Liverpool vs Borussia Dortmund. Friendly Match.
Notre Dame University StadiumAttendance40,361.
Harry Wilson opened the scoring for Liverpool; Rhian Brewster scored his fourth goal of pre-season
Sunday 21 July 2019 10:25, UK
Liverpool's pre-season preparations were dealt a setback after being beaten 3-2 by Borussia Dortmund in their first match of a tour of the US.
In stifling conditions at the Notre Dame Stadium in Indiana, the European champions faced the Bundesliga runners-up in what Jurgen Klopp had called "the first proper test" of his side's pre-season.
Missing first-team stars Roberto Firmino, Alisson, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane due to the Copa America and African Cup of Nations, Liverpool were hurt by sloppy defending and Dortmund wasted no time in finding the net courtesy of a close-range strike from Paco Alcacer after just three minutes.
Harry Wilson found the net in the 35th minute to draw level but Dortmund scored two quick goals after the break.
Delaney made it 2-1 eight minutes into the second half with an easy tap-in and Jacob Bruun Larsen extended the lead after finding the bottom corner in the 58th minute.
Rhian Brewster converted a penalty in the 75th minute after Ben Woodburn was brought down in the box but Liverpool could not find the equaliser in the closing stages in front of the 40,361-strong crowd.
Klopp had featured many of the younger players in his starting line-up but handed Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jordan Henderson, Andy Robertson, Virgil van Dijk and Georginio Wijnaldum their first summer match action after making 10 changes on the hour mark.
Klopp has already spoken about how a fit Oxlade-Chamberlain will be like having a new player at the club this season after the midfielder's recent long injury layoff.
The England international was on the field for just 19 minutes last season as he recovered from a serious ACL the previous campaign.
However, Oxlade-Chamberlain is now back to full fitness, although he still needs game time to get back up to speed, which is why run outs like these - he played for an hour against the Germans - are so important.
And in the stifling heat of the Notre Dame University Stadium, that is exactly what the 25-year-old got, showing glimpses of the type of form he produced in his debut season at the club.
Liverpool's pre-season tour of the US, which begun in Indiana, represents a wonderful chance for Wilson to stake a first-team claim ahead of the new season, and the youngster did himself no harm with this eye-catching display against Dortmund.
The Welshman, 22, was handed a start in the club's forward line, repaying Klopp's faith with a well-taken first-half equaliser after a clever dummy from Ryan Kent.
Both those players spent last season out on loan - Wilson at Derby, Kent with Rangers - but on this 60-minute showing, it looks like the former is just ahead in the Reds pecking order.
Back in April, Klopp insisted Brewster would have a key role to play in Liverpool's attack this campaign and after scoring his fourth goal in just three pre-season games against Dortmund, you can see why the German was happy not to bring in a replacement for the recently departed Daniel Sturridge.
It may have only been a penalty, confidently thrashed high into the roof of the net to give Liverpool hope of a draw, but the young forward oozed confidence after coming on as a 60th-minute substitute against the Bundesliga side.
And if the 19-year-old carries on scoring like this, the striker will definitely be involved when the Reds' competitive season gets underway against champions Man City in the Community Shield at Wembley on August 8.
Despite the defeat in Note Dame, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was able to find plenty of positives from the game against Dortmund, especially after giving Jordan Henderson, Virgil van Dijk, Georginio Wijnaldum, Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold their first taste of pre-season.
"It was very, very important," he said. "It was tough for both teams with the circumstances - wow, it was really warm. So immediately when we had to come out again for 15 minutes with the same line-up from the first half and Dortmund could change and bring fresh legs, that was the decider, I would say.
"There were a lot of good moments of football, it's sure that you see they are a step further in the pre-season than we are. But we had to fight, we had to defend these situations, a lot of times good. I saw a lot of good things. But the goals [conceded], of course… the first a throw-in, the second a second ball after a corner, not too cool, the third goal I don't know exactly how it happened.
"There were a lot of good things, some things which I didn't like, that's normal in pre-season. I decide what we do in training and I know how much we did yesterday in already pretty warm weather conditions. I still don't like what I see in the game very often in the pre-season but I know the reason for it. I'm not over the moon when I think about our performance but I know there's a lot to come and it's all OK."
Liverpool came up against England international Jadon Sancho in Indiana and here's what Klopp had to say about the 19-year-old.
"He's an exceptional talent but he's not the only one in England at the moment. That age group has already a few - Rhian Brewster is the same age. [And there is] Raheem Sterling, for example.
"I don't want to forget any wingers, but there are a lot of talents; young and very, very promising players in England.
"There is no doubt about the potential of Jadon Sancho. His speed and body control at the highest speed is his main strength. Being good in big spaces and in small spaces makes you a pretty interesting player - and that's what Jadon is.
"Yasser [Larouci], our 18-year-old left-back, played against one of the biggest talents in world football and did pretty well the whole night. The pitch helped a little but, but still he did really well."
Liverpool will continue their pre-season tour at Boston's Fenway Park against Sevilla on Sunday.
Liverpool's remaining pre-season fixtures:
July 21: Sevilla - Fenway Park, Boston
July 24: Sporting Lisbon - Yankee Stadium, New York
July 28: Napoli - Murrayfield
July 31: Lyon - Stade de Geneve, Switzerland
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