Liverpool have been sharing minutes throughout the squad in pre-season so far, but Jurgen Klopp will be able to make fewer changes in the Community Shield.
The Reds take on
Man City at the King Power in
Leicester on Saturday evening, as
FA Cup and
Premier League winners face off to decide the Community Shield.
While widely considered a glorified friendly, factoring into the pre-season schedule rather than kicking off the new campaign, it will still be a hotly contested tie due to the clubs involved.
The Community Shield will be Liverpool’s fifth in a six-game pre-season, which has taken in stops in Thailand, Singapore, Germany and Austria.
Meanwhile,
Man City have only played twice, both on their tour of the United States, as they sealed victory over Club America in Houston and Bayern Munich in Green Bay.
And though Klopp has used the summer to gradually increase the workload on his squad, with 36 players used over four friendlies so far and only two –
Adrian and
Ibrahima Konate – clocking over 180 minutes, it has been a different approach for Pep Guardiola.
The
Man City manager has only used 21 players, and many of those have already played the full 90 against either Club America, Bayern Munich or, in Rodri’s case, both.
The two managers clearly have starkly different approaches to pre-season, but on Saturday, Klopp will not be able to make wholesale changes during the game.
Instead, the FA only permit
nine players to be named on the substitutes’ bench for the Community Shield, with a
maximum of six in-game changes to be made.
That will, at least, allow Klopp to name a strong bench and alter the majority of his side throughout the 90 minutes.
Crucially, the Community Shield cannot go to extra time even if there is a draw after 90 minutes, with the tie going straight to a penalty shootout.
It is likely, then, that along with stand-in goalkeeper
Adrian, four other players will play the full 90, while Klopp can rest six and hand opportunities to six more.
Those changes are more likely to come in midfield and attack, with the likes of
Fabio Carvalho,
Harvey Elliott,
Naby Keita and
Darwin Nunez expected to be available from the bench, but much will depend on individual fitness.
Predicted Liverpool XI vs. Man City: Adrian; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson;
Fabinho, Henderson,
Thiago; Salah, Diaz, Firmino
Predicted subs: H.Davies, Konate, Gomez, Milner, Keita, Jones, Elliott, Carvalho, Nunez
