Monday saw Liverpool host two friendlies against Athletic Club, though neither involved the ill Virgil van Dijk (£6.0m) or sidelined duo Conor Bradley (£5.0m) and Alisson Becker (£5.5m).
This could be good news for the many Fantasy Premier League (FPL) squads that include Jeremie Frimpong (£6.0m), on a night when Mohamed Salah (£14.5m) eventually bagged an attacking return.
Before delving into our Anfield analysis, feel free to check out some other recent Scout Notes:
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- READ MORE: Verbruggen + Schade injury news, Wissa latest
- READ MORE: Bruno still on pens, Mbeumo debut + Barry v Beto
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Liverpool 4-1 Athletic Club
- Goals: Rio Ngumoha, Darwin Nunez, Alex Padilla (own goal), Harvey Elliott
- Assists: Rio Ngumoha, Ben Doak, Darwin Nunez
Liverpool 3-2 Athletic Club
- Goals: Mohamed Salah, Cody Gakpo (x2)
- Assists: Hugo Ekitike, Ryan Gravenberch (x2)
HOPES OF A FRIMPONG START BOOSTED
“Unfortunately, Virgil [van Dijk] is sick today. We miss out on Alisson. Joe Gomez is not there, Conor Bradley is not there.” – Arne Slot
A total of 32 players received a runout, but none were van Dijk, Alisson, Bradley or Joe Gomez (£5.0m).
Though he was optimistic about the first two being fit for next week’s Community Shield, the Bradley uncertainty is good news for Frimpong’s current 26.4% ownership.
“Virgil [van Dijk], normally not. For Joe Gomez and Conor Bradley, it’s going to be tight. Alisson will be back in time as well.” – Arne Slot, when asked if these will miss the Community Shield and/or Gameweek 1
Arriving from Bayer Leverkusen, calling Frimpong a right-back feels unfair. He’s an attacking force, boasting 28 goals and 35 assists from the last three Bundesliga campaigns. His tendency to overlap should benefit Salah too, as it’ll keep the Egyptian more central.
Therefore, a Frimpong start on the opening night looks fairly likely.
But Liverpool face Newcastle United and Arsenal in Gameweeks 2 and 3 and are yet to keep a summer clean sheet. Indeed, none were kept in their final five 2024/25 fixtures, though they’d already secured the league title after the first of these.
A SALAH GOAL
Speaking of Salah, FPL’s most expensive player grabbed his first pre-season attacking return in his fifth outing.
At 0-0, he set up a Cody Gakpo (£7.5m) shot that trickled narrowly wide but soon broke the deadlock. Sent down the left flank, Hugo Ekitike (£8.5m) played the ball across goal, where the 33-year-old was there to convert.
Salah then created Florian Wirtz‘s (£8.5m) shot on target from eight yards out that was straight at the goalkeeper.
In fact, it was a surprise that Salah ended with only one contribution. Handed a late penalty, it still may not have landed by the time you read this. Don’t expect him to lose spot-kick duties, though.
BRACE FOR DIFFERENTIAL GAKPO
A more successful summer belongs to Gakpo. Now up to four goals, the departure of Luis Diaz should see the Dutchman start in Gameweek 1, offering differential potential. Of course, beyond that is harder to call as it depends on Liverpool’s transfer activity.
Very early on, Gakpo’s left-sided cross assisted a Wirtz header that narrowly went over. And after the Bilbao-based giants equalised, he couldn’t finish an Ekitike knockdown.
However, in an eventful appearance, the recently reclassfied FPL midfielder soon made amends by slotting home a rebound from Ryan Gravenberch‘s (£5.5m) attempt – only to then be in the wrong place when an Athletic header deflected in off him.
But again, Gakpo said sorry in the right way. This time, a direct Gravenberch pass set up his strike.
WIRTZ + EKITIKE
Is Gakpo being overlooked because Wirtz and Ekitike are shinier toys?
- READ MORE: FPL new signings – Is Wirtz the next big Fantasy superstar?
- READ MORE: FPL new signings: Will Ekitike be a hit at Liverpool?
As mentioned, the German missed two huge chances throughout 74 minutes. His dribbling and crossing attempts were frustrating to watch, too. But despite that, Wirtz’s positioning could excite FPL managers, regularly showing up inside the box.
Above: A map of Florian Wirtz’s three shots, according to SofaScore
“We’ve lost with Trent [Alexander-Arnold] a lot of creativity from the back. Trent’s crosses and picking out runners was so special – I think Flo [Wirtz] has this quality as well in a totally different position. But he brings that creativity, the pace of Hugo [Ekitike], the pace of both full-backs – Milos [Kerkez] and Jeremie [Frimpong] today.” – Arne Slot
Meanwhile, in under an hour, Ekitike created two big efforts and had two shots for himself. Though Alexander Isak-based (£10.5m) questions still linger, a strong Community Shield display could fuel a Gameweek 1 bandwagon.
NGUMOHA IS THE NEXT BIG THING
Before all of this, the Main Stand was temporarily evacuated when an alarm went off. When fans settled back into their seats for the first encounter, they witnessed a special introduction to wonderkid Rio Ngumoha.
In a second-string side that mixed youth with some senior squad members, this 16-year-old stood out.
He netted the day’s first goal by receiving the ball near the halfway line, going on a solo run and coolly finishing from just outside the box. Shortly after, the teenager headed down Ben Doak‘s (£5.0m) cross for a simple left-footed Darwin Nunez (£6.5m) finish – the striker’s fifth of pre-season.
Ngumoha isn’t yet added to the FPL game, but this summer’s three goals and two assists might change that. Diaz’s exit may propel him up the left-wing pecking order, too.Definitely keep an eye on his progress.
Elsewhere, a great long-range shot from Doak almost made it 3-0, but he was soon successful from closer. The tight-angle shot would probably go down as an FPL own goal, mind
Starting XI for the 4-1 win: Woodman (Pecsi 46); Stephenson, Nyoni (Piling 67), Robertson, Tsimikas; Elliott, Jones (Laffey 84), Mac Allister (Lucky 56); Doak (Danns 56), Darwin (Koumas 80), Ngumoha (Kone-Doherty 67)
Starting XI for the 3-2 win: Mamardashvili; Frimpong (Nallo 72), Konate, Endo, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai; Salah, Wirtz (Wright 74), Gakpo; Ekitike (Chiesa 57)
