LIVERPOOL will continue their preparations for the new Premier League season on Saturday, 27 July when they take on Real Betis as part of their US Tour.
The Reds have only played one match so far in pre-season and even that wasn't anything official. They faced Preston at their training ground in a behind-closed-doors fixture before flying out to the USA and succumbed to a 1-0 defeat.
The upcoming match with Real Betis will be a step up in intensity, especially as the Spanish outfit won their first pre-season match 5-1 against A.Salzburg last week.
How the bookies view it: Liverpool go in as narrow favourites
The bookies are treading carefully when it comes to Liverpool which isn't a huge surprise given that they are now an unknown quantity with a new manager at the helm. They have been priced as the 1/1 favourites for this match with Betfred which means great value can be had on a Real Betis win at 2/1. If you want to sit on the fence, the draw has been priced at 13/5.
Recent head-to-head: 19 years later
Liverpool may have played a significant number of matches against Spanish opponents over the years, but they have only ever encountered Real Betis twice before. Those two clashes came in the group stages of the 2005 Champions League, a season where Liverpool were the reigning champions. The Reds won the away leg 2-1 before both teams played out a bore 0-0 draw at Anfield.
Players to watch: All eyes on Salah
As rumours continue to swirl about the future of Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian is on the plane to the USA with the rest of his teammates. Salah was the subject of late interest from the Saudi Pro League last summer and reports suggest that interest isn't yet over so it will be fascinating to see how Salah plays for Liverpool this summer.
If he plays an integral role in their pre-season matches, then the new boss, Arne Slot, has clearly decided that the 32-year-old is still an important player for the club. If his minutes are reduced, then it could perhaps be a sign that the Dutchman is planning for life after Salah.
Real Betis playmaker, Nabil Fekir, will also draw a lot of attention. Fekir was regularly linked with a move to Liverpool when he played for Lyon so this will be a chance for Liverpool fans to see what they could have had.
Predicted line-ups
There are plenty of absentees on both sides thanks to Euro 2024 and the Copa America. Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz are two big names missing for Liverpool while Ayoze Perez is absent for Real Betis. Andy Robertson, who captained Scotland at the Euros, has made the Liverpool squad.
Liverpool: Kelleher – Bradley, Phillips, Van den Berg, Robertson – Endo, Jones, Szoboszlai – Doak, Salah, Carvalho
Real Betis: Silva – Sabaly, Arnal, Llorente, Perraud – Carvalho, Altimira – Fornals, Fekir, Juanmi – Fernandez
Anything else catch the eye?
Liverpool fans won't be reading too much into their behind-closed-doors loss to Preston but another poor performance and result here could make them a little nervy ahead of the new season. Real Betis fired in five goals in their pre-season opener and more goals should be expected here. Over 3.5 goals to be scored is priced at 10/11 with Betfred.
This International Friendly match between Liverpool and Real Betis will be played on Jul 27, 2024 and kick off at 00:30. Check below for our tipsters best Liverpool vs Real Betis prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
