Australian batsmen struggled to handle his accuracy, whereas Steve O’Keefe’s similar style was generally rebuffed comfortably by Pakistan’s batsmen.”The hardest part about playing on subcontinental wickets is the inconsistency in spin,” Clarke said. “You get natural variation off the wicket. You bowl the exact same ball. One ball spins this far and the next ball skids on. It is hard to practice but you can do that.”If we have practice wickets that aren’t spinning and they’re sliding on you can practice on that. And then you can go and bat on the grass for instance when you know when there’s no wicket at all, that is going to spin. The grass will spin. There are ways we can continue to train.”One man who will certainly be keen to improve his work against spin is the No.3 Alex Doolan, who made a laborious 5 in the first innings and a fifth-ball duck in the second. The only runs he scored against spin came with an edge past slip, but Clarke was confident Doolan could thrive in the conditions after seeing him score an unbeaten century in the tour game in Sharjah.”I’m certainly not going to sit here and say that he can be out of form,” Clarke said. “He just made an unbelievable hundred in the tour game. Dools will be fine. He’s a very good player. He knows his game really well, he’s showed he can bat in these conditions, like I say he made a beautiful hundred. You don’t lose class overnight, that’s for sure, and I’m confident that come this second Test he’ll probably make another hundred.”

Sean Williams had felt flustered when he came in with the match in the balance against South Africa, but he quickly learned his lesson against the UAE

Brydon Coverdale in Nelson19-Feb-20151:15

‘We never underestimated UAE’ – Williams

Sean Williams must be a good actor. Calm at the crease, using the experience of 71 one-day internationals to grind down a confident UAE outfit. At least, that was how he appeared while knocking the ball around during the tense middle overs of Zimbabwe’s chase in Nelson. It worked, earning Zimbabwe a victory and Williams a Man of the Match award. It was not as easy as it looked.”I could feel it out there,” Williams said. “I tried not to show it. Try to breathe, relax, try to hit the ball down the ground, that’s the way we’ve been training, and it ended up paying off.”From the previous game against South Africa, I came in and felt very flustered at the wicket. I learnt my lesson very quickly there to come in, get in, hit the ball down the ground, build an innings and then go from there. Wickets in hand at the end is always the goal.”When Williams walked to the crease at 112 for 3, Zimbabwe were looking shaky in their chase of 286. Shaky became downright unsteady when Brendan Taylor and Solomon Mire fell and left the total at 167 for 5, with Williams and Craig Ervine needing desperately to steer the pursuit back onto Zimbabwe’s intended path.And they did just that, combining for an 83-run stand that pushed Zimbabwe to within sight of victory. Ervine fell for 42, but Williams stayed until the end and struck three consecutive fours off Mohammad Naveed to secure the result with two overs to spare, the winning shot a lovely drive straight down the ground for four.It saved Zimbabwe’s blushes: UAE have never beaten a Full Member of the ICC in a one-day international, and after Zimbabwe’s encouraging performance in their loss to South Africa it would have been a crushing letdown to lose here. But Zimbabwe were sloppy in the field and were surprised by UAE’s ability to hit down the ground and not just across the line.”Zimbabwe versus the UAE, a lot of people might have thought Zimbabwe should have walked over UAE,” Williams said. “But that clearly wasn’t the case, and it clearly wasn’t the case in the change room this morning when we arrived at the ground. We didn’t know what to expect from them. They put up a really, really good performance with the bat. Our fielding wasn’t that great today, it let us down in a lot of ways.”Their bowling department, they were very well disciplined up front. I thought our opener Regis Chakabva, he was under a lot of pressure, he faced a lot of balls. It was just a matter of time before a wicket was going to fall, and that ended up happening. I guess they just need to learn when the key moments are in the game, same with Zimbabwe, we’re still learning, trying to understand when the key moments are and when to put the foot on the gas.”Chakabva occupied the crease for 62 balls for his 35 before he trod on his stumps, and Zimbabwe missed the man he replaced at the top of the order, Chamu Chibhabha, who had scored 64 against South Africa.”He was playing with an injured knee against South Africa and was struggling to run a little bit,” Williams said of Chibhabha. “He failed his fitness test yesterday, so he couldn’t play, which was a big loss for us. But he’s currently under physio and I’m sure he’ll be ready for the next game.”The UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir said he was pleased with the way his men competed on the big stage, his country having not played a World Cup game since 1996. However, he acknowledged that it was an opportunity missed, given the wickets UAE had taken early in Zimbabwe’s innings.”They had a good partnership in the middle,” Tauqir said. If we had taken that wicket I think the result would have been different … Quite a few positives from the game, all the batters batted well, the bowlers did a decent job. Definitely an opportunity missed. It was a good game of cricket, went to the wire and they won at the end.”

France's top flight has long been a source of low-cost, high-quality players for some of Europe's biggest clubs. Here's some who could be on the move.

Gael Kakuta (Amiens)

Once a highly rated prospect in Chelsea’s youth academy, Gael Kakuta has since globetrotted his way around a variety of clubs from Vitesse to Lazio and Sevilla to Hebei China Fortune. He is at little Amiens on loan from the CSL side and has already stated that he wants to move back to the big time, and after scoring five Ligue 1 goals and broadly impressing upon his return to Ligue 1, there is every chance that he could get his wish.

AdvertisementJEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP/Getty ImagesKarl Toko-Ekambi (Angers)

In January, eyebrows were raised when the 25-year-old Cameroon international striker elected to turn down the opportunity to move to Brighton in the Premier League, where he was being offered four times his salary with Angers. He felt he had unfinished business at Stade Raymond Kopa, where he has scored 13 goals this season – the highest tally for a player outside Ligue 1’s top four. More interest is sure to come in the summer.

Malcom (Bordeaux)

One of the breakout talents in Ligue 1 this year, Malcom is his side’s leading scorer with eight tallies, several of them spectacular. The young Brazilian has seen plenty of interest from the Premier League over the course of the season, as well as numerous other big clubs elsewhere. Bordeaux resisted offers in January, but they will not be able to in the summer as well.

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Getty ImagesDamien Da Silva (Caen)

With only four years top-flight experience under his belt, it may be a little late for the centre-back to secure a really big more, but there is no doubt that the 29-year-old has been one of Ligue 1’s outstanding defensive players for several years. Not only is he solid at the back, but he carries a goal-scoring threat form set pieces and has tallied four times this season. It would not be entirely surprising to see him follow N’Golo Kante’s footsteps with a move to England.

Liverpool star Alexis Mac Allister was in utter disbelief after Darwin Nunez failed to answer question on Reds' Champions League record.

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Nunzez failed to correctly answer Liverpool's UCL triumphsMac Allister shocked by Nunez's responseArgentine correctly guessed the number of league titlesWHAT HAPPENED?

The Uruguayan striker stumbled in a quiz about the club's Champions League victories which left Mac Allister shell-shocked. Nunez faltered when asked about the number of times Liverpool have won the Champions League as he responded "Three" which left Mac Allister with his hands on his head. The Argentine repeatedly said "No, no, no" while laughing at his teammate.

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Nonetheless, Mac Allister correctly answered the number of league titles Liverpool have won. However, at first, he said just one, referring to the one that they won in the Premier League era and then went on to explain that he meant "1+18".

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR MAC ALLISTER AND NUNEZ?

The two teammates will lock horns against each other during the international break when Argentina host Uruguay on Friday in a 2026 World Cup Qualifier. They will return to England and will have their task cut out as Liverpool face a tricky trip to the Etihad on November 25 against Manchester City.

Alisha Lehmann has sent her Swiss and new Aston Villa team-mate, Noelle Maritz, a welcome message following the latter's switch from Arsenal.

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Maritz joins Villa from ArsenalLehmann sends message to Swiss team-mateArsenal expected to sign Emily Fox as replacementWHAT HAPPENED?

Arsenal confirmed that Maritz had left the club to join Aston Villa in a permanent move. The Gunners, with a squad pushing the registration limit, needed to free space in their ranks to make room for the expected arrival of United States defender, Emily Fox. The Gunners' loss has become Villa's gain as the Swiss international joins to try to help propel the side away from the threat of relegation.

AdvertisementWHAT LEHMANN SAID

Posting on her Instagram story, Lehmann said: "Welcome my friend!"

Instagram (alishalehmann7)THE BIGGER PICTURE

Maritz's move to Aston Villa is one which suits all parties. The defender had been struggling for minutes in the Women's Super League this season and wanted to secure more game-time. Villa are able to add depth at full-back and Maritz will compete with Sarah Mayling for the starting right-back spot. Meanwhile, Arsenal can free up some much-needed space to complete the signing of Fox – who can hope to offer the Gunners greater defensive solidity in the second half of the season.

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WHAT NEXT FOR LEHMANN AND MARITZ?

Aston Villa return for action after the winter break in the women's FA Cup against Everton on January 13, where Swiss team-mates, Lehmann and Maritz, will hope to play together once again.

The 2016 edition of the IPL will begin on April 9, when defending champions Mumbai Indians will take on new entrants Rising Pune Supergiants at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Mar-2016The 2016 edition of the IPL will begin on April 9, when defending champions Mumbai Indians will take on new entrants Rising Pune Supergiants at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The final, too, will be played at the Wankhede Stadium on May 29.The Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune will host the home games of new franchise Rising Pune Supergiants, while the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot will be the home stadium of Gujarat Lions. This year’s edition will not see any afternoon games (1600 IST start) on weekdays.Apart from the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur will host two home games of Delhi Daredevils. The VCA Stadium in Nagpur will host three home games for Kings XI Punjab, apart from their usual home ground in Mohali.

The Reds have plenty of firepower up front, but they're once again conceding far too many goals, meaning a Premier League title tilt is unlikely

Liverpool's need for defensive reinforcements was made painfully clear in Wednesday's 4-3 friendly loss to Bayern Munich in Singapore. The Reds once again impressed going forward, with Cody Gakpo opening the scoring just two minutes in before Virgil van Dijk doubled their advantage.

However, Bayern were level by the break as Serge Gnabry scored one goal and created another for Leroy Sane, by taking advantage of the wide open space in between Joel Matip and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Liverpool went back in front through second-half substitute Luis Diaz, who had been teed up by Mohamed Salah, but conceded twice in the final two minutes, with Josip Stanisic making it 3-3 before Frans Kratzig won it for Bayern with a thumping finish.

GOAL looks at what we learned during the clash at the Singapore National Stadium, as Jurgen Klopp's team conceded four goals for the second time in three pre-season outings…

Getty ImagesLiverpool's awesome attacking options

Liverpool shouldn't struggle to score goals this season. In fact, it wouldn't be a surprise if they rival Manchester City for most goals in the Premier League. Their array of attacking options is truly awesome, as underlined by the fact that, as it stands, there is only one guaranteed starter against Chelsea on Sunday week: Salah.

Gakpo is probably the best bet to play through the middle after another accomplished pre-season performance here, with the Dutchman showing what he is all about by linking with Diogo Jota for the game's opening goal before finishing emphatically with his left foot. The latter, of course, could also play through the middle or out wide, such is his mix of quality and versatility. Then again, Diaz, who took his goal wonderfully well, is the more natural winger and would be most fans' favourite to play on the left flank.

Let's also not forget, though, that Darwin Nunez had been one of Liverpool's sharpest players in their friendly fixtures until this point. Given his height and physical presence, he would probably be the more orthodox choice to lead the line, but he's also an attractive option out wide given his blistering pace.

All things considered, with all of his forwards fit and firing during pre-season, Klopp will have the best kind of selection headache at Stamford Bridge.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesJones an option but not the solution at No.6

With both Fabinho and Jordan Henderson having departed for Saudi Arabia, Liverpool are obviously in dire need of a new No.6. The hope is that an agreement can be reached with Southampton for Romeo Lavia, with the Saints having already rejected two bids for the Belgian, but it was also heartening to learn that an alternative is being lined up, namely Fluminense's Andre, because a specialist defensive midfielder is clearly required.

Klopp argued before the game that Curtis Jones could have "a massive impact in that position" – and the England Under-21 international certainly has the confidence to play the part. Several times in Singapore he took the ball under intense pressure, and navigated his way out of trouble with smart, sharp turns. But we're talking about a role that requires some time to master and Liverpool can't really afford to have Jones learning on the job.

Getty ImagesVan Dijk will relish new role

There were no shortage of contenders to succeed Henderson as Liverpool captain. But Klopp's decision to hand the armband to Van Dijk wasn't wholly unexpected. Truth be told, the Dutchman was the obvious choice. The leader of the defence is also the most influential character in the team.

It's a role he clearly relishes, so it was no surprise to see him mark his first outing as the club's new captain with a goal. Van Dijk quite literally rose to the occasion, towering above the Bayern back-line to power home a header from an Andy Robertson corner.

Liverpool will be hoping it will be the first of many this season, with Van Dijk looking a serious threat every time he ventured forward for a set-piece. Even more encouragingly, he also made several vital interventions at a time when those around him were looking a little lost, which only underlined his suitability to his new role.

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Getty ImagesReds still have a major problem in defence

Liverpool's defensive problems haven't magically disappeared. Klopp and his coaching team still haven't figured out the Alexander-Arnold conundrum. The versatile England international adds so much from an offensive perspective when he steps into midfield, but this inverted right-back role is still creating issues on the right-hand side of backline, particularly when Joel Matip is playing.

The Cameroonian has many qualities, but he simply does not have the requisite pace or agility to cover for Alexander-Arnold when he is occupying more advanced positions – as both Bayern goals underlined.

In the first instance, Alexander-Arnold was poorly positioned and, thus, unable to react in time to the most straightforward inward run from Gnabry, who collected a pass from Kim Min-jae before cutting far too easily inside Matip and firing home.

The second goal was eerily similar, only this time Alexander-Arnold wasn't to blame for finding himself high up the pitch – it's what he's instructed to do, after all. Liverpool just lost the ball at the most inopportune time for him – and his team, as Gnabry was once again allowed a free run at Matip before leaving Sane with a simple finish.

Liverpool know there's an inherent gamble involved in allowing Alexander-Arnold, but the question once again has to be asked: is the risk worth the reward?