Liverpool predicted line-up vs. Leicester City - Nine changes for Carabao Cup clash as £50m duo return

Liverpool will be hoping to continue their stellar start to the new season with a win over Leicester City in the third round of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening. The Reds are so far unbeaten across all competitions, and sit second in the Premier League, while having also won their Europa League opener against Austrian outfit LASK last week.

For their part, the Foxes have also been on a formidable run in the early knockings of the new campaign, and are top of the Championship having won seven of their first eight matches in the second tier. Their last outing was a 1-0 victory over Bristol City on Saturday afternoon, with Jamie Vardy scoring a decisive penalty in that one.

But how will both sides line up when they face off at Anfield in mid-week? We’ve taken a look at both Liverpool and Leicester’s predicted starting XIs below...

Liverpool Team News

Jurgen Klopp’s side actually boast a relatively clean bill of health at this early stage of the season. At the time of writing, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Thiago Alcantara are the only high profile absentees, with understudy right-back Conor Bradley also sidelined.

Alexander-Arnold sustained a hamstring complaint in the recent 3-0 win over Aston Villa, but is expected to be in contention for Saturday’s clash with Tottenham. He is unlikely to feature against Leicester, however. The prognosis for Thiago is less clear, with the midfielder having suffered a setback in his recovery from a hip issue back in August. He is currently training on his own, but could be reintegrated back into first team training soon.

Elsewhere, Klopp is likely to rotate heavily on Wednesday, and could hand opportunities to a number of fringe squad members. Caoimhin Kelleher should come in between the sticks, while Stefan Bajcetic may be called upon to operate as an inverted full-back in Alexander-Arnold’s absence. Fresh off the back of signing a new deal at Anfield, Kostas Tsimikas could feature at left-back.

In midfield, Wataru Endo may be handed a rare start alongside fellow summer signing Ryan Gravenberch, while up front, precocious winger Ben Doak could complete a three-man forward line alongside Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota.

Full Liverpool Predicted XI

Caoimhin Kelleher; Stefan Bacjetic, Ibrahima Konate, Jarell Quansah, Kostas Tsimikas; Wataru Endo, Harvey Elliott, Ryan Gravenberch; Ben Doak, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota.

Leicester City Team News

For their part, Leicester City are set to be without injured pair Dennis Praet and Tom Cannon - both of whom are sidelined with back injuries - while young defender Callum Doyle sustained a knee injury at the weekend and left the King Power Stadium on crutches. The Manchester City loanee was set for a scan on Monday to determine the severity of the complaint.

Elsewhere, ex-Liverpool academy player Conor Coady was on the bench against Bristol City having recovered from a fractured foot but it would appear that the Foxes are taking a cautious approach with his return to the starting XI.

Full Leicester City Predicted XI

Jakub Stolarczyk; Ricardo Pereira, Wout Faes, Jannik Vestergaard, James Justin; Cesare Casadei, Wilfred Ndidi, Harry Winks; Yunus Akgun, Kelechi Iheanacho, Stephy Mavididi.