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Who: Liverpool vs Atletico Madrid
What: UEFA Champions League
Where: Anfield, Liverpool, United Kingdom
When: Wednesday, September 17 astatine 9pm (19:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll person each the build-up connected Al Jazeera Sport from 6pm (16:00 GMT) successful beforehand of our unrecorded substance commentary stream.
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list of 1 itemend of listUEFA Champions League openers don’t travel overmuch bigger than mega nine Liverpool pitted against Spain’s powerhouse outfit, Atletico Madrid.
The reigning English Premier League champions, who person started their caller home run with a cleanable 4-0 record, volition beryllium looking to avenge their disappointing round-of-16 exit from past season’s Champions League, wherever they mislaid a heartbreaking punishment shootout to eventual title-winners PSG.
Atletico, who finished a beardown 3rd presumption successful past season’s La Liga down Barcelona and Real Madrid, are the lone squad successful past to scope 3 Champions League finals without having won the trophy – a grounds they privation to enactment to remainder by going 1 amended this season.
Here is each to cognize astir the matchday 1 fixture:
Will Alexander Isak debut for Liverpool against Atletico?
Liverpool fans were denied the accidental to ticker British grounds signing Alexander Isak successful enactment arsenic helium was near retired of the match-day squad for Sunday’s 1-0 triumph astatine Burnley, but manager Arne Slot said they volition not person to hold long.
Slot confirmed the Swedish forward, signed connected deadline time for 125 cardinal pounds ($169.45m) from Newcastle United, was inactive not up to velocity aft playing hardly immoderate minutes this play owed to injury.
But the Dutchman hinted helium is apt to play immoderate portion against Atletico Madrid successful the Champions League.
“Alex is acold from acceptable for that docket of 3 games successful a week,” Slot told reporters aft his side’s last-gasp Premier League triumph astatine Turf Moor, secured by a Mohamed Salah penalty.
“So present helium volition beryllium capable either Wednesday [against Atletico] oregon Saturday to play 45 arsenic a minimum, and possibly a small spot more. But if helium plays 45 connected Wednesday, don’t expect him to play 45 oregon much connected Saturday due to the fact that his assemblage is not prepared for that.”
Isak’s lone shot enactment truthful acold this play was a 20-minute cameo disconnected the seat for Sweden, successful a 2-0 decision by Kosovo successful a World Cup qualifier past week.
All eyes are connected prima signing Alexander Isak and whether helium makes his Liverpool debut against Atletico Madrid astatine Anfield connected Wednesday [File: Damjan Zibert/Soccrates via Getty Images]What’s incorrect with Atletico this La Liga season?
The Madrid giants person struggled retired of the gross successful the existent 2025-26 play and are presently 11th connected the Spanish part 1 table.
Los Colchoneros mislaid their season-opener 2-1 to a vastly improved Espanyol broadside connected August 17 and past suffered an embarrassing 1-1 location gully to recently relegated Elche.
Another gully followed astatine Alaves a week later, but Atletico’s play present appears to beryllium turning astir aft a 2-0 decision of Villareal connected Sunday and the caller signing of talented Argentinian guardant Nicolas Gonzalez, who scored a game-winning extremity connected debut.
Atletico Madrid prima guardant Julian Alvarez has endured a dilatory commencement to the play with conscionable 1 extremity from 4 La Liga matches [File: Ana Beltran/Reuters]When did Liverpool and Atletico past meet?
The sides past met connected November 3, 2021, astatine Anfield, with Liverpool winning their instrumentality Champions League radical signifier fixture against Atletico Madrid 2-0.
The precocious Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane gave the hosts a two-goal cushion wrong the archetypal 20 minutes of the contest.
When Atletico’s Felipe was sent disconnected successful the 36th infinitesimal for an errant tackle connected Mane, the Reds held their vantage to the last whistle and secured a spot successful the last-16 of the tournament.
When did Liverpool past triumph the UEFA Champions League?
Arne Slot’s broadside are aiming to triumph the contention for the archetypal clip since 2019.
Key Stats:
- Liverpool person won their past 14 location European radical stage/league signifier matches, scoring 2 oregon much goals successful the past 13 and keeping 9 cleanable sheets successful the past 12.
- Salah has 18 goals successful his past 20 radical stage/league signifier matches for the Reds.
- Atletico person won their past 5 league signifier fixtures.
Team news: Liverpool
Isak whitethorn marque his long-awaited Liverpool debut, but is improbable to beryllium successful the starting XI.
Alexis Mac Allister, who lone played a fractional crippled against Burnley aft being connected the receiving extremity of a crunching situation from Lesley Ugochukwu, is simply a game-time determination arsenic to whether helium starts against Atletico.
England planetary Curtis Jones is retired with an unspecified injury. Dominik Szoboszlai is astir apt to determination guardant into Jones’s antiaircraft midfield relation with Jeremie Frimpong entering the starting XI.
Alexis Mac Allister, left, is simply a game-time determination to play against Atletico Madrid aft suffering a beardown situation from Burnley’s Lesley Ugochukwu, centre, astatine Turf Moor, Burnley, UK connected September 14, 2025 [Lee Smith/Action Images via Reuters]Team news: Atletico Madrid
Atletico’s 2-0 triumph against Villareal connected Saturday extracted a precocious toll connected Diego Simeone’s squad, with nary less than 4 players forced disconnected with injury: Julian Alvarez, Gonzalez, Robin Le Normand and David Hancko.
While Alvarez, Gonzalez and Le Normand are probable inclusions successful the starting XI, Hancko’s wounded – a high-grade ankle sprain suffered conscionable minutes aft helium entered the Villareal lucifer arsenic a substitute – makes his information against Liverpool highly doubtful.
Jose Gimenez is besides questionable with a calf strain earlier Wednesday’s fixture.
Alex Baena and Thiago Almada volition not suit up against Liverpool.
Possible Lineups:
Liverpool: Alisson Becker (goalkeeper); Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai; Salah, Wirtz, Gakpo; Ekitike
Atletico Madrid: Oblak (goalkeeper); Llorente, Le Normand, Lenglet, Ruggeri; Barrios, Koke; Simeone, Griezmann, Gonzalez; Alvarez
Head-to-head:
Liverpool and Atletico Madrid person played each different six times, with each broadside winning twice.
- Liverpool – 2 wins
- Atletico Madrid – 2 wins
- Draws – 2
Last 5 matches (all competitions):
Liverpool: L-W-W-W-W (most caller effect last)
Atletico Madrid: W-L-D-D-W
Argentinian guardant Nicolas Gonzalez scored connected debut for Atletico Madrid successful a 2-0 triumph vs Villarreal connected the weekend, giving the Spanish broadside different enactment up beforehand against Liverpool [File: Ana Beltran/Reuters]
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