Liverpool lineup vs Midtjylland: Champions League debut in midfield

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Liverpool, Leighton Clarkson (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images) /

This is the midfield Liverpool lineup against Midtjylland.

Manager Jurgen Klopp is likely to go with a youthful side in Denmark on Wednesday night and might be forced to do so because of a lack of options.

The match is a dead rubber, so that will make it easier for the German to pick who he wants without fear of distorting the competitive balance of the group.

Here’s who we think Liverpool will start in their midfield on Wednesday night. And it includes a debut…

Centre-midfield: Naby Keita

Keita made his return to the side following a few weeks out against Wolves. Will he be fit to start this one? After five starts in a row at the beginning of the Premier League season, we all hoped his torrid luck with injuries was over, but then the predictable happened.

Anyway, here we are. Keita brings a lot to the side when he’s available, and now we need him to step up and ease some of the workload on an overworked Liverpool midfield. Gini Wijnaldum hardly seems to miss a minute of action, but expect the Dutchman to take a little breather here.

Centre-midfield: Jordan Henderson

Henderson is the beating heart of this Liverpool side and when he’s not around, the team doesn’t play as well. One man’s absence shouldn’t have this much of an impact on Klopp’s team – but it does.

Hendo is also on his own path to fitness, but his lack of minutes (compared to the rest of the squad), means he’ll be in for this game. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is back training with the rest of the lads, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get on the field at some point.

Against Wolves, Henderson shuffled a bit further forward and looked to progress the ball whenever he got on it. Those will be skills we require in Denmark, and Hendo is the man to deliver it.