Liverpool face LASK in Champions League at Raiffeisen Arena

Liverpool travel to Austria on Wednesday to face LASK in the Champions League league phase, with the hosts aiming to end a nine-game winless run in European group and league-phase fixtures.

LASK qualified for the competition after a remarkable comeback against Celtic in the play-offs, overturning a 3-0 first-leg deficit to win the tie 5-4 on aggregate. Domestically, Dietmar Kuhbauer's side sit third in the Austrian Bundesliga after a 2-0 defeat to leaders Rapid Wien last weekend.

"Austrian football is having a bit of a renaissance at club level, and Didi Kuhbauer is one of a number of really good coaches that are there," said European football writer Andy Brassell on LFCTV's Press Box.

The standout player to watch is forward Christoph Lang, who has contributed 12 goal involvements — 10 goals and two assists — in just 13 appearances across all competitions this season. The 24-year-old earned his first two senior Austria caps during the recent international break and scored against Kosovo.

Attacker Samuel Adeniran, who scored twice in the second leg against Celtic, carries a personal storyline into the fixture. "He came over to what is now the Steven Gerrard Academy when he was 16," Brassell noted. "So, for him to be here now as a pro, playing in the Champions League and being able to take on Liverpool – where he came with all those dreams when he was 16 years old – is a massive, massive moment for him."

LASK go into the match with injury concerns after George Bello and Moses Usor were forced off in the loss to Rapid Wien. Ramiz Harakate remains sidelined after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in July.

Defender Kasper Jorgensen struck a cautiously confident tone ahead of the game. "It's the biggest game for me at this time in my career. We believe in our team, we believe that we can get a good result at the end," he said.

The two clubs previously met in the 2023-24 Europa League group stage. Liverpool won 3-1 in Linz — with goals from Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah — before Cody Gakpo's double helped the Reds to a 4-0 victory in the return fixture under Jürgen Klopp.

LASK are the fifth Austrian club to appear in the Champions League proper, following Red Bull Salzburg, Sturm Graz, Rapid Wien and Austria Wien. Their record against English clubs reads one draw and five defeats in six meetings.