Liverpool take on the Malaysia XI on Friday in the fourth and final game of our Far East tour. The Reds have enjoyed a highly successful trip so far, scoring three successive wins in Thailand and Australia.
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The new signings have been particularly impressive, with James Milner scoring twice, Danny Ings getting off the mark, and Joe Gomez emerging as a surprise candidate for a place in our starting eleven next season.
With the likes of Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho and Emre Can still to come back into the fold, it’s easy to understand why there is a renewed sense of optimism sweeping around Anfield.
However, Brendan Rodgers will know only too well that there is always room for improvement. Here are five things that we would like to see in Kuala Lumpur.
5) Mamadou Sakho to prove his worth
Liverpool have used three different centre-back pairings in our first three games – Sakho and Toure, Skrtel and Sakho, Skrtel and Lovren – and it feels like Rodgers still isn’t sure on who he’s going to go with come the opening day of the Premier League season. The Frenchman did well in the first couple of games and scored against the Thai All-Stars. However, he still needs to cut out those loose passes that are synonymous with his style of play. Only by doing so will he confirm himself as the obvious choice to play alongside Skrtel for the start of the new campaign.
4) Pressing and intensity improved further
The Reds have shown signs of reintroducing our pressing style over the last couple of games. It was a key element of our game during the 2013-14 Premier League season, when we finished second, but it went missing during our struggles earlier this year. We became too reliant on playing on the counter attack instead, and teams quickly grew wise to such tactics. On Friday, against what is in truth weak opposition, we need to prove that we can dominate games again. We should be pinning this team in their half and showing that we can retain possession perfectly and win it back ferociously.
3) Lazar Markovic to get another chance
The Serbian started our pre-season campaign well and scored the opening goal against the Thai All-Stars. However, he featured in less than five minutes of our two games Down Under since, something which will surely frustrate him hugely. After struggling to make an impact last season he will have been hoping to get some solid minutes under his belt during our pre-season campaign – something which he is rapidly running out of time to do. He deserves a full game here to show what he can do and put his name in to the frame for a starting spot this year.
2) Vice-captain to be appointed and get their chance
There’s still no word on who our vice-captain is going to be next season. The only man, other than Jordan Henderson, to wear the armband in the Far East has been Kolo Toure. But while the Ivorian’s experience will likely be vital behind the scenes next season, it’s hard to see him being officially appointed to the role. James Milner looks to be the most obvious candidate, having settled in well and bagged himself a couple of goals already. It would be nice to see Milner, or whoever Rodgers chooses, get a handful of minutes to lead the team on the pitch.
1) New signings to continue impressing
Milner is not the only new man to have done well thus far. Danny Ings scored his first goal in Liverpool colours last time out, while Joe Gomez is looking a far better player than we could have hoped. Nathaniel Clyne is quickly growing into his new role and, after a shaky start in Bangkok, is beginning to look the assured presence that we were expecting. Adam Bogdan has only had 45 minutes to impress thus far, although in truth neither he or Simon Mignolet have been hugely tested during our opening three games – something that’s not likely to change here.
