Girona host Liverpool in tonight’s Champions League action in a match that, on paper at least, looks set to be a one-sided affair in favour of Arne Slot’s side.
The Reds have won all five of their European matches in this campaign and sit top of the table in this newly revamped league phase knowing that three points this evening all but guarantees them a spot in the next round. In contrast Girona are down in 30th, six places outside the playoff spots, having only won once this term – a 2-0 triumph over Slovan Bratislava.
Though missing key personnel such as Alexis Mac Allister and Alisson Becker, Liverpool will be fresh having had their Premier League fixture versus Everton postponed on Saturday. Their 2-0 victory over Real Madrid proves they are a force to be reckoned with and their Spanish opponents face a tough ask to come away with a positive result.
Follow all the Champions League action with our live blog below:
4’ SAVE! Joe Gomez comes close to first ever career goal [GIR 0-0 LIV]
12’ SAVE! Alisson keeps out Frances effort after Blind miss-kick [GIR 0-0 LIV]
35’ CHANCE! Nunez misses golden opportunity [GIR 0-0 LIV]
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Nunez, Diaz
Girona XI: Gazzaniga; Juanpe, Krejci, Blind; Frances, Van de Beek, Romeu, Gutierrez; Asprilla, Gil; Danjuma.
18:27 , Will Castle
41 mins: This has not been an easy half for Liverpool, but they’re looking to fashion a late opener as we approach the interval.
Nice turn from Szoboszlai as the Reds try and open up the Girona back line, but the final pass is blocked and the ball is scrambled away.
18:24 , Will Castle
38 mins: SAVE! Massive save from Alisson as Girona record-signing Asprilla lets fly from the edge of the area. That was flying into the top corner.
The Brazilian isn’t being eased back into action gently, to say the least.
18:21 , Will Castle
35 mins: CHANCE! Another good chance comes Darwin Nunez’s way.
The Uruguyan is slipped through and with a sight of goal, he smashes towards the far corner. Good save by Gazzaniga with the trailing leg.
This came just after Alisson confidently punched away a dangerous delivery into the box. End-to-end stuff.
18:19 , Will Castle
31 mins: Liverpool keeping the pressure on the Girona back-line, blocking a clearance from the byline which fortunately falls into the arms of Gazzaniga.
The Reds are taking their time when building chances – but need to watch out for the counter when dispossessed, with Frances once again breaking into the box and getting a shot away.
18:14 , Will Castle
26 mins: Closing in on the half-hour mark and either team could realistically be in front. Big chances for both, with keepers at each end being put to work.
After being under the cosh for a few minutes, it’s Liverpool who are once again seeing plenty of the ball, with a lot of play coming through Luis Diaz.
The Colombian has just driven down the flank and towards goal on the byline, but his attempted delivery goes into the side-netting.
18:08 , Will Castle
21 mins: Phenomenal delivery by Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez goes to flick it on and the effort just passes by the front post.
Replays show it actually came off a Girona man – could have been an own goal but alas, it will go down as great defending.
18:06 , Will Castle
Our senior football correspondent Richard Jolly at the Estadi Montilivi:
“This is the smallest ground in the Champions League this year and made even smaller because Uefa don’t allow Girona to use two temporary stands. So capacity today is under 10,000, giving it an unusual feel for a game in this competition.
“The 492 Liverpool fans who got tickets were almost rewarded with a historic sight: Joe Gomez, who has never scored for Liverpool, came close with a header. They haven’t ben able to see an Alisson save for a couple of months and he has made two already.”
18:04 , Will Castle
16 mins: Good bit of pressure from Girona.
Gutierrez and Bryan Gil are causing Liverpool problems, another big save forced from Alisson.
However, the hosts cannot get carried away, with Mohamed Salah nearly punishing them following a quick breakaway.
18:01 , Will Castle
12 mins: Big chance for Girona, who catch Liverpool on the break.
Bryan Gil charges through the middle before finding Gutierrez on the left. His delivery is miss-kicked by Blind yards from goal before Frances’ strike at the far side of the box is saved well by Alisson.
17:54 , Will Castle
7 mins: SAVE! Another big stop from Gazzaniga, this time to deny Nunez.
Gravenberch does what he’s done so often this season, turning his man in the centre and driving towards the box, before slipping one through to Nunez.
The Uruguayan smashes one towards the near post, parried away by the former Spurs shot-stopper.
17:51 , Will Castle
4 mins: SAVE! We nearly just witnessed a bit of history.
Robertson’s corner is whipped in and up rises Joe Gomez, whose powerful header from six yards out forces a strong save from Gazzaniga.
A reminder that Gomez has yet to score a goal in his professional career. That decade-long drought nearly just came to an end.
17:49 , Will Castle
3 mins: Early pressure from Liverpool as Diaz moves down the left before cutting back to Gravenberch, whose lofted delivery towards the men in black lacks bend.
They’ve now forced a rather needless corner, with Robertson to take.
17:45 , Will Castle
1 min: KICK-OFF! Darwin Nunez gets us underway at the Montilivi.
17:44 , Will Castle
The teams are out on the pitch as we prepare for a first ever meeting between Girona and Liverpool. In fact, it’s the first time in history that Girona are pitted against an English team.
From the Spanish fifth tier to the pinnacle of European football, this is a historic evening for Girona – and they’ll be eager to cause an upset against one of the contintent’s most decorated titans.
Anthem blaring, kick-off moments away!
17:38 , Will Castle
Liverpool boss Arne Slot has branded tonight’s visit as a ‘special occasion’ for their opponents.
“It feels really good to have Alisson back, we didn’t want to take any risk at all,” he told TNT Sports. “Now he is completely ready to start.
“This is a special occasion for Girona. It is always a special occasion for the team we face and it is nice to be in the position we are in in the Champions League.
“Our players are so experienced, they know what it means to play Champions League for this club. I assume they are ready for it, they have to be. The style of Girona is something we have to be aware of.”
17:30 , Will Castle
It’s been 656 days since Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson started together for Liverpool.
The quintet line-up for the Reds tonight as Arne Slot looks to maintain his 100 per cent record in the Champions League.
17:25 , Mike Jones
If Jurgen Klopp turned mantras into catchphrases and vice-versa, Arne Slot has a less memorable way with words. Klopp talked of mentality monsters, of turning doubters into believers, of their identity being intensity, of Liverpool 2.0. Slot talks about not getting carried away. A lot. Which, in part, is because his start, of 18 wins in 21 games, could give supporters and his squad alike licence to do just that.
In his attempt to downplay everything, Slot often mentions that his players are accustomed to being top of the Premier League. Perhaps it suits him, too, that a lead has been trimmed from nine points to seven and then, without Liverpool playing, to four. Yet they are not accustomed to being top of the Champions League: not like this, anyway. A core of them have won the competition, in 2019. Some have won a group. But not a 36-team group, not one that contains everyone.
Liverpool’s excellence brings Arne Slot a new dilemma with unknown consequences
17:20 , Mike Jones
The Liverpool boss said: “It is a healthy competition between Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo. Our fans saw a few times already Luis Diaz playing as No.9 as well in one or two games this season.
“For the last five, six, seven or eight weeks we’ve had four players available for three positions, so we’ve rotated once in a while mostly the left wing and the nine positions [and] our right winger has always been Mo Salah until now.
“They’ve both had a lot of starts, they’ve both been excellent for us – Luis Diaz and Cody – but the other two have done very well, also. I am happy about all four of them, but you’re asking me [specifically] about the Colombian and I am really happy with Luis Diaz for as long as I’ve been here.
“Excellent work-rate, big threat, great footwork, can score goals, so a very special player for us.”
17:15 , Mike Jones
Virgil van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch have played every minute of the Champions League campaign this season.
17:10 , Mike Jones
Mohamed Salah is a goal away from the total of 50 in his Champions League career, including qualifiers – with 43 of his 49 so far coming while with the Reds.
He has scored six times in his last five club games and the Egyptian is two goals away from joining Billy Liddell (228 goals) in joint-fourth place on Liverpool’s all-time goalscoring list.
17:05 , Will Castle
Arne Slot’s side have played 447 minutes since last conceding a goal in the Champions League.
17:00 , Mike Jones
Liverpool are seeking to win each of their opening six games of a European campaign for only the second time ever. In 2021-22, they won all of their first seven fixtures.
16:55 , Mike Jones
The Reds have won 15 of their last 20 away Champions League matches, including 10 of the last 12.
16:50 , Will Castle
A victory at Estadi Montilivi would be the Reds’ 150th in the competition overall (inclusive of wins by penalty shootout).
16:45 , Mike Jones
More from Liverpool’s manager who explained his feelings about trying to finish top of the Champions League table. He said: “It is so difficult to say anything about this. I have said it many times, but at the end of the season you can judge it in the best possible way – if it’s helpful to end up in the top eight, if it’s helpful to end up as No.1.
“Of course, it seems to be really helpful to end up first eight, but if every time you play your starters, which we have done until now almost every time, then you also need the results. We try to do this to, first of all, be in the highest possible position but also to skip the next round.
“If in the end it means by playing your starters always, skipping that round and still having a very difficult draw then we maybe are going to think about it differently next season, what we are going to do in the group stage. That is something we have to wait and see in the end of the season, where this will lead us.
“First of all, we want to stay in the top eight and therefore we think we need a win – and the first chance we have is tomorrow night.”
16:43 , Will Castle
Michel fields a team littered with ex-Premier League talent, with former Manchester United duo Donny van de Beek and Daley Blind reigniting their rivalry with the Reds. Arnaut Danjuma, who played in Everton colours last term, leads the line.
Girona XI: Gazzaniga; Juanpe, Krejci, Blind; Frances, Van de Beek, Romeu, Gutierrez; Asprilla, Gil; Danjuma.
Subs: Pau López, Lucas, Arnau, David López, Stuani, Abel Ruiz, Solís, Iván Martín, Portu, Selvi, Minsu
16:40 , Mike Jones
The Liverpool boss spoke about his team’s opponents tonight saying: “I think it is really special what they’ve done here, particularly last season but even this season still.
“I’ve just made the comparison [in another interview] that they were close to becoming the Leicester City of [Spain] a few years ago [when] they were competing for the league title. With this budget, it probably means how good a manager Michel is. Even this season, I think they do better than the results might look, especially in the Champions League.
“I have seen almost every game and apart from the PSV [Eindhoven] game, they were in every game. They were unlucky against Paris Saint-Germain, I think they were a bit unlucky here against my former club Feyenoord when they conceded two own goals and missed a penalty, although Feyenoord missed one as well.
“So, they were in every game apart from the PSV Eindhoven one and that’s why we have to be on top of our game tomorrow to get a result over here.”
16:38 , Will Castle
Our senior football correspondent Richard Jolly is at the Estadi Montilivi with the latest:
“Alisson does make his Liverpool comeback, meaning Caoimhin Kelleher’s last action of his 11-game stint in the team was to leave the Bruno Guimaraes free kick that Fabian Schar converted for Newcastle’s third goal last week. It was an inglorious spell to an excellent run in the team for the Irishman. In one of Arne Slot’s few other decisions, he has chosen Darwin Nunez to lead the line. Cody Gakpo is on the bench.”
16:35 , Will Castle
Arne Slot opts for arguably the strongest XI at his disposal as the Reds look to get back to winning ways this evening.
As expected, Alisson makes his return to the fold for the first time since the beginning of October.
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Nunez, Diaz
Subs: Jaros, Kelleher, Endo, Gakpo, Elliott, McConnell, Norris, Quansah
16:25 , Mike Jones
Arne’s Slot’s side have started the campaign superbly both domestically and in Europe and currently top of the Premier League and Champions League tables.
They were frustrated by the weather at the weekend as the Merseyside derby at Everton was postponed but will hope to maintain their momentum as they travel to Girona.
They are the only side to have won five from five in the competition and, after beating Real Madrid last time out, will be expected to chalk up another victory against a side with just three points so far.
16:20 , Mike Jones
Of Alisson potentially returning to the Liverpool team, Arne Slot said: “I think it speaks for itself if you can play with Alisson, who has been so outstanding for this club for so many years and for the Brazil national team.
“It’s definitely nice to have him back available. But if you look at how his replacement did, it is not going to be easy to do it even better. We expect definitely the same or on margins a bit better. Caoimh did so well we can say that we have two very good goalkeepers. Like we have with left wingers [Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo].
“For so many years Alisson has been so outstanding for this club that we are expecting and hoping that he will do the same for us in the upcoming weeks and months.”
16:15 , Mike Jones
Alisson has returned to the Liverpool squad and could make his comeback in Tuesday’s Champions League tie with Girona.
The Brazil goalkeeper has missed 11 matches with a hamstring injury and manager Arne Slot welcomed him back, while warning he will have to excel to match the performances Caoimhin Kelleher produced in his absence.
The Ireland international saved a penalty from Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe in Liverpool’s last Champions League game and they won nine of the 11 matches Alisson has missed.
Liverpool given boost with Alisson set for Champions League return
16:10 , Mike Jones
Considering Liverpool’s incredible form in Europe and how the manager wants to instill a winning mentality into his team expect them to keep up their momentum and extend their lead at the top of the table. It’s hard to see anything but a win for the visitors tonight.
Girona 1-3 Liverpool.
16:05 , Mike Jones
Here’s how we see the two teams lining up this evening, given the latest injury updates from the managers as well as other factors:
Girona XI: Gazzaniga; A Martinez, Lopez, Krejci, Gutierrez; Martin, Romeu; Asprilla, Van de Beek, Danjuma; Miovski
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Nunez, Diaz
16:00 , Mike Jones
Arne Slot is unable to call upon Alexis Mac Allister for tonight’s match with the Argentine midfielder suspended after collecting too many yellow cards in the Champions League. He is one of six players set to miss out with Federico Chiesa, Kostas Tsimikas, Ibrahima Konate, Conor Bradley and Diogo Jota all on the sidelines through injury. Alisson is fit to start and could come straight back into the team.
For Girona, Arnau Martinez is available after serving a ban in the defeat to Sturm Graz. Yangel Herrera will be absent due to a calf injury and Viktor Tsygankov has an adductor issue. Jhon Solis will be assessed before the game to see if he can play a part. Former Premier League stars Bryan Gil (Spurs) and Arnaut Danjuma (Everton) could feature on the right side for the hosts.
15:55 , Mike Jones
The game will be shown live on TNT Sports 1, with coverage starting at 5pm GMT. Subscribers can also watch via the discovery+ app.
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15:50 , Mike Jones
Liverpool travel to face Girona at 5.45pm GMT on Tuesday 10 December at Estadi Montilivi in Girona, Spain.
15:45 , Mike Jones
Liverpool hope to maintain their unbeaten record in the Champions League this season when they travel to Spain to take on Girona in the sixth round of fixtures during the league phase.
The Reds top the table after five wins from five including a stellar outing against La Liga champions Real Madrid last time out in this competition. Second half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo secured a comfortable 2-0 win in a scoreline that didn’t reflect Liverpool’s dominance and control.
Mac Allister is suspended for tonight’s game so Arne Slot has limited options in terms of squad rotation meaning Girona can expect to face a fairly strong line-up.
The Spanish side are without a win in four games across all competitions and come into the match sitting 30th in the table, six places outside the playoff spots.
Monday 9 December 2024 11:43 , Mike Jones
Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s Champions League action as Girona host Liverpool.
Arne Slot’s side are looking to continue their winning run having triumphed in all five of their European matches this term. They sit top of the table and face a Girona team low on form and confidence.
The Spanish side have only one one game in Europe and look set for an early exit unless they can pull off a positive result against the Reds tonight.
We’ll have all the team news, line-ups and updates throughout the evening so stick with us as we build up to kick off at 5.45pm.
