So, it’s Liverpool again. Different day, different place, different time ... different players? Rotation is expected, just as it was for Wednesday when both managers made eight changes to their starting lineups before introducing some big names off the bench. Time to flip it and reverse it, like Missy Elliot used to say. The biggest concern for Chelsea, especially given the usual fixture congestion, is the growing injury list and the concerns over key players’ fitness. Neither Antonio Rüdiger nor Pedro were able to train fully yesterday, and there’s very little time left for them to finish recovering from groin and shoulder injuries, respectively. Andreas Christensen may or may not be available either — he was battling an illness on Wednesday but also appeared to hurt himself in the second half while stretching for an interception and did not finish the game. On the plus side, Ruben Loftus-Cheek is back in training. Chelsea won the dress rehearsal. Now it’s the time for the main event. Choose wisely. (Live results)<doc-sep>Virgil van Dijk could miss Liverpool’s game against Chelsea on Saturday. The aggravation of an existing rib problem forced the centre-back off during the second half of last weekend’s 3-0 win over Southampton. Van Dijk was subsequently ruled out of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup defeat to Maurizio Sarri’s team, and Jürgen Klopp remains unsure whether he will feature at Stamford Bridge. Trent Alexander-Arnold (illness) and Georginio Wijnaldum (knock) were also absent in midweek, but are fit for the trip to west London. “Trent trained yesterday completely normal. It was not a knock, Trent was a bit ill, but yesterday that looked pretty good,” Klopp said on Friday. “Virgil, we have to wait. He didn’t train with the team so far but I can’t say anything more about that. Gini trained as well, so all good.” Dejan Lovren played for the first time this season on Wednesday following a pelvic injury, while Joel Matip again completed 90 minutes after also doing so in his maiden start of the campaign against Southampton. And that means Klopp has alternatives should Van Dijk not be ready to return. The boss continued: “Virgil is a world-class player, there is no doubt about that, and if you miss a world-class player it is not cool. “But Dejan Lovren made his first appearance after I would say around 10 weeks. Most of that time he was that injured that he couldn’t even think about training because when you have something in that part of your body you cannot do fitness, nothing. And after that long period, he played an outstanding game. Joel Matip, two games in a row, played fantastic. “So, if Virgil is fit and can play then he will play, but if not then obviously we have options and that’s really good.” Elsewhere in Liverpool’s squad, Adam Lallana and Divock Origi are back in training after their respective groin and ankle issues. PL, 2018-19 PL, 2018-19 Sarri, meanwhile, revealed on Friday that it is “possible” Antonio Rudiger will be fit following the groin injury he sustained in last Sunday’s goalless draw with West Ham United. Pedro (shoulder) and Ruben Loftus-Cheek (shin) are also closing in on consideration for selection for the Blues, for whom Andreas Christensen was substituted at Anfield in midweek due to illness. “Pedro yesterday had the last part of the training with the team, like Rudiger and Loftus-Cheek. So we need to see the last training [session] and then we will decide,” said the Chelsea manager. “They are almost ready, so the situation is better than three or four days ago.”<doc-sep>Get our LFC newsletter for the best Reds coverage Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign up now Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice James Pearce - 'Xherdan Shaqiri is a great option' Liverpool desperately need Virgil van Dijk to be fit for the trip to Stamford Bridge. His absence for the League Cup tie other night served to underline his importance. Hopefully the Reds can patch him up and get him out there. If not I'd go with Dejan Lovren alongside Joe Gomez. I'd go with a midfield of Jordan Henderson, Gini Wijnaldum and James Milner, while the front three picks itself. Xherdan Shaqiri is a great option to bring on at some stage. My team (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Gomez, Robertson; Henderson, Wijnaldum, Milner; Salah, Firmino, Mane. Ian Doyle - 'Go with Dejan Lovren' One of the easier team selections, this. We could pontificate over tweaking the forward line, debate reshuffling the midfield and discuss wholesale changes in defence. But none of this is going to happen. The only question mark is over Virgil van Dijk, and to be honest I don't think he's going to play. I'd go with Dejan Lovren at centre-back alongside Joe Gomez. In midfield, neither Naby Keita nor Fabinho did enough in midweek to suggest they should start, so it's back to last season's season-closing midfield three. Looking at it, there are only two changes from the team that started the Champions League final. And it'd be one if Van Dijk plays. My team (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Lovren, Robertson; Henderson, Wijnaldum, Milner; Salah, Firmino, Mane. (Image: PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images) Joe Rimmer - 'If Virgil van Dijk is fit, he has to start' It's all well and good making a lot of changes in the Carabao Cup, but after Wednesday's exit the pressure is on. Liverpool need a big result at Stamford Bridge. If Virgil van Dijk is fit, then he has to start. If not, I'd drop Joel Matip out and bring back Joe Gomez. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson return at full-back and Alisson is back in goal. In midfield, Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum both need to at the Bridge, and I'd give James Milner the nod to line up alongside them. The front three then picks itself, doesn't it? My team (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Lovren, Robertson; Henderson, Wijnaldum, Milner; Salah, Firmino, Mane. Chris Beesley - 'Joel Matip is preferred' Too many changes against Chelsea in midweek ensured that Liverpool's unbeaten start to the season came to an abrupt halt with an early Carabao Cup exit. However, the Reds now have a quick opportunity to put that right against the same opponents as they look to maintain their 100% record in the Premier League. The trip to Stamford Bridge for Jurgen Klopp should mean a back to basics approach and the use of his best available players in a system they are used to. That means, despite the experimentation of tactical tweaks paying off against Southampton last weekend, it's a return to the tried-and-trusted 4-3-3. If Virgil van Dijk is out, Joel Matip is preferred to Dejan Lovren at centre-back - for now at least - and in an attempt for more solidity away from home against a tough opponent, Xherdan Shaqiri makes way further forward. There are big calls to make in midfield with both James Milner and Naby Keita starting in midweek but the Yorkshireman is the player in form and was taken off with half an hour to spare last time out so he gets the nod. My team (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Matip, Robertson; Henderson, Milner, Wijnaldum; Salah, Mane, Firmino.<doc-sep>Simon Mignolet will start Liverpool’s Carabao Cup tie with Chelsea at Anfield on Wednesday night, Jürgen Klopp has confirmed. The goalkeeper will be handed his first appearance of the season, replacing Alisson Becker between the posts for the third-round fixture. Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Klopp said: “The only position I will confirm today that we will change if nothing happens in training is Simon. “Simon will start, all the rest you have to wait until tomorrow – but it will be a good team, believe me. “Nothing else to say about line-up or who can have an opportunity or whatever. Each game is an opportunity and it’s all about is it the situation for it, is the player ready – there are different things you have to consider when think about the line-up, especially for a cup game like this. “It will be a very good side that we will line up tomorrow.” Asked for details on whether he’d made any further changes to his line-up for the encounter, Klopp refused to be drawn on what kind of team Liverpool are likely to field against Chelsea, other than to insist it would be a ‘really strong side’. “I have nothing to say about that, to be honest,” continued the boss. “I don’t think I will get any information until tomorrow about the line-up of Chelsea. So, why should I give any? We are really competitive, and we really want to win the game. “We will see. I have to make decisions, I will make decisions and it will be a really strong side. I will not even name the number of changes, but it will not be the maximum and it will not be the minimum – it’s between them. We will see. “One I have already confirmed, so it cannot be nil [changes], and it will for sure not be 11. “We will have a good team and I really want to see us playing good football because it’s our rhythm and we are used to playing three times a week, so let’s do it.” With Mignolet set to be handed a first run out of the campaign, Klopp was asked on how the ‘keeper has responded to Alisson’s summer arrival and subsequent installation as the Reds’ No.1. “Brilliant,” he stated. “He has been brilliant. Yes, how you can imagine, a transfer window time is one of two moments in the year when you can make decisions about going somewhere or bringing players in. “Yes, Simon would have been ready to go to another club to be the No.1 in the world, that was clear, but we couldn’t do it and since then he’s been brilliant. “He trains fantastic, it’s all good, and he absolutely deserves the game tomorrow. I am really happy to give him the opportunity, that’s all.”<doc-sep>
Liverpool will make at least one change for Wednesday's Carabao Cup third-round tie against Chelsea at Anfield, with Simon Mignolet set to start in goal. The custodian will replace Alisson Becker between the posts for the Reds for his first appearance of the season in the only piece of confirmed team news Jürgen Klopp divulged during his pre-match media briefing. The manager was quizzed on whether he’d be tempted to make multiple alterations to his line-up for the fixture, particularly given a Premier League meeting with the Blues at Stamford Bridge on Saturday is followed by clashes with Napoli and Manchester City. However, Klopp refused to be drawn on what kind of starting XI he is set to field other than confirming it will be a ‘really strong side’. The boss will need to assess the condition of Virgil van Dijk, who aggravated a rib injury during the weekend win over Southampton and was subsequently forced from the field. Dominic Solanke is back in contention after suffering a concussion when representing the U23s recently, while Klopp reported that Dejan Lovren is making good progress in his rehabilitation from a pelvis issue. Liverpool will be without Adam Lallana and Divock Origi, both of whom are not too far away from returning to full training after groin and ankle issues respectively. Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Pedro and Antonio Rudiger are all doubts for the game due to injury but Eden Hazard will be included in the Chelsea squad, assistant manager Gianfranco Zola confirmed at his pre-match press conference. Gary Cahill and Andreas Christensen are two players pushing for an opportunity at Anfield while youngsters Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ethan Ampadu could be deployed by Blues boss Maurizio Sarri. The visitors are considering changes to their line-up at Anfield but, like Liverpool, will not allow the league fixture that follows on Saturday to distract them from this tie. “It is an important game. We are Chelsea Football Club and we want to try to win all our games. We are going to take it seriously,” said Zola. “It is not the Premier League, we know, but because of who we are, what we are, we want to play the best we can. It’s an opportunity to see players who didn’t have many games so far, but it will still be a good team. “The game on Saturday is going to be huge, the type of game that means a lot. But I think starting from tomorrow it’s going to be competitive. We are greedy, we want to win both of them if we can.” Last time out… Liverpool v Southampton, September 22: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson, Wijnaldum, Henderson, Shaqiri, Mane, Salah, Firmino. West Ham United v Chelsea, September 23: Kepa, Rudiger, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Alonso, Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic, Willian, Hazard, Giroud.