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Liverpool vs Toulouse: What will Rafa do?

Well, Jermaine Pennant and Harry Kewell will definitely not be in the line-up, that's for sure. JP was given a rest and Harry Kewell is injured again, shocking, I know. The question is, did Rafa bring any youngsters and if so, is he going to play any of them? Looking at who's not on loan at the moment, I can definitely see Emiliano Insua, Robbie Threlfall, Stephen Darby, Gabriel Paletta, Nabil El Zhar, Lucas Leiva, and possibly even Anthony Le Tallec seeing time here.

If he doesn't bring any of the aforementioned, I expect the line-up to go something like this:

GK - Charles Itandje - since the Frenchman is somewhat familiar with Toulouse, I think he'll get his debut here. His experience against the French side, the first time Liverpool has ever faced them in European play, might be invaluable.

LB - John Arne Riise - Riise also has some experience in the French Ligue as he played for AS Monaco some seven years ago

CB - Sammi Hyypia - Carrragher needs a break after being all over the field against Villa

CB - Daniel Agger - no one else to play, despite us possibly needing him to contain Drogba come Sunday. He's young.

RB - Alvaro Arbeloa - gives Finnan a break for the Chelsea match

LM - Ryan Babel - It's either him or Yossi, here and on the right

CM - Steven Gerrard - will start when fit

CM - Javier Mascherano - vital in containing opponents in away matches, not sure about his fitness though

RM - Yossi Benayoun - might start on the left

F - Andriy Voronin - relatively fresh after only playing fifteen or so against Villa

F - Peter Crouch - Europe is his forte

Bench:
Pepe Reina
Jamie Carragher
Steve Finnan
Xabi Alonso
Momo Sissoko
Dirk Kuyt
Fernando Torres

We might see Sissoko instead of Mascherano as I'm not sure Javier made the trip or not. I would love to see Insua get the start on the left, just to give Riise a rest, but I'm not sure how realistic that would be. When we get Leto eligible and Kewell back, then the real squad selection issues will begin.

The match is 1030 EST. Cheers.

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