Liverpool’s pre-season predicted XI vs Wrexham as Andoni Iraola rewards exciting youngster with start

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Liverpool’s pre-season is steadily building, with the arrivals of Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak and Ryan Gravenberch this weekend.The trio will add some much-needed star power into Andoni Iraola‘s options for Thursday morning’s clash with Wrexham, when his ideal Liverpool XI may start to become more clear.Plenty of youngsters and fringe players are still expected to feature around Wirtz, Isak, Gravenberch and the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai, though, with a number hoping to build on good performances during the 4-2 win over Sunderland. Who impressed you for Liverpool against Sunderland, and what does it mean for the Reds under Andoni Iraola?

There were some eye-catching performances in Nashville… Photo Credit: Getty Images/Matthew Maxey/Icon Sportswire DefenceIt has already been confirmed that Alisson Becker will not join the Liverpool squad out in America, giving carte blanche to Giorgi Mamardashvili as Iraola’s first-choice goalkeeper. The Georgian was fine against Sunderland, and will continue his preparations for the season with another start here.In lieu of Liverpool signing a proper right-back, Jeremie Frimpong is likely to go again as well, while it would not be a surprise to see Milos Kerkez take over starting duties from Kostas Tsimikas.Centre-back is a slight issue for Iraola, who shared that Jeremy Jacquet will not play in this one after the final whistle on Sunday morning.READ MORE: Liverpool vs Wrexham LIVE friendly clash in New York | Pre-season 2026Photo by Nick Taylor/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesNo such confirmation has arrived on Joe Gomez, but the 29-year-old is surely set to be ruled out, meaning Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe can go again.

Ndukwe deserves his start after coming off the bench to great effect against Sunderland, and though he cannot play for Liverpool next season due to work permit issues, the exciting youngster should get the chance to go again.MidfieldIraola has fresh options to pick from in midfield after the arrivals of Wirtz and Gravenberch, but it would be a slight surprise if either were chosen here.The Basque seemed to like the mix of one young player and one more experienced head against Sunderland, though, and we could see the same again, with some slight variation.Dominik Szoboszlai could start and try to bring more out of James McConnell than Curtis Jones was able to, while Harvey Elliott is probably the safest choice ahead of Wirtz at No. 10.Wirtz and Gravenberch will surely come on either at half-time or in the second-half, but anyone expecting them to play a more significant role here could be left disappointed.AttackThe big question in attack will be over whether Isak is deemed ready to start, but we’d be more expecting that the Swede will join Wirtz and Gravenberch on the bench.Federico Chiesa may be Isak’s understudy this season, and after a good second-half performance against Sunderland, the Italian will probably start through the middle in New York.Rio Ngumoha could not pick the lock against the Black Cats, but he will be the most likely candidate to start on the left of the attack, with Kieran Morrison hoping to add to his goal at the weekend with another at the home of the Yankees.This looks like a well-balanced XI for Iraola, but one which still has plenty in reserve to come on and delight the New York crowd as the game progresses.