Liverpool vs Newcastle: Premier League Opening Day Clash

Liverpool and Newcastle will launch their Premier League campaigns at St James' Park on Sunday with new men in both dugouts – and a growing injury list on either side already shaping the opening day.

Andoni Iraola takes charge of Liverpool in the league for the first time, going head-to-head with Matthias Jaissle, who is also making his Premier League bow. Both coaches arrive with fresh ideas, big expectations and, crucially, key absentees.

Iraola’s first test comes with a depleted squad

Iraola has barely had a clear look at his full Liverpool squad. That won’t change on Tyneside.

• Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni are all still ruled out after serious injuries last season and remain long-term concerns.
• Bradley is not expected to return until 2027.
• Ekitike faces several more months on the sidelines.
• Leoni should be back before either of them, but the ACL injury he suffered last September still threatens to keep him out for close to a year.

The problems don’t stop there. Joe Gomez is also unavailable and is not due back until next month. Iraola admitted during pre-season that it would be “impossible” for the defender to make the start of the new campaign after his muscle issue, and nothing has changed since.

So Liverpool’s new era begins with gaps to plug and solutions to find on the fly.

Isak fit – but on a tightrope

On the other side, all eyes have been on Alexander Isak and whether Newcastle’s main striker would be ready.

Iraola has been clear: Isak will need careful management after the problems he carried last season. For now, though, the signs are encouraging. The Swede has travelled with the squad and has come through pre-season strongly.

“Right now I think he is in a very good place, he's been training every day,” Iraola said in his press conference. “He hasn't missed a training session, he's adding more and more minutes in every friendly game.

“I think that he already played a very good World Cup in terms of availability, fitness level. I want to keep him there as much as we can because we know his level and if we can keep him there, he will score the goals, he will give us a lot of things.”

Liverpool know exactly what that means. If Isak stays on the pitch, he changes games.

Jaissle’s midfield hit and defensive blow

Newcastle, though, have their own headaches.

The Magpies have already seen Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes depart this summer, ripping out the core of the midfield that had driven them forward. Now Joelinton is out as well, removing another powerful presence from the centre of the pitch.

“For sure out for a couple of weeks but I don't want to go too much in detail as there will always be specialists involved,” Jaissle explained. “The medical department is aware of it, we have top staff when it comes to that and I am really confident he will be back as soon as possible.”

It leaves Newcastle’s new boss trying to rebuild a midfield on the fly in his first Premier League outing.

He will also have to do without Tino Livramento. The full-back saw his World Cup hopes wrecked by a training-ground injury in the United States and remains short of fitness.

“For sure, too early [to return against Liverpool],” Jaissle said. “He had just one training where he was partially involved.

“So we need to be smart with his progress now. We can't wait until he is 100% ready. He has huge potential and I love him.”

So two new managers step into the Premier League spotlight, both already juggling absences, both leaning on what’s left of their squads. The question at St James’ Park is simple: whose patched-up side lands the first blow of the season?