The Independent
·9 September 2026
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Yahoo sportsThe Independent
·9 September 2026
Liverpool begin their Champions League campaign at home to Atletico Madrid as Andoni Iraola gets his first taste of European football under the lights at Anfield.
Back-to-back 2-2 draws - in which they came from behind in both - were followed by a first win under Iraola against Ipswich, with last summer’s £125m signing Alexander Isak finally getting lift-off in a Reds shirt with a quickfire brace.
Now Iraola turns his attention to a first Champions League game as a manager and a meeting with Diego Simeone, who was left lamenting his side’s leaky defence after a 3-0 defeat to Athletic Bilbao in La Liga this past weekend.
Liverpool and Atletico faced off at Anfield in the opening match of last year’s European campaign too, with Virgil van Dijk sealing a 3-2 victory in the 92nd minute and Simeone getting sent off for clashing with fans in the main stand.
Liverpool play Atletico Madrid at Anfield on Wednesday 9 September, with kick-off at 8pm BST.
Viewers in the UK can watch the game on TNT Sports 1 and HBO Max.
Liverpool will definitely be without long-term injury absentees Hugo Ekitike, Giovanni Leoni and Conor Bradley, while Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo were left out of the Champions League squad. Big-money signing Bradley Barcola could be in line for his first start, particularly as Cody Gakpo sat out training on Monday. Joe Gomez is a doubt with a muscle issue but did train.
Atletico will be missing Alexander Sorloth due to a thigh injury while Arnau Ortiz misses out through suspension. All eyes will be on Julian Alvarez, who wanted a move away from the club in the summer and came on as a substitute against Athletic Bilbao.
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch; Munoz, Wirtz, Barcola; Isak







































