1 week ago
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Florian Wirtz made his debut for Liverpool following a record-breaking transfer, as the Reds secured a comfortable victory in a private friendly against Championship team Stoke City. It comes as Bayern Leverkusen chiefs have fired back over a transfer claim.
Wirtz, who was signed from Bayer Leverkusen last month for a staggering $155.5 million, missed the 3-1 win over Preston North End in Arne Slot's side's initial preseason match last weekend.
However, the attacking midfielder - who has already explained why he chose Liverpool over Bayern Munich - played the first half of the game against Stoke, which took place at the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby on Sunday afternoon.
Darwin Nunez maintained his strong start to preseason by netting a hat-trick within the first 20 minutes, while Rio Ngumoha also scored before half-time as the Reds cruised to a 5-0 triumph over the Potters, with Federico Chiesa rounding off the scoring in the second half.
Nunez opened the scoring six minutes into the game with a quick reaction after Wirtz's attempted pass to Dominik Szobsoszlai was blocked. The striker then tapped in a Szoboszlai cross from the right for his second goal six minutes later, before completing his hat-trick with a Curtis Jones assist.
Ngumoha added to the tally shortly afterwards with a deflected shot, while Chiesa found the back of the net with two minutes left on the clock, following Cody Gakpo's square pass from a Jeremie Frimpong cross to the far post.
Wirtz was part of a formidable starting lineup that saw captain Virgil van Dijk make his first appearance in the preseason. The German international took up the No. 10 role, with Ngumoha on the left wing, Mohamed Salah on the right and Nunez, who was notably sharp, leading the line. Jones and young talent Trey Nyoni formed the midfield foundation.
In a surprising move, Szoboszlai was positioned at right-back, with Joe Gomez partnering Van Dijk in the centre of defence, Andy Robertson at left-back and Giorgi Mamardashvili between the sticks.
Ibrahima Konate made his first appearance of the summer in a completely revamped second-half team. New young goalkeeper signing Armin Pecsi took over for the final half-hour, with Kostas Tsimikas at centre-back, Conor Bradley at right-back and Milos Kerkez at left-back.
Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo were the two defensive midfielders, with Gakpo taking a more advanced role. Chiesa, Frimpong and Ben Doak comprised the forward line, with Luca Stephenson replacing Doak for the final 15 minutes.
Liverpool are now set to jet off to the Far East to kick off their preseason tour. They'll face AC Milan in Hong Kong next Saturday before heading to Japan for a match against Yokohama F Marinos.
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