Liverpool 3-4 Hertha Berlin: As It Happened

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Full time here in Austria and the game finishes 4-3 to Hertha Berlin!

What a game! 

Both sides learned plenty and with more minutes under their belt, a perfect game ahead of the competitive season. 

The ex-Arsenal man hits a perfectly timed volley on the penalty spot and sees it fly in to the bottom right-hand corner of the Hertha net!

Game on!

Brilliant strike from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain!

Been really impressed by the German outfit this evening. Very efficient with the ball and hold a really good rigid shape.

Jovetic scores again as he beats Van Dijk to the ball, shimmies well in the box and finishes in the bottom left corner.

Van Dijk's presence in the box is massive for the Reds here and for future games. Uses his body so well in the box and always looks a threat when attacking set-pieces. 

So good to see him back!

Gordon forces a corner for the Reds.

Chance for VVD!

📸 | What a sight. 🤩 pic.twitter.com/9RzlCBIk6E — The Anfield Buzz (@TheAnfieldBuzz) July 29, 2021

The two man mountains are back playing for the Reds!

Been to hell and back but now they're fit and ready to resume their brilliant careers!

Totally against the run of play yet again but Hertha go in front for a third time tonight!

It was always going to happen as new signing and ex-Man City man Stevan Jovetic heads the German side in front!

Always loved a goal against Liverpool did the Montenegrin!

Curtis Jones & Andy Robertson link up well down the left and the Scots ball travels low in to the box but Kaide Gordon could only hit his effort over the Hertha bar. 

Good interplay for the Reds here.  

Trent, Mane, Keita, Salah and Milner all make way for the fresh legs!

Diogo Jota, Tyler Morton, Neco Williams, Kaide Gordon and Leighton Clarkson all on the pitch!

Wayward shot from Naby Keita was the best worked chance of the last few minutes but it flew high and wide...

Mane heads goalwards from a Trent corner but the Hertha keeper was on hand to deny the Senegalese forward. 

LFC play quick intricate football around the Hertha penalty area and the move ends with Oxlade-Chamberlain heading over the bar. 

Good start from LFC!

A long ball finds Sadio Mane down the left but despite his best attempt of stretching for the ball, the Hertha keeper is able to recover possession. 

Oxlade-Chamberlain drives through the middle but hits a tame effort into the grateful arms of Alexander Schwolow

Hertha kick us back underway here in Austria for the second half!

Only the 6 changes for LFC this half.

Adrian, Robertson, Jones, Rhys Williams, Phillips and Oxlade-Chamberlain will come on for Kelleher, Tsimikas, Elliott, Konate, Matip and Minamino.

The first half comes to a halt and the score reads 2-2!

A brilliant 45 minutes of football!

Next up a new LFC lineup and then we get to see VVD and Joe Gomez for the last 20 minutes.

Salah found himself in the Hertha box and a brilliant back heel pass commits the defenders and leaves Minamino with a simple tap in to level proceedings.

WHAT A BRILLIANT TEAM GOAL!

FINISHED BY TAKUMI MINAMINO!

Liverpool starting to get going again here after the two quick fire Hertha goals. 

Mane sold Salah short on the counter, an attack which looked destined for a LFC goal. 

A poor throw from the keeper turns possession over to Kostas Tsimikas who was able to cut the ball back un-bothered for Mane to convert from close range.

Mane scores for Liverpool!

LFC have looked the better side in possession here but two attacks and two goals for Hertha has left the Reds in trouble here. 

Hertha 2-0! A low drilled cross is controlled well and the German midfielder smashes his shot across goal and sees it nestle into the top left hand corner!

What a strike!

Sadio Mane gets on to the end of a long over the top ball from Joel Matip but the linesman puts his flag up early. Tight call!

A dangerous ball into the ball was converted by Santiago Ascacibar to give the German side the lead. Not the best defending from the Liverpool back line. 

Free kick for Hertha

Salah knocks a brilliant ball in the box and Mane fails to convert his header yards from goal! Big chance!

Salah gets the ball down the Hertha right and gets it on that dangerous left foot of his but his effort was tame for his standard and saved easily by Alexander Schwolow

Harvey Elliot strikes from range in the aftermath of the corner but his effort sails over the Hertha goal. 

Salah looks sharp tonight and brilliant link up play with Trent Alexander-Arnold results in a LFC corner

James Milner playing the holding role tonight as he lets Naby Keita and Harvey Elliot shine in the offensive midfield postions. 

Takumi Minamino looks as though he starts in the false nine position tonight. 

All Liverpool so far as the Reds start to knock the ball around the park. A lot of play down the right so far.

Liverpool kick us off in Austria!

11,000 in at the Tivoli Stadion tonight and we've just had You'll Never Walk Alone blasted aloud for the stadium to hear!

Brilliant to hear fans singing that in their masses again!

Klopp said: "The opponents are a real strong side. They are playing with all they have together. It's an interesting project they have with high potential.

"We didn't care a lot about the games but we want to see the next step. We need to get used to the stuff again and reorganise our football again.

"We need all the things we constantly work on. We have had a super intense time together so far, really really good.

"But it's constantly football, the first time for me as well, together with players at least. Tonight is a nice break from the normal training. We have to show we are ready to fight.”

After featuring for Scotland and Portugal respectively   in the Euros, Andy Robertson & Diogo Jota are back with the LFC team ahead of the new season. 

Robertson was given an extended holiday by the club after his non-stop schedule last season. 

Oh Andy, Andy...🎶 pic.twitter.com/5CScdTIjOM

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

Speaking to LFCTV, Klopp has confirmed what we reported earlier in this LIVE that Liverpool will play against Bologna in France next week.

It will be a repeat of the format the team used at the start of pre-season, with two 60-minute games being played out between the two sides. 

Klopp also confirmed that Liverpool will play two 60-minute games against Bologna in France next week.#LFC

— Neil Jones (@neiljonesgoal) July 29, 2021

Looks like we will be seeing Gomez & VVD together at the same time!

20 minutes from time, Klopp has confirmed he will give the two centre-backs their first minutes of pre-season.

Jurgen Klopp confirms he'll make wholesale changes at the break and aim to give Van Dijk and Gomez 20 minutes at the end.

— Paul Gorst (@ptgorst) July 29, 2021

It's been too long! Finally we see the big man back in action in Liverpool Red!

👀 @VirgilvDijk pic.twitter.com/c7uvFIfIh0

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

You can catch the pre-match build up LIVE from the stadium with the team at LFCTV. 

The pre-match coverage ONLY is available for FREE through the clubs twitter account. 

Good evening, Reds! 👋

Join us 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 as we build-up to tonight’s friendly with @HerthaBSC at Tivoli Stadion: https://t.co/BoQ5um01KX

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

Here's the XI selected by @paldardai to face @LFC today 📋#BSCLFC #BSCinLeogang #HaHoHe pic.twitter.com/595nYGK1Ah — Hertha Berlin (@HerthaBSC_EN) July 29, 2021

Divock Origi won't take part in the friendly after picking up a minor knock in team training. 

Divock Origi's absence from the Liverpool squad tonight 'precautionary' after picking up a minor knock.#LFC

— Neil Jones (@neiljonesgoal) July 29, 2021

The LFC team to face Hertha BSC tonight: 

Kelleher, Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Matip, Tsimikas, Milner, Keita, Elliott, Salah, Mane, Minamino.

Ready for another pre-season challenge 👊

Here’s how the Reds line-up for tonight’s meeting with @HerthaBSC:

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

The Tivoli Stadion in all it's glory! 

It's expected to be around 24 degrees for the game, with humidity levels at 63%. Perfect for a good game of football!

📍 Tivoli Stadion

The scene is set for our fourth pre-season encounter 🙌 pic.twitter.com/ZDDmrafoyO

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

We noted that VVD is set to return to action tonight, but we could well see Joe Gomez get some minutes under his belt as well. 

As per @LFC on Twitter, the ex-Charlton man has been included in the matchday squad alongside his Dutch centre-back partner!

Here's some BIG early squad news ahead of tonight's game, Reds 😁@VirgilvDijk x @J_Gomez97 🙌

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 29, 2021

With this being the Reds' fourth game of their pre-season campaign, I thoroughly expect Klopp's men to up the intensity and come out the blocks firing. 

Hertha have been hit and miss over the last few seasons in the Bundesliga and despite strong investment, remain a bottom half of the table outfit. 

Assuming Klopp fields two teams in either half, I think the first half will end 2-0 and the second 1-0, with the final score being 3-0 to Liverpool. 

Clean sheet, van Dijk return and three goals! What more can you ask for as a Liverpool fan?

Maybe a new signing?! 

Harvey Elliot has a bright future ahead of him and he is the player that is at the centre of pre-season talk amongst fans. 

The 18-year-old, fresh from his loan spell at Blackburn in the Championship, is expected to feature quite a lot for the Reds this season, replacing Xherdan Shaqiri in the LFC squad.  

Klopp has tried out the ex-Fulham man in the middle of the park during pre-season and barring any injuries, I would imagine he will do the same today against tough opposition in Hertha BSC. 

Embed from Getty Images

Back in 2017, the Reds played Hertha in their home stadium, Olympiastadion Berlin, in a pre-season friendly.

Klopp's side ran out 3-0 winners on the day thanks to goals from Dominic Solanke, Georginio Wijnaldum and Mohamed Salah. 

(Photo by TF-Images/TF-Images via Getty Images)

Kick-off is at 19:20 BST and is available to watch LIVE on LFC TV & LFC TV GO. Coverage starts at 18:30 BST. 

The game is available to watch LIVE on LFCTV & LFC TV GO. If you want to follow it on the internet, VAVEL UK is your best option!

In 2019, during their last visit to Evian, the Reds made the one hour drive to the Stade de Genève in Geneva, Switzerland to face Olympique Lyonnais. 

Goals from Roberto Firmino, Joachim Andersen (OG) and Harry Wilson won the game for Liverpool, with the score ending 3-1. 

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The Reds, after the completion of their mini-camp in Innsbruck, will head to Evian, France as they continue preparations for the new campaign. 

Klopp is a big fan of the facilities available to the team in the French city and while in the South East of the country, it is believed Liverpool will pen in another friendly against Serie A side, Bologna F.C. 1909. 

With the match against Hertha BSC being the Reds' fourth game of pre-season, it's around this time that Klopp's team up the intensity ahead of the new Premier League season. 

Expect to see a lot of pressing and a lot of running from the two sides (one either half) fielded by the LFC coaching staff.  

As we reported earlier in the week, Virgil van Dijk is expected to feature in today's friendly, his first game in over 250 days. 

Speaking to LFCTV, Klopp said: “He looks really good in training and maybe we can bring [him in], but I need to have some final conversations. He looks ready and we will see.”

Embed from Getty Images

The clash between Liverpool and Hertha BSC comes to you from the home of FC Wacker Innsbruck and Swarco Raiders Tirol, the Tivoli Stadion Tirol. The stadium is located in the city of Innsbruck in Innsbruck, Austria.

My name is Adam Doyle and I’ll be your live host for this game. We will provide you with pre-game analysis, score updates, and news as it happens live here on VAVEL.com