2023 begins with a bang as Brentford welcome Liverpool to the Gtech Community Stadium for an evening under the lights.

Last season’s game in TW8 was one for the ages as the two sides traded six goals; Yoane Wissa’s late strike securing a point for the Bees.

Both teams picked up victories to end 2022, against West Ham United and Leicester City respectively, and will be hoping to get the new year underway in a similar vein.

The Opposition

Liverpool

Last season, all the talk surrounding Liverpool was whether Jurgen Klopp’s men could defy the odds and complete an historic quadruple. They couldn’t quite get there in the end – but they came mighty close.

The Reds saw off Chelsea in both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals, but missed out on the Premier League title by a single point and were then beaten 1-0 by Real Madrid in the Champions League final.

It was an incredible effort to challenge on all four fronts and a campaign that will go down in Anfield folklore.

It seemed that going toe-to-toe with Manchester City to manoeuvre themselves into a similar position in 2022/23 would be a formality, but it has not worked out that way.

Liverpool twice came from behind to draw 2-2 with Fulham on the opening weekend and that was the case in their second league outing against Crystal Palace, too, with Darwin Nunez sent off for a headbutt on Joachim Andersen, just to amplify the frustration.

They were beaten by old foes Manchester United next, but responded with a 9-0 demolition of Bournemouth, which equalled the biggest win in Premier League history.

On 9 October, they were beaten 3-2 by Arsenal at the Emirates. The defeat left the Reds trailing the leaders by an unprecedented 14 points after only eight games – and Klopp was in no mood to speak about challenging for the title. “It is not our problem at the moment – we have other problems,” he said. “We have to find a way to win football games consistently.”

For the most part, they had done so in the weeks leading up to the World Cup, with four wins from the six games that preceded the break.

Frustratingly, they saw off close rivals Man City and Tottenham Hotspur, but slipped to narrow defeats against Nottingham Forest and Leeds United in games they would certainly have been tipped to triumph.

It just about summed their season up when they were drawn against reigning champions Real Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League, having missed out on top spot in Group A to Napoli by way of goal difference.

While Roberto Firmino has been, surprisingly, the chief tormentor for Liverpool’s opponents this term, it is plain to see Klopp and Co have missed the influence of Sadio Mane, who was sold to Bayern Munich in the summer. A player who contributed 28 goal involvements in 51 games last term was always going to be tough to replace.

Having picked up where they left off, a push for a seventh-straight top-four finish should certainly be achievable, despite strong competition from elsewhere.

The Gameplan

With Sky Sports’ journalist Richard Morgan

“Liverpool will set up as Klopp always does, in a 4-3-3 formation, with his full-backs high up the field and the defence holding its usual high line. Nunez will once again have to fill in on the left side of the front three, with Salah on the right and, potentially, Roberto Firmino through the middle, if he recovers from injury. In midfield, expect Thiago, Henderson and Fabinho to start.”

Read the full interview with Richard Morgan here

Team News

Frank: Toney injury 'not significant'

Ivan Toney is in contention to face the Reds despite departing the pitch at London Stadium on a stretcher.

Thomas Frank confirmed there was no significant injury and that Toney could be involved on Monday.

The news is similarly positive on Kristoffer Ajer and Aaron Hickey, who both trained today but won’t be involved tomorrow.

Shandon Baptiste (groin) and Frank Onyeka (hamstring) remain sidelined.

Liverpool will be without Luis Diaz (knee), James Milner (muscle), Diogo Jota (calf), Curtis Jones (unspecified) and Arthur Melo (muscle) while Roberto Firmino may make his return following a muscle injury.

New signing Cody Gakpo could be available if Liverpool can get his registration completed in time.

The Boss

Jurgen Klopp

Jurgen Klopp was a utility player during his professional days, the large majority spent at Mainz 05 in Germany.

Retiring in 2001, he became the Manager at 05, winning promotion to the Bundesliga three years later.

Relegation came in 2007, Klopp resigning a year later after failing to get them back to the top flight. He was the longest-serving manager in club history.

He joined Borussia Dortmund, guiding them to the Bundesliga title in 2011, and followed that up with Dortmund's first-ever domestic double a year later.

Klopp also took Dortmund to the 2013 Champions League final, losing to Bayern Munich at Wembley, before leaving in 2015, again as their longest-serving manager.

Arriving at Anfield, Klopp took the Reds to back-to-back Champions League finals, winning the second in 2019.

The following season, Liverpool captured the UEFA Super Cup and a first FIFA Club World Cup.

They also won the Premier League title, their first league honours in 30 years.

These achievements won Klopp back-to-back FIFA Coach of the Year awards in 2019 and 2020.

Last Meeting

Brentford 3 Liverpool 3 (Premier League, 25 September 2021)

Match Officials

Stuart Attwell the man in the middle

Referee: Stuart Attwell

Assistant referees: Darren Cann and Harry Lennard

Fourth official: Simon Hooper

VAR: Darren England

Assistant VAR: Mark Scholes

Stuart Attwell made history on 23 August 2008 when he became the youngest referee of a Premier League game, taking charge of Blackburn Rovers v Hull City aged just 25.

That completed a remarkable rise for the Nuneaton-born official who had only officiated his first EFL game 12 months previously.

Over the course of the past decade, Attwell has taken charge of matches in the Premier League, EFL, UEFA Champions League and Europa League, as well as two Play-Off finals and the 2011 Under-19 European Championship final.

Brentford have lost just five times in the 15 matches that Attwell has officiated, winning six in a row between September 2012 and November 2017.

Last season, Attwell took charge of the Bees twice - at home to Liverpool in September and at Southampton in January - while this season’s one outing was August’s unforgettable home win over Manchester United.

Liverpool 22/23

141 fouls – second-fewest in Premier League

12 yellow cards – fewest in Premier League

1 red cards – fifth-most in Premier League