Liverpool thinking over a pre-season tour in East Asia

0
Liverpool pre-season tour

Liverpool could head to East Asia for a pre-season tour, with a possible warm-up friendly with Manchester United lined up as well.

The Reds are mulling over the possibility of holding pre-season friendly in the Far East. This would be Liverpool’s first pre-season tour since 2019. In that pre-season, Liverpool had travelled to the United States. Although the talks are in the preliminary stages, a possible venue later this year, could be Bangkok. The caveat being the pandemic situation. Thailand has strict procedures but certain areas are open to travel, provided the person in question is fully vaccinated. (Source: Paul Joyce, The Times)

Liverpool’s pre-season tour

The last time Liverpool visited Thailand was in 2014, before Jurgen Klopp’s appointment. Liverpool were led by Brendan Rodgers and they beat True Thai All-Stars 4-0. The scorers were Lazar Markovic, Mamadou Sakho, Adam Lallana and Divock Origi. Along with Origi, only Jordan HendersonJames MilnerJoe Gomez and Sheyi Ojo remain today at Liverpool in some capacity.

United could be one of the opponents that the Reds could face in this tour. In fact, Liverpool were supposed to face United in July at Old Trafford and in August at Anfield. But the tensions between the rival supporters led to the plans being scrapped. The Manchester United supporters had stormed the grounds in protest against the Glazers and their involvement in the ESL blunder.

Liverpool last played friendlies in East Asia in 2017. Where The Reds beat Crystal Palace and Leicester City in a pre-season tournament. Liverpool had then travelled to Berlin, Munich and Dublin, where they beat Hertha BSC, Bayern Munich and Athletic Bilbao. Liverpool partook in the 2017 Audi Cup, where they had beaten Bayern Munich 3-0 at the Allianz Arena. Sadio Mane, Daniel Sturridge and Mohammed Salah were on the scoresheet that day. Though, Liverpool lost to Atlético Madrid, 1–1 (4–5 in penalties) in the final.

Though Jurgen Klopp prefers an extended training camp with his players as preparation for the new campaign. Thus, Liverpool pre-season tour could include travel to a remote region in France, Austrian or Germany.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *