Liverpool's final pre-season friendly against Como offered plenty to enjoy, notably their ability to maintain their level for much of the 90 minutes after recent poor second-half showings. However, the team remains a work in progress under new head coach Andoni Iraola, particularly in the midfield area, which they have yet to bolster during the transfer window.
Midfield Concerns Persist
The midfield makeup was long debated during the previous campaign, having been the bedrock of the Premier League title triumph the year before. Alexis Mac Allister's late return due to World Cup duty influenced Iraola's preference for Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai at the base of the engine room.
While there are few worries in an attacking sense, especially with Florian Wirtz ahead of the duo as the number 10, the defensive relationship isn't quite right yet. Gravenberch is ostensibly the deeper of the pair but was bypassed too readily, with Szoboszlai not sensing the danger. It didn't matter against Como, but it will, particularly in away games. Finding the right understanding will make a huge difference this season.
Transfer Questions Loom
With the Premier League season nearly upon us, this was an evening as much about the players not involved as those given minutes. Federico Chiesa and Harvey Elliott both featured in the goalless draw against Como's second-string earlier in the day but weren't asked to go again in the main event.
Throughout pre-season, Elliott has looked like a player who has had hardly any football over the previous two years, while Chiesa has shown little sign that Iraola's approach favours him. Curtis Jones remained absent with the hip problem that ruled him out against Monaco, amid ongoing speculation over interest from Inter.
Liverpool need to be careful. They are already a couple of players short in squad depth, and it would be a dereliction of duty to allow departures without replacements. Having raised just £700,000 from sales so far this summer, it would be a surprise if they didn't cash in on one or two fringe players before the deadline.
Salah's Successor Search
Mohamed Salah may have taken a while to decide on Turkish side Trabzonspor, but Liverpool are taking even longer to determine his successor. Rio Ngumoha was the latest to start on the right flank, with a few flashes in the first half but nothing to overly convince. Lewis Koumas and Victor Munoz also had opportunities.
A new forward is clearly an imperative, whether that's Paris Saint-Germain duo Bradley Barcola and Ibrahima Mbaye or someone else. Any move, though, cannot come at the expense of Cody Gakpo, who was instrumental in the attack and opened the scoring in confident fashion. Iraola will need Gakpo's versatility, experience, and renewed quality this season.
