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Only one week now, and few could ask for a better fixture to finish the preseason. Southampton will be the one that see Liverpool dial it up for real, but Dortmund are a terrific side to be facing at preseason's end, and one that Brendan Rodgers acknowledged was scheduled with the forthcoming Champions League campaign in mind. There's a chance these two could meet again, but for now it serves as an appetizer for both domestic and continental competitions to come.
Dortmund will be without a number of marquee names, including Marco Reus, likely because he'll be signing paperwork to complete his move to Liverpool, and Nuri Sahin, who's out with an injury. Ilkay Gundogan is still rehabbing from a long-term back injury, and those who took part at the World Cup this summer for Germany should feature only sparingly. What's left is still an impressive bunch, with new signing Ciro Immobile leading the way in attack along with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Jakub Błaszczykowski likely to be involved as well. The midfield and defense will have recognizable names as well, with Sven Bender, Neven Subotic, Lukas Piszczek, Marcel Schmelzer, and Roman Weidenfeller expected to take part.
There's a handful that won't feature for Liverpool, as Lazar Markovic, Adam Lallana, Daniel Agger, Fabio Borini, Tiago Ilori, and Jon Flanagan are all on the injury list. The good news is that Daniel Sturridge is reportedly close to full fitness, but shouldn't feature for much more than 45 minutes or so in preparation for next weekend's Premier League opener against Southampton. The rest should be ready and available for selection, with a strong eleven expected and one that should come close to what we'll see on August 17.
Bigger sense of occasion today, maybe, and this is the last chance they'll have to work out the kinks before it matters for real. But the goal is still the same--Liverpool need to come through with as many healthy bodies as possible, and as close to ready as possible for the first fixture of the new season.
Kickoff: 12:15PM BST/7:15AM EST
Ways to Watch: BT Sport 1 (UK), NBCSN/NBC Sports Live Extra (US), LFCTV Go (Online)
Comment: Join the conversation on the Liverpool Offside
Liverpool:
Mignolet
Manquillo Skrtel Lovren Johnson
Gerrard
Henderson Can
Sterling Sturridge Coutinho
Bench: Jones, Kelly, Toure, Sakho, Coates, Enrique, Lucas, Allen, Suso, Ibe, Lambert
Dortmund:
Langerak
Piszczek Ginter Papastathopoulos Schmelzer
Kehl Jojic
Kirch Mkhitaryan Aubemayang
Ramos
Bench: Subotic, Grosskreutz, Sarr, Bandowski, Hofmann, Amini, Ji Dong Won, Immobile, Bonmann, Knystock, Bender