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Key events
Ivan Toney is not in Brentford’s squad
Those teams: Despite Thomas Frank’s upbeat talk yesterday, Ivan Toney is not in Brentford’s matchday squad and who is to say the Dane was not just messing with Liverpool’s minds when he said the striker would be OK for today’s game. In other news pertaining to Brentford, midfielder Josh Dasilva drops to the bench, while there are starts for Yoane Wissa and Vitaly Yanelt.
Kostas Tsimikas comes in at left-back for Liverpool in place of Andy Robertson, while Ibrahima Konate replaces Joel Matip in the heart of their defence. Fabinho returns in place of Jordan Henderson, who is sidelined with a concussion.
Brentford v Liverpool line-ups
Brentford: Raya; Jorgensen, Pinnock, Mee; Roerslev, Janelt, Norgaard, Jensen, Henry; Wissa, Mbeumo.
Subs: Strakosha, Canos, Dasilva, Ghoddos, Lewis-Potter, Damsgaard, Bech Sorensen, Crama, Trevitt.
Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Elliott, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Nunez, Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Subs: Kelleher, Gomez, Keita, Jones, Robertson, Carvalho, Matip, Bajcetic, Phillips.
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Early team news
Despite being stretchered off with a knee injury during Brentford’s win over West Ham, Ivan Toney is reported to be in contention for at least a place on the bench, if not a start today. “It’s good news with Ivan,” said Thomas Frank in yesterday’s pre-match presser.
“It’s not a significant injury and he could potentially be available for tomorrow. There’s nothing wrong with his knee. Without going too much into the details, it’s something with the muscle. The physios explained the details and I completely forgot! I’m just glad it isn’t serious.”
Brentford left-back Aaron Hickey and central defender Kristoffer Ajer are both well on the road to recovery from injury but will be unavailable to face Liverpool this evening. Shandon Baptiste is also sidelined.
While Liverpool wingers Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota, midfielder Arthur and midfielder Curtis Jones all remain out, Jurgen Klopp has fresh concerns over Harvey Elliott and Andy Robertson, who were both forced off in their win over Leicester.
James Milner and Robertto Firmino may be fit enough to play some part today after recovering from soft tissue injuries. Absent from the win against Leicester to attend the birth of his child, Fabinho is likely to return, while new signing Cody Gakpo, in from PSV, is also eligible to play today, paperwork permitting.
Premier League: Brentford v Liverpool
In sixth place in the table, 15 points behind league leaders Arsenal but just four behind Manchester United in the fourth Champions League qualification spot, Liverpool travel to Brentford on the back of consecutive, if not hugely impressive festive wins over Aston Villa and Leicester City.
In Brentford they take on a side that is just five points behind them in 10th and also unbeaten since the resumption of the league following the World Cup. A draw against Tottenham followed by victory over West Ham means Thomas Frank’s side have every reason to be confident as they welcome their exalted opposition to the Brentford Community Stadium. Kick-off in west London is at 5.30pm (GMT) but stay tuned in the meantime for team news and build-up.
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