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Europa League | Group Stage
Sep 21, 2023 at 5.45pm UK
Raiffeisen Arena
LL

LASK
1 - 3
Liverpool

Flecker (14')
Havel (41'), Zulj (44'), Ziereis (55')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Nunez (56' pen.), Diaz (63'), Salah (88')
Konate (40'), Bajcetic (43')

Jurgen Klopp fires selection warning ahead of Europa League opener

:Headline: Jurgen Klopp fires selection warning ahead of Europa League opener:
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp warns players that he will not gift out "opportunities" in the Europa League ahead of Thursday's opener with LASK Linz.
Sports Mole

Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp has insisted that the Reds are in the Europa League to "compete", not to give "opportunities" to players lacking minutes.

Owing to their fifth-placed finish in the 2022-23 Premier League season, Liverpool will compete in the second tier of continental football for the first time since Klopp's debut season in 2015-16.

The Reds reached the final that year before falling short against seven-time champions Sevilla, and they have added Champions League crown number six to their name since their last foray in the Europa League.

An away clash with Austrian side LASK Linz awaits in their opening Group E fixture on Thursday evening, while Ligue 1 side Toulouse and Belgian team Union SG also lie in wait.

A strong Liverpool contingent has travelled to Austria, but young players such as Ben Doak and Jarell Quansah have also made the journey ahead of expected minutes at the Raiffeisen Arena.

Second-string team members such as Caoimhin Kelleher, Kostas Tsimikas and Harvey Elliott could also be in line for starts, while a full debut may come the way of Ryan Gravenberch.

However, speaking to the media after touching down in Austria, Klopp insisted that Liverpool were not in the Europa League to hand out opportunities at will, and the Reds will fight tooth and nail to lift the trophy aloft in the spring.

When asked about his plans for tomorrow's lineup, Klopp said: "Absolutely no information about that, you will have to wait until tomorrow to have a look at the line-up.

"Enjoy it or don't! But accept it and then we go. We are here to compete, not to give opportunities, for nobody: not for ours and not for them."

Only two Liverpool players will sit out Thursday's continental clash, as Trent Alexander-Arnold (hamstring) and Thiago Alcantara (hip) have been left at home to focus on their recoveries.

However, skipper Virgil van Dijk is eligible to play once more following a two-game domestic suspension, forcing him to miss the Reds' wins over Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Despite their recent injury woes in defence, with Ibrahima Konate also nursing a recent hamstring problem, Liverpool have been firing on all cylinders so far, taking 13 points from 15 on offer in the Premier League.

Following their stellar start to the campaign, Klopp believes that "something is growing" within the Anfield walls, adding: "I don't know how good it can be but I'm really excited about the potential, yeah. I said that already weeks ago, that I really think it looks really good.

"It's now all about what we make of it. It's actually never what you've got, it's really what you make of it. That's what we'll see. You can see the spirit, something is growing. But we will see. They are really good with each other."

Thursday's hosts Linz qualified for the group stage courtesy of a 3-2 aggregate success over Bosnian side Zrinjski Mostar in the playoff round, and they are unbeaten in their last seven competitive games.

Following their Austrian stopover, Liverpool return to Premier League action with a home clash against fellow early high-flyers West Ham United on Sunday afternoon body check tags ::

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Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
7Aston Villa125431919019
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Fulham125341717018
10Brentford125252222017
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Crystal Palace121561017-78
19Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
20Southampton11119721-144
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