19 July 2023 , 06:00
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Considering it is only a pre-season friendly, particularly the first of the summer, there will be an awful lot of attention on Liverpool's teamsheet when it drops in south west Germany early on Wednesday evening.
The Reds are in Baden-Wurttemberg to play Bundesliga 2 side Karlsruhe, providing the opponents as the hosts open their new 34,000 Wildparkstadion.
It will represent the first step on what promises to be a Liverpool season of change, and one which is starting with potentially the biggest change of all.
Because for one of the very few times in his 12-year Liverpool career, it will be the name of Jordan Henderson that fans look to first when that team news emerges.
It doesn't matter if Henderson starts or is on the bench of course. Klopp, as is usually his way in these sort of games, will field different XIs in each half, with subs possibly replacing subs as the match wears on.
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But with 32 players out in Germany, albeit six goalkeepers, there is a very real chance that some members of the squad don't get on the pitch. And if one of those is Henderson, well then you can draw your own conclusions.
Plenty already have when it comes to the Liverpool skipper of course, with the summer's unlikeliest transfer saga playing out in the court of public opinion in a way few could have envisaged a few short weeks ago.
All eyes will be on whether Henderson features in Germany (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)It is true to say that Henderson does represent something of a soft target when it comes to the moral maze of sportswashing and the Gulf's increasing influence on football, and indeed sport, and indeed the world. But then few have stuck their neck out in a way he has as a passionate supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and important ally for that community, something Liverpool supporters of all backgrounds took pride in.
Whatever happens now with his move to Saudi side Al-Ettifaq - who are not one of the four Public Investment Fund-owned clubs in the country nor one of the four wealthiest after them, which has led to some interesting questions over whether or not they can raise the money needed to actually buy him - Henderson will come out of this situation having alienated many.
For the Liverpool captain to be going in to a Liverpool season having courted such a move is quite remarkable, and while we might yet end up seeing a very public and very embarrassing row back, the die is cast for many.
There is no doubt that that is the issue dominating Liverpool's summer camp as they head into their first pre-season game, with the shiny glean of new signings Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai not enough to distract from it. Given the whirlwind events of the past few days it feels like they've been there for years already.
"They've settled in very well," says Andy Robertson.
"Obviously the fans will want to see them on the pitch and the fans will want to see how they do in the Premier League and so on. But the first couple of days what they've done is settle in quite seamlessly."
Alexis Mac Allister will make his first appearance for his new club (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)The 'seamless' nature of that midfield will be the main point of intrigue on Wednesday, with the new boys slotting in, Henderson's potential involvement, who plays deepest in Fabinho's absence and Trent Alexander-Arnold's positioning all to be studied closely.
Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott don't arrive in Germany until Thursday ahead of Monday's behind closed doors match against Greuther Furth, and while they will be welcomed like new arrivals by Klopp, it is actual new arrivals who fans want to see soon.
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They would add to the sense of rebirth and freshness about this Liverpool squad that is seeking to cast off the past and perhaps, soon, their captain.