LASK Linz vs Liverpool Preview

Without a point after matchday one and without a competitive win in four, LASK Linz go into Wednesday’s meeting with Liverpool at the Raiffeisen Arena with plenty riding on the result. The Austrian side sit 28th in the league phase standings after a 1-0 defeat at AEK Athens on opening night, while Liverpool are 13th on three points following a 2-1 home win over Atlético Madrid. Both clubs lost at home on Sunday: LASK went down 2-0 to SK Rapid, and Liverpool were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City. Each will be looking for a midweek response. For Liverpool, a second win would make it six points from six; for LASK, anything less than a result risks leaving them further adrift near the foot of the 36-team table. Kick-off in Linz is at 5:45pm UK time.

LASK’s last five read W1 D1 L3, and the only win came in a friendly. The most recent result was a 2-0 home defeat to SK Rapid in the Austrian Bundesliga on Sunday, a game in which they failed to score at the Raiffeisen Arena. Nine days earlier, they beat First Vienna 2-1 in a friendly on 2 October. The league results further back were a 3-3 draw away at Hartberg on 20 September and a 2-1 loss at Sturm Graz a week before that, leaving them with one point from three Bundesliga games in this sample. The oldest result is the 1-0 defeat away at AEK Athens on matchday one of the Champions League. Away from home in this run, they drew one and lost two. Across the five, LASK scored six and conceded nine, without keeping a clean sheet.

Three wins, a draw and a defeat make up Liverpool’s last five, with two clean sheets along the way, but the most recent result was the worst of the lot. Manchester City won 3-0 at Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday, ending a four-game unbeaten run in this sample. Before that, Liverpool won 1-0 away at Bournemouth on 20 September, their only away game of the five. Earlier in the run, Tottenham were beaten 3-1 in the EFL Cup to send Liverpool through to the next round, and Fulham held them to a 0-0 draw in the league. The oldest result is the 2-1 home win over Atlético Madrid in the Champions League on 9 September. At home across the sample, Liverpool won two, drew one and lost one. League goals have been harder to come by: just one scored in three Premier League games.

Liverpool have won both previous meetings, with LASK yet to take a point and no draws between them. The aggregate across the two games stands at 7-1, and both came in the Europa League in 2023. The more recent was a 4-0 Liverpool win at home on 30 November. The earlier one, in Linz on 21 September, finished 3-1 to Liverpool with LASK as the home side, and that game produced LASK’s only goal in the fixture. Liverpool have already won on their last visit, and the Austrians go into Wednesday’s game at the Raiffeisen Arena looking for a first result of any kind against them.

Liverpool are 13th in the league phase standings on three points, with LASK 28th on zero. A win would lift LASK to three points, though their position would depend on results elsewhere on matchday two.

In the UK, the match is live on TNT Sports 2, with HBO Max streaming. Viewers in Austria can watch on CANAL+ Austria, while in the USA it’s on TUDN USA and UniMás, with Paramount+ and ViX streaming. In Ireland, TNT Sports 2 and Virgin Media Two carry the game.

Possible Lineups

LASK Linz — Form

Liverpool — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Table

Champions League Standings