Good afternoon! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for today's
Champions League Group C clash between
Red Star Belgrade and Liverpool at the Stadion Rajko Mitic - locally known as the Marakana!
Group C is very finely poised at the halfway stage with only two points separating the top three teams, while bottom-placed Red Star know that they could be eliminated from the competition tonight should results go against them. Both teams have it all to play for, so we should be in for an intriguing encounter two weeks on from the one-sided contest at Anfield.
Let's start with a look at the team news...
RED STAR STARTING XI: Borjan; Stojkovic, Savic, Degenek, Rodic; Jovancic, Krsticic, Srnic, Marin, Ben; Pavkov
RED STAR SUBS: Popović, Jovičić, Babić, Stojiljković, Simić, Čaušić, Gobeljić
LIVERPOOL STARTING XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Milner; Lallana, Salah, Mane; Sturridge
LIVERPOOL SUBS: Mignolet, Fabinho, Keita, Firmino, Gomez, Moreno, Origi
We'll start with the visitors, whose headline news is that Roberto Firmino misses out as Daniel Sturridge leads the line for tonight's game.
There had been rumours in the buildup to this match that Firmino may be taken out of the team having struggled for goals this season, but in the Champions League he has been involved in 19 since the start of last season - more than any other player in the competition during that time.
The Brazilian has scored 12 and assisted another seven of those in that time, so it is still a slight surprise to see him miss out.
That being said, Sturridge has impressed when he has had chances this season and a fully-fit Sturridge is not a bad replacement to have by any stretch of the imagination.
The England striker's inclusion is one of three changes made by Klopp from the weekend draw with Arsenal, as Joel Matip is handed a rare start in place of Gomez and Adam Lallana replaces Fabinho.
Lallana's rare inclusions this season have sometimes resulted in Klopp switching to a 4-2-3-1 formation, so it will be interesting to see how they line up tonight - particularly considering Salah has often played as the striker in that system, with Firmino in the number 10 role.
Lallana could switch to that number 10 role, of course, with Sturridge up front and Salah and Mane continuing their usual positions out wide for the visitors tonight.
Even in the absence of Firmino and his brilliant record in the Champions League, Liverpool should have no shortage of attacking threat, with Salah (2) and Mane having also got on the scoresheet in the reverse fixture at Anfield.
Salah has now got four in his last four games for the club, while Mane has now scored 11 goals in his last 12 Champions League outings.
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Jordan Henderson, Nathaniel Clyne and Xherdan Shaqiri were all left out of the squad - the latter due to concerns over his Albanian heritage - but there is a return for Naby Keita on the bench following five games out with a hamstring problem.
the likes of Gomez and Fabinho - both of whom featured against Arsenal - are also amongst the subs, but there is no Dejan Lovren despite the centre-back being included in the travelling party after missing the weekend through injury.
As for Red Star, they have made five changes from their starting lineup from the first leg at Anfield, with Rodic, Marin, Jovancic, Pavkov and Savic all coming into the starting lineup for this match.
Babic, Gobeljic, Jovicic, Edecilio and Richmond Boakye are the players to make way, with the latter missing from the squad entirely despite having scored five goals in just four league appearances this season.
There are a couple of familiar names in the Red Star side, perhaps mostly Marko Marin, who previously had a spell with Chelsea. Marin missed the first leg through injury but is considered a key player for Red Star, so Liverpool will need to keep an eye on him tonight.
Captain Vujadin Savic also returns at the heart of the defence for his first European appearance since being taken off at half time of the PSG drubbing. Watford fans may remember Savic from a brief spell at Vicarage Road earlier in his career.
One of Red Star's main dangermen is likely to be El Fardou Ben Nabouhane, who scored six goals in qualifying for the group stages and already has 10 Super Liga goals to his name this season.
Indeed, Ben netted nine times in his first 11 games for the club this term, although his strike against Proleter on Saturday was the first time he has scored since September 2.
Ben was unable to make much of an impact against Liverpool in the reverse fixture at Anfield a fortnight ago, but both he and the Red Star team will be hoping for more joy on home soil tonight.
The Belgrade outfit are appearing in the group stages of the Champions League for the very first time - finally qualifying after six failed attempts in the past - but defeat tonight could see them eliminated with two games of the group stages remaining should Napoli also beat PSG in Naples.
In truth, Red Star may have suspected such a fate was ahead of them ever since the groups were drawn and they were placed alongside Liverpool, Napoli and PSG - three of the most dangerous teams in Europe at the moment.
It is no surprise, then, to see the tournament debutants sitting bottom of Group C with just one point to their names - although manager Vladan Milojevic will not want his side to go down without a fight.
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There has not been much of a fight in the past two games, though, with Red Star equalling their biggest ever European defeat away to PSG on matchday two in a 6-1 reverse and then losing 4-0 to Liverpool at Anfield last month.
As a result of those two games, the Serbian outfit have now conceded the most goals (10), shots (75) and shots on target (36) of any team in the Champions League this season. They also have the joint-worst attacking record, having scored only once.
Milojevic will want his side to be a lot more robust defensively first and foremost tonight, then, and it is here at the Marakana where they will expect to pick up most - if not all - of their points in the group stages.
The fans create a hostile environment in the stadium and their only home game of the group stages so far saw them hold Napoli - who beat Liverpool - to a goalless draw on matchday one.
Indeed, Red Star have only lost one of their last 14 home games in European competition and are unbeaten in their last seven - although the solitary defeat in those 14 games did come at the hands of English opposition when Arsenal visited in the Europa League group stages last season.
Even so, Red Star have conceded just five goals in those 14 games, keeping nine clean sheets in the process and never shipping more than one goal in a game - a stark contrast to their last two away games.
Indeed, the defeat to Arsenal - which came more than a year ago in October 2017 - is the last time Red Star were beaten at home in any competition, winning 23 of their 28 outings in front of their own fans since then.
It is a different level in European competition, though - particularly the Champions League. Despite coming through qualifying, Red Star have failed to win inside normal time in any of their last seven outings across all competitions stretching back to August 1, when they overcame Lithuanian side Suduva in the second qualifying round.
Even the most ardent of Red Star fans will not have expected much in Europe this season, though, and domestically they have very much established themselves as the dominant force once again as they go in search of back-to-back top-flight titles for the first time since 2001.
The reigning champions have taken 43 points from the first 45 on offer in the Super Liga to build a nine-point gap after only 15 games, while they are now unbeaten in their last 41 league games and have won a staggering 24 of their last 25.
Red Star are a team in a winning habit despite their last two Champions League outings, then, and Liverpool will know that things will not be quite as easy tonight as they were at Anfield two weeks ago.
Napoli's draw here gives an example of how difficult this test could be for them, but at the same time any dropped points could prove very costly in such a competitive group and tonight is a huge chance for Liverpool to move to the brink of qualification for the last 16.
Liverpool go into matchday four sitting top of the group, one points above Napoli and two clear if PSG, who face each other tonight. At least one of them is guaranteed to drop points, so if Liverpool fail to take advantage with three points of their own then it would be a missed opportunity.
Indeed, the double-headers against Red Star could prove to be decisive in the group considering the strength of the other three teams, so with Napoli having drawn here a victory for Liverpool tonight would give them the edge over the Serie A outfit.
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Napoli are the only team to have beaten Liverpool in the group stages, doing so late on the Stadio San Paolo after the Reds had opened their campaign with a late victory of their own at home to PSG.
PSG's late equaliser against Napoli on matchday three worked out perfectly for Liverpool as their 4-0 win against Red Star took them top of the group, and a draw in Naples tonight would also be a very welcome result for Klopp's side.
The defeat to Napoli is Liverpool's only one in their last 11 Champions League group games, during which time they have won five, drawn five and scored 33 goals at an average of three per game.
Indeed, it was their goalscoring feats which took them all the way to the final last season, and since the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign no club can match Liverpool's tally of 48 goals scored in just 16 games.
That average may drop over the second half of the group stages with this difficult test being followed by matches against PSG away and Napoli at home, and if the Reds are to stay top of the group then they will need to improve their record on the road in Europe.
Liverpool have now won just five of their last 20 European away games, drawing eight of those and losing seven, including both of their last two.
The defeat to Napoli is Liverpool's only away defeat of the season across all competitions, though, and home and away the Reds are unbeaten in their five games since losing in Naples.
Liverpool are also still unbeaten in the Premier League this season, with Saturday's draw away to Arsenal extending their run to 11 games from the beginning of the campaign - just the second time they have managed that in the Premier League era.
Saturday's draw saw Liverpool slide down a place to third in the Premier League table, with Man City and Chelsea both overtaking them with wins on the Sunday to extend their own unbeaten starts to the campaign too.
Liverpool can perhaps fell a little hard done by to only be third considering it is unprecedented for three teams to still be unbeaten at this stage of a Premier League season, but they will still be satisfied with their start to the campaign.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff in Belgrade, which means that it is time for a prediction!
This is a difficult one to call as we try to weigh up the ease with which Liverpool won at Anfield against the home advantage for Red Star. The visitors should still have enough to come away with the win, though, and a hostile away environment will not be anything new for this players.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Red Star 0-2 Liverpool
Last month's Anfield meeting was only the third between these two clubs, and the first since 1973.
It was also Liverpool's first ever victory against Red Star, but they were completely dominant as the front three all got on the scoresheet in a 4-0 drubbing - in addition to Mane missing a penalty.
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The previous two meetings came in the last 16 of the 1973-74 European Cup, and both of them went the way of Red Star by a 2-1 scoreline.
Liverpool have only visited Belgrade on one previous occasion, then, while their initial meeting at Anfield saw the Reds fall to their first ever home defeat in Europe; the second did not follow for another 18 years.
Red Star have lost their last two home games against English opposition, though, with Arsenal's win here last season following Bolton Wanderers' 1-0 triumph in the 2007-08 UEFA Cup group stages.
Red Star had previously been unbeaten in their first seven home games against English teams, including five successive wins prior to the visit of Bolton. How times change, hey Bolton fans?
Right, the players are out and we're almost ready to get going here. A reminder of the team news before we do get started - can Liverpool repeat their Anfield dominance?
RED STAR STARTING XI: Borjan; Stojkovic, Savic, Degenek, Rodic; Jovancic, Krsticic, Srnic, Marin, Ben; Pavkov
LIVERPOOL STARTING XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Milner; Lallana, Salah, Mane; Sturridge
KICKOFF: Here we go, then! There is a brilliant atmosphere inside the stadium as Liverpool get us underway!
Almost a chance for Red Star early on as Stojkovic hurls a long throw into the box which Van Dijk just about deals with ahead of Srnic.
SHOT! The resulting corner is only cleared as far as Krsticic, but his snapshot volley bounces well wide.
Red Star are clearly up for this one. They are being roared on by a raucous home crowd and are looking to press Liverpool high up the field early on.
YELLOW CARD! Marin is perhaps a little too eager to make an early impact, though. He is penalised for a foul on Alexander-Arnold and then talks his way into the book via his protests.
SHOT! Liverpool make their brightest break forward yet as Robertson releases Mane down the left. Mane's cross into the box is too high for Salah, but Milner is coming in behind him. However, the ball arrives at an awkward height and Milner's volley is a long way over the bar.
SAVE! The first shot on target comes from the hosts as Marko Marin collects the ball on the left flank before cutting inside past Alexander-Arnold. Milner puts him under pressure, though, and the former Chelsea man can only put a tame effort straight at Alisson.
UPDATE: There is one more game taking place at the moment, and things look like going from bad to worse for Thierry Henry as Monaco as they have fallen behind against Club Brugge.
Salah gets to the byline down the left flank and puts a cross into the box which is too high for Sturridge. The striker gets something on it which takes it looping to Alexander-Arnold, but the full-back's first-time volley goes a long, long way off target.
Van Dijk has been called upon on a number of occasions already tonight. He has been there whenever needed to clear crosses or deal with dangerous through-balls.
SHOT! Half a chance for Savic as the ball drops to the big captain inside the area, but he has his back to goal and his shot on the turn goes over the crossbar.
CHANCE! Oh what a chance for Liverpool to break the deadlock! It would have been a big, big goal for them, but somehow Sturridge has fired over the crossbar from just six yards out!
Mane's low ball from the right is meant for Robertson, but his attempted shot only bobbles away to Sturridge. It is bouncing awkwardly, but Sturridge still have the goal gaping in front of him and he really should score!
Liverpool have struggled to get into any sort of rhythm in these opening exchanges, but they should still be ahead here. That was a glorious chance for Sturridge.
SHOT! Another bright attacking move from the visitors as Mane's pace continues to cause them problems. The winger drives forward before sliding a pass through for Sturridge, who is forced to check back on himself before seeing his shot deflected wide.
SAVE! Alisson is called into his first testing save of the match so far as Ben latches on to a loose ball and unleashes a first-time effort from range which draws a good low stop from the Brazilian.
GOAL! RED STAR 1-0 LIVERPOOL (MILAN PAVKOV)
GOAL! The stadium erupts as Red Star take the lead against Liverpool, just when it looked as though the visitors were beginning to find some rhythm.
A corner is swung into the box and Pavkov produces a towering header, nodding his finish down past Alisson and in!
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UPDATE: If Liverpool fans are upset with that, spare a thought for Monaco - the out-of-form Ligue 1 outfit are now 3-0 down at home to Club Brugge.
Red Star come forward again as Stojkovic clips a cross into the box which Matip nods behind for a corner. The hosts are very much up for this one!
Good play from Salah down the right as he cuts inside before picking out a clever pass to Lallana, but the midfielder's touch is too heavy and that denies him the chance to get a shot away.
GOAL! RED STAR 2-0 LIVERPOOL (MILAN PAVKOV)
GOAL! Red Star have doubled their lead, and it is two goals for
Milan Pavkov! This one is a stunner too, although it stems from a poor mistake from Milner as he gives the ball away to Pavkov.
Wijnaldum is shrugged off in his efforts to stop Pavkov, who then unleashes a thunderous 25-yard effort into the corner. The defence should have closed him down quicker, and questions can perhaps be asked of Alisson too.
CHANCE! Half a chance for Liverpool to respond quickly as the ball drops to Salah on the edge of the box, but his first-time volley is well off target.
CHANCE! Another opening for Liverpool as first Wijnaldum sees a header cleared away just in front of the keeper and then Lallana's diving header is deflected behind by Stojkovic.
SHOT! Good run from Sturridge as he dribbles into shooting position, but he holds on to it for just too long when Alexander-Arnold was screaming for it. Sturridge eventually does get a shot away, but it flies off target.
YELLOW CARD! Lallana goes into the book for a crunching challenge on Marin.
Just five minutes left of the first half now, and
Jurgen Klopp will be demanding an improvement from his side in the second half. The Reds have the goals in their team to get back into this one, but they have not shown many signs of doing so just yet.
Mane has looked the most likely to make something happen for Liverpool tonight. He gets to the byline again down the left here but his cross is too close to the keeper.
It will be interesting to see whether Klopp makes any changes at the break here. He has Firmino and Keita on the bench, and it may not been too much longer before we see one of them.
There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.
HALF TIME: RED STAR BELGRADE 2-0 LIVERPOOL
What a story we could have unfolding here as Liverpool find themselves 2-0 down against Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League.
It has been a really poor performance from Liverpool so far and they have been punished for some uncharacteristic errors. Red Star have taken full advantage in front of a raucous home crowd.
The opening goal came from a corner when Milan Pavkov stole in between Van Dijk and Sturridge with a towering header which left Alisson no chance.
Pavkov was allowed to rise almost unchallenged and made no mistake with his finish for his first ever European goal - but it would not be his last of the night.
Indeed, it took just seven more minutes for Pavkov to double his side's lead, and this time it was a stunning 25-yard effort from the striker which flew past Alisson.
It was a very avoidable goal for Liverpool, though, with Milner initially giving the ball away before Wijnaldum was shrugged off and the defenders allowed Pavkov far too much space to get his shot away. Alisson could perhaps have also done better, although there were plenty of mistakes prior to that.
It sounds like Klopp is planning changes at the break, with Firmino and Gomez rumoured to be coming on. Klopp clearly feels as though his side need an injection of something having been so poor in that opening 45 minutes.
Defeat tonight could prove very costly with Napoli and PSG still to come in this season's competition.
KICKOFF: Red Star get us underway for this second half, and sure enough there have been two changes as Gomez replaces Alexander-Arnold and Firmino is on for Sturridge.
Liverpool make a dreadful start to this second half too as Red Star immediately get back on the front foot. A scramble in the box results in a shot hitting Milner on the arm - although he was too close for it to be a penalty - and then they give the ball away deep inside their own half moments later.
CHANCE! Another big chance for Liverpool as Firmino makes an early impact. His cross from the left channel is deflected and loops into the area where Mane is waiting, but he cannot get enough on his finish from close range to prod it over the line.
Red Star have only completed 64% of their passes tonight, which is a surprising statistic as it is Liverpool who have been sloppy in possession. Nothing is coming off for them in the final third at the moment.
This has been better from Liverpool in the last few minutes. They are keeping the ball better now and are beginning to probe for a way through this Red Star defence.
Red Star are still playing with plenty of intensity, but there is just the sense that they have taken their foot off the pedal a little now. A dangerous game against this Liverpool team!
OFF THE BAR! The woodwork comes to Red Star's rescue now, although this would have been a fortunate way back into the game for Liverpool. Robertson's cross takes a big deflection and loops towards goal, but Borjan is relieved to see it bounce off the top of the crossbar.
There is concern over Stojkovic here as he slips off the ball and seems to pull a muscle. The stretcher is called for and he will not be able to continue here.
RED STAR SUB: There is the change as Stojkovic is replaced by Marko Gobeljic.
We're past the hour mark in Belgrade now and the game - and atmosphere - has just settled down a bit. Liverpool are keeping the ball a lot better now, but they need to start creating chances.
Red Star are just packing their penalty area now and Liverpool just cannot find a way through. The hosts have this two-goal lead to protect, and they are doing it very well.
RED STAR SUB: Another change from the home side as Goran Causic replaces Marin.
Liverpool do finally find a bit of space coming forward as Salah advances, but once again the final ball is cut out. That has happened an awful lot tonight - and this season, in truth.
More possession for Liverpool, but Red Star are more than happy to let them have it while keeping them at arm's length.
Red Star are just keeping their shape right now, and it is hard to see how this side conceded 10 goals in their last two games. They look rock solid at the moment.
SAVE! Better from Liverpool as Salah picks the ball up before firing a deflected effort which needs to be tipped behind by Borjan.
OFF THE POST! Borjan can only punch the ball as far as Salah under pressure from Van Dijk and the winger does really well to bring it down and get a volley away quickly, but his effort swings against the outside of the post.
RED STAR SUB: A third and final change for the hosts as Branko Jovicic replaces Krsticic.
Red Star make an increasingly rare foray forward as they suddenly find themselves with a three-on-three, but it is all rather frantic and they never look like having it under control.
Red Star are using all the tricks in the book to waste time here, and it is hard to blame them. They are less than 15 minutes away for a famous victory here!
CHANCE! The ball just will not go in for Liverpool tonight! The best chance of this mini-scramble falls to Salah, but it will not sit down for him and his eventual shot deflects towards the keeper. Rodic kicks the ball out of his own keeper's hands, though, and the hosts are fortunate that it does not fall to Firmino.
LIVERPOOL SUB: Final change for Liverpool here as Lallana is replaced by Divock Origi.
CHANCE! Liverpool need a goal soon and another chance goes begging here! Matip rises to meet Gomez's long throw, but he doesn't get enough on it from a really good position. Salah tries to make something of it at the back post, but Matip's was the big chance.
The seconds continue to tick away for Liverpool, and unless they can pull off a remarkable late comeback here then they will be keeping a nervous eye on events later when Napoli host PSG.
SHOT! Firmino breaks in down the right channel and stands the ball up to the back post for Van Dijk, who can only send a looping header onto the roof of the net.
Red Star deserve huge credit for this performance. Liverpool have been poor, but the hosts have defended their lead really well in this second half. They are throwing themselves in the way of everything!
All Liverpool eyes will be on the fourth official's board now, but it is a big ask to get anything from this game now.
The board shows FIVE minutes of added time!
Liverpool will be praying for a draw in Naples tonight, but they could find themselves having to make up for this result against PSG and Napoli in their next two games. That is how damaging this result could be!
CHANCE! A late chance for Liverpool to at least get on the scoresheet as the ball falls to Salah, but his first-time effort is too close to the keeper.
FULL TIME: RED STAR BELGRADE 2-0 LIVERPOOL
It is a famous night for Red Star Belgrade as they pick up their first win in the Champions League proper, and at the expense of five-time kings of Europe Liverpool as well.
Jurgen Klopp's side were poor on the night and could not find a way through despite dominating the second half, with Red Star defending the 2-0 lead which Liverpool's mistakes - and a couple of good finishes from Milan Pavkov - had gifted them.
It is a result which blows Group C wide open, and it will be all eyes on Naples now.
Right, that is all we have time for this evening!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's Champions League clash as Red Star stun Liverpool to leave Group C wide open. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
