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Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola could be without as many as seven players for his side's trip to Anfield. Liverpool is set to host the Cherries in the opening game of the new Premier League campaign.
In his pre-match press conference, Iraola confirmed that forward Justin Kluivert will not be part of the traveling squad because he is injured. The Dutchman, who netted 12 Premier League goals last season, has been struggling with an issue and remains sidelined as the new campaign gets underway.
But the Spaniard delivered better news on midfielder Ryan Christie. Iraola said the Scotland international has stepped up his recovery and returned to training with the first team this week.
"Justin hasn’t been training with us and won't play," Iraola explained. "Ryan has been training this week with us, which is positive.
"It’s too early for him to play as he hasn’t done any pre-season. He hasn’t done a lot of things for a lot of weeks, so it’s too early — but it's good to have him back on the pitch with the group."
Midfielder Lewis Cook will also be unavailable for the trip to Merseyside, serving a suspension while continuing to recover from an injury picked up during the summer. Forward Enes Unal remains out with an ACL injury.
New signing Bafode Diakite, who arrived for a fee of $46 million (£34 million) from Lille this week, is unlikely to be thrown straight in, while Dango Ouattara and Luis Sinisterra are expected to be left out as they could depart before the transfer window ends.
This summer, Bournemouth has lost several players to other clubs. Liverpool signed Milos Kerkez for a fee of around $60 million (£45 million).
Dean Huijsen's release clause was triggered by Real Madrid, while fellow center-back Illia Zabarnyi has this week joined PSG. Adrien Truffert has come in to play full-back but Bournemouth has certainly been weakened.
"I've unfortunately not been able to play the games in America, so it’s been a bit different in that regard but the team have put in some really good work," the injured Kluivert told Bournemouth's official website ahead of the match.
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"It’s always a tough season in the Premier League and we really can’t wait to get started. For sure there has been change, but we’re managing good.
"We’ve just signed a new great defender, so in football that’s the beauty of it. Players that played well here had a new challenge; we want hungry people to come in and take their places.
"You need to develop players always and get good players back, the club has done a great job in that regard. Zaba has left, we’ve brought in a great center-back; Milos has left and we’ve brought in a great left-back. That’s life and football.
"Changes are good and positive and everyone is really excited for that first game. We want to improve all the time and that’s what we’re striving for."
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