Liverpool had another intense session in the heat of Tokyo on Tuesday morning, just a day before they face Yokohama F. Marinos in their final pre-season fixture in Asia.
The players trained hard at the JFA Dream Field. Florian Wirtz performed well again.
The Reds are set to take on the J1 League side on Wednesday, with kickoff scheduled at 11:30 am BST. It will be Arne Slot’s side’s fourth pre-season game, and fans could finally witness Hugo Ekitike making his unofficial debut in the red shirt.
The 22-year-old Frenchman, who arrived from Eintracht Frankfurt in a massive £79 million deal, looked confident in training. Ekitike was seen linking up with fellow new signing Florian Wirtz, and it gave a little hint of what we might see in the upcoming season.
It wasn’t just random movement — both Ekitike and Wirtz looked to be operating in a two-striker shape, something that could be part of Slot’s new plan. While Wirtz is primarily a No. 10 and Ekitike a versatile No. 9, the training structure did suggest that Liverpool could experiment with two central attackers under the Dutchman this season.
Meanwhile, one notable absentee in training was Alisson Becker. The Brazilian shot-stopper has returned home due to a personal matter and didn’t train with the squad. However, Alexis Mac Allister, Darwin Nunez, and Wataru Endo — who missed the AC Milan game — were all back in full training.
The training happened in very hot conditions, with 27 players working hard before the match against Yokohama.
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Liverpool squad spotted in training ahead of the Yokohama FM friendly
Goalkeepers – Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, Bela Pecsi, Fabian Misciur
Defenders – Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Milos Kerkez, Andy Robertson, Jeremie Frimpong, Conor Bradley, Kostas Tsimikas
Midfielders – Florian Wirtz, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones, Wataru Endo, Harvey Elliott, Tyler Morton, Trey Nyoni, Luca Stephenson
Forwards – Mohamed Salah, Hugo Ekitike, Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez, Ben Doak, Amara Nallo Ngumoha
The squad will now look to wrap up their Asia tour on a positive note when they face Yokohama FM on Wednesday.
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