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Alright mates, buckle up because tracking Liverpool’s lineup against Wolves turned into a proper scavenger hunt today. Woke up feeling optimistic, grabbed my phone while the kettle boiled, thinking I’d just quickly check the usual places for the starting XI. Simple, right? Ha!
Opened Twitter first, scrolling past memes and transfer rumors. Saw some random fan account yelling “JONES OUT”. Ignored it initially, figured it was just noise. Checked a semi-reliable news aggregator app next. Spotted a tiny update buried between sponsorship deals: “Thiago Alcantara, setback in recovery”. Groaned. That felt like groundhog day. Wrote that down mentally: “No Thiago. Again.”
Made the mistake of diving into Reddit. Absolute chaos. Someone swore Konate was limping after training, another poster claimed Nunez was “holding his hamstring”. Zero sources, just panic. Still, it got me worried. Refreshed the BBC Sport page like a madman – nothing concrete yet. Then, boom! Sky Sports notification: “Matip undergoes successful surgery”. Wait, surgery? Scratched my head, genuinely confused. He just got back! Jotted down “Matip definitely out (long-term?!)”. That backline was looking thin.
Headed over to the club’s official website, hoping for clear news. Found the pre-match press conference quotes. Klopp speaking: “Diogo trained but we have to see… Curtis felt his hamstring a little bit…” Felt my stomach drop. Curtis Jones now? Really? Crossed off Jones from my potential midfield list right then. Klopp added: “Trent is close, maybe not tomorrow.” Sigh. There goes that explosive right side.
So, what have I got so far? It looked like this:
- Defence: Van Dijk solid, Konate hope he’s okay (rumors!), Matip gone, Gomez filling gaps. Robbo buzzing.
- Midfield: Szobo fine. Endo a rock? Mac Allister creative. Jones out, Thiago out.
- Attack: Salah flying. Nunez rumored sore (panic level rising!), Jota maybe fit? Diaz ready.
Finally, the club’s official team sheet dropped late afternoon. Slammed my coffee cup down reading it:
- Jota did make the bench! Small win.
- Konate started, phew, hamstring rumors were rubbish.
- No Jones anywhere. Hamstring confirmed. Add him to the list.
- Nunez starting, clearly pushed through whatever tweak he had.
- Trent still out. Alexander-Arnold shaped hole remained.
Stared at the final lineup – Endo and Grav anchoring, Nunez and Diaz buzzing around Salah. It wasn’t the ideal XI I imagined when the fixtures came out. More like “who’s actually left standing?” squad. But you know? That’s Liverpool this season. Patch it up, throw them out there, and pray to the football gods they all come back in one piece. Again. Let’s hope they get the job done this time.