Key trio missing from Liverpool squad for tomorrow’s Champions League tie
Liverpool will reportedly be without Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo, and Dominik Szoboszlai again for tomorrow’s Champions League tie against LASK.
The Reds suffered a disappointing 3-0 defeat at home to Manchester City at the weekend, and a large part of that was the fact that they had so many key players missing.
All three of Isak, Gakpo, and Szoboszlai couldn’t be involved that day, and now James Pearce of the Athletic reports that they’re still not going to be back for tomorrow’s trip to Austria…
#LFC name 23-man squad for LASK trip. As expected Isak, Gakpo and Szoboszlai miss out.
Alisson, Gomez, Van Dijk, Jacquet, Kerkez, Wirtz, Mac Allister, Tsimikas, Munoz, Mamardashvili, Woodman, Barcola, Frimpong, Araujo, Gravenberch, Nyoni, Chambers, McConnell, Koumas, Ngumoha,…
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 13, 2026
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It’s far from ideal for Liverpool to be without that important trio, though for a game like this you’d perhaps expect manager Andoni Iraola to be able to cope, as it may well be an opportunity to rest players and rotate the team a bit anyway.
Liverpool waiting for big performance from Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola
With LFC missing some of their best attacking players, it’s only intensified the pressure on Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola to step up, with neither player doing nearly enough in that defeat against Man City.
While Barcola is only in his first season at Liverpool and might still be given a bit more time to settle, there isn’t that same luxury for Wirtz, who joined for big money over a year ago now, and who clearly hasn’t delivered.
Florian Wirtz of Liverpool looks on during the Manchester City game (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
The Germany international’s major dip in form since his Bayer Leverkusen days has been the subject of more and more scrutiny in the last few days, and he surely needs to start having a major influence on games like this, at the very least, before his future comes into serious doubt.
Barcola also has the burden of a big price tag on his shoulders, and that might mean Reds fans also soon lose patience with the France international if he doesn’t up his game.
This kind of fixture against what is on paper a far inferior side, could be just the opportunity for these players to gain some confidence and ensure injured stars like Gakpo aren’t missed too much.
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