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Why Liverpool Are Playing the Same Team Twice on the Same Day

Liverpool take on Athletic Club in a double header on Monday.
James Cormack|
Liverpool are back on Merseyside after touring the Far East.
Liverpool are back on Merseyside after touring the Far East. | IMAGO/Propaganda Photo

The free-spending Liverpool are back on Merseyside for the final part of their pre-season preparations, with a new-look Reds side set to defend their Premier League title in 2025–26.

Arne Slot’s squad concluded their tour of the Far East with a satisfying 3–1 victory over Japanese side Yokohama F. Marinos, as Florian Wirtz scored his first goal for the club and Hugo Ekitiké made his debut.

While their work off the pitch has garnered plenty of praise, there have been on-pitch imperfections this summer, and Slot will be keen to iron those out before the new season gets underway.

Liverpool are, of course, involved in the unofficial season curtain-raiser against FA Cup winners Crystal Palace in the Community Shield, but there’s one more opportunity for Slot’s squad to get up to speed as they face La Liga outfit Athletic Club with a jumbo pre-season friendly on Monday.

Why Liverpool are Facing Athletic Club in Pre-Season Double-Header

Liverpool take on the Europa League semi-finalists in a double-header, with the two fixtures at Anfield kicking off at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. BST. Both matches will be played over 90 minutes.

Double-headers are usually exclusive to end-of-season grassroots action, as amateur leagues attempt to cram as many fixtures in as possible in the spring following inevitable postponements in the winter.

Thus, Liverpool’s upcoming friendlies against Athletic are rare, even in pre-season.

The nature of the fixture allows for both managers to heavily rotate, with Slot and Ernesto Valverde potentially using two different squads for the games. We saw Thomas Frank split his Tottenham Hotspur squad into two as they played two friendlies on the same day against Wycombe Wanderers and Luton Town.

While both sides have enjoyed pretty extensive summer schedules, Monday’s double-header will serve as a great chance to offer more players minutes and smartly manage the workloads of stars. Moreover, Liverpool will don their lovely new home kit for the first time.

The Reds face Palace at Wembley six days later, while Athletic Club take on Arsenal in the Emirates Cup next Saturday. Their La Liga campaign begins the following weekend at home to Sevilla, with Liverpool kicking off the new Premier League season against Bournemouth on Friday, August 15.

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James Cormack
JAMES CORMACK

James Cormack is a writer for SI FC. Opting against a football coaching undergraduate degree at the last minute, he instead decided to take on a six-month internship with 90min in 2019 and hasn't looked back. Cormack's current SEO focus means he tends to venture to the land of match previews and predicted lineups, but he also has a wealth of experience in news and feature writing. A passion for soccer's history and the European game often takes his work beyond the familiarity of the Premier League, but it's with Tottenham Hotspur where his strongest allegiance lies.

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