Liverpool Aim for First Win Against Fulham at Anfield

Anfield gets its first Premier League taste of the Andoni Iraola era on Saturday afternoon, and the brief is simple: turn entertaining home draws into a first league win of the season.

Liverpool have been free-scoring but frustrating so far. They have hit at least two goals in every Premier League outing under Iraola, yet still wait for that opening victory. The mood, though, has been lifted by Europe. A midweek Champions League win over Atletico Madrid has injected momentum and a sense that the new ideas are beginning to bite.

Now comes Fulham. No points on the board, but far from pushovers.

Iraola wary of winless but dangerous Fulham

Iraola has not been fooled by the table. Fulham have lost all three league games by a single goal, and the Liverpool boss was quick to underline the threat they pose, describing them as having been “so good” in each of those matches.

It’s exactly the sort of opponent that can punish any lapse: organised, competitive, and desperate to turn narrow defeats into something more tangible. Anfield has seen this story before. Liverpool will want this one written on their terms.

Team news: injuries bite, chances open

Liverpool’s options are again stretched in key areas.

• Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, Hugo Ekitike, Joe Gomez and Federico Chiesa are all still out.
• Cody Gakpo is a doubt with an adductor problem, a concern for a coach who has leaned on his versatility and movement in the final third.
• There was a scare in midweek as Bradley Barcola and Milos Kerkez both needed treatment for cramp during the win over Atletico Madrid.
• The early signs are reassuring: neither is believed to have suffered anything more serious, and both could feature.
• If Gakpo and Barcola do not make it, Victor Munoz is ready to step in from the start.

The Spaniard is set to continue on the flank, linking up with Florian Wirtz and Rio Ngumoha behind Alexander Isak in what has quickly become a fluid, aggressive attacking band.

Isak chasing last season’s tally

All eyes will again fall on Isak. The striker has begun to look at home as the spearhead of Iraola’s 4-2-3-1, and one more goal on Saturday would already move him beyond his entire Premier League total from last season.

He has the supply line to do it. Wirtz’s craft between the lines, Ngumoha’s direct running and the energy from wide areas give Liverpool an edge in transition and sustained pressure around the box. If the chances keep coming at the current rate, Isak’s numbers should follow.

Predicted Liverpool XI

Iraola is expected to stick with his preferred shape:

Liverpool possible starting XI (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Mac Allister, Szoboszlai; Munoz, Wirtz, Ngumoha; Isak

Virgil van Dijk anchors a back four that still looks like it is learning the nuances of Iraola’s more aggressive positioning. Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai offer control and bite at the base of midfield, tasked with both protecting the defence and feeding the creative trio ahead of them.

Kick-off and TV details

The game kicks off at 15:00 on Saturday, 12 September 2026, at Anfield.

As it falls inside the traditional Saturday 3pm blackout, the match will not be shown live on television in the UK.

Liverpool have the goals. Fulham have the performances without the points. Something has to give – and for Iraola, this is exactly the sort of afternoon that can define how quickly a new era truly takes hold.