Liverpool vs Arsenal: Next Wednesday, July 31st, two of the biggest names in the sport of Soccer will face off in a pre-season friendly at Lincoln Financial Field.
The meeting at The Linc between Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side, coming off a 2023 campaign where they missed de-crowning Manchester City by 5 points, and a Liverpool team going into it’s first season without Jürgen Klopp at the helm, is just one stop across the United States for a plethora of European teams spending their pre-season stateside. And with a pretty big tournament coming to the States in the summer of 2026, these pre-season tours might give a small glimpse into how World Cup matches will operate in US cities 2 summers from now. Here’s everything you need to know for the Rivals in Red! festivities in Philadelphia this week.
Available Players
Pre-Season Rosters are often missing some big names you’d expect to see come Matchday 1, especially during a Summer coming off a major tournament like the Euros. That being said, both teams are looking to have successful pre-seasons as they look to turn the page in 2025 – Liverpool kicking off their new era under Arne Slot, and Arsenal looking to finally make it over the hump and win the League for the first time in over 2 decades. Here’s who both teams will have available for Wednesday night’s friendly.
Liverpool
Goalkeepers: Davies, Jars, Kelleher, Pitaluga
Defenders: Beck, Bradley, Chambers, Nallo, Phillips, Quansah, Tsimikas, Van den Berg
Midfielders: Bajcetic, Endo, Elliott, Nyoni, Morton, Stephenson, Szoboszlai
Forwards: Blair, Carvalho, Gordon, Jota, Koumas, Salah
Not involved in training (7/29): Doak, Jones, McConnell, Neon, Robertson
Arsenal
Goalkeepers: Hein, Nygaard, Rojas, Setford
Defenders: Gabriel, Heaven, Kiwior, Nichols, Reikik, Timber, White, Zinchenki
Midfielders: Gower, Havertz, Jorginho, Lewis-Skelly, Martinelli, Nwaneri, Odegaard, Oulad M’Hand, Partey, Rosiak, Smith Rowe, Vieira
Forwards: Jesus, Nketiah, Nelson, Sage Jr, Trossard
Training Sessions
Liverpool had an open training session at Lincoln Finical Field on Sunday morning which I had an opportunity to attend, providing a chance to get a closer look at not only the venue for Wednesday’s pre-season friendly, but a future 2026 World Cup location as well!
Local fans and media watched on intently, as curiosity around Liverpool’s style under new manager Arne Slot continues to unfold in pre-season preparations. I was impressed with how involved Slot was with his players, first spending time on the Right Wing with Mo Salah, and making his way around the field having little convos with some of the younger players like Fabio Carvalho Harvey Blair.
New manager or not, one thing that’s likely to stay the same at Anfield this season is Mo Salah and his impeccable form. The man must like hearing fans cheer for him, because he wasn’t shy about taking every shot he could in training Sunday morning, including this near post (yes, I know I wrote far corner in the tweet) left-footed banger from outside the box.
After training, we had a chance to speak with a few players as they were heading to their bus to go…wherever they were going – Maybe the Rocky Steps or somewhere for a Cheesesteak (Hopefully not Pat’s or Geno’s). With Liverpool still piecing together a new look under Arne Slot, Harvey Elliott used just 2 words to describe the difference between the new Liverpool manager’s style and Klopp’s “Heavy Metal Football” – “Very Elegant”.
Arsenal Training at Subaru Park
Arsenal are set to use a different venue for their final tune-up before facing Liverpool at Lincoln Finical Field on Wednesday afternoon. Subaru Park, home of Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union, is scheduled to host the Premier League tile-contenders Monday morning as Mikel Arteta will work with his squad on the banks of the Delaware River to prepare for a big season ahead. The use of Union’s home stadium as a training location also acts as an advertisement of their facilities ahead of the 2026 World Cup, with the idea of Subaru Park being used as a “home-base” for one of the teams setting up camp in Philadelphia being thrown around by event organizers.
Pre-Game Festivities
July 29th
LFC Legends Meet & Greet and Fundraiser @ Plough and The Stars – 6:30PM
The Official Liverpool Supporters Club (OLSC) in Philadelphia is hosting an event on Monday night at Plough and The Stars, giving fans an opportunity to attend a meet & greet and Q&A with John Barnes and Gary McAllister, hear a discussion on the crossover and parallels between the cities of Liverpool and Philadelphia, and win raffle prizes and buy exclusive LFC tour Merchandise. Entry to the event is free but donations are kindly appreciated and will benefit the LFC Foundation, whose mission is to create life changing opportunities for young people and their families. The event will star at 6:30 and will end when everyone’s done having a good time!
July 30th
Arsenal Panel Discussion and Unhinged Philly Photo Tour @ World Cafe Live! – 7:30pm
Tuesday night, Arsenal Philadelphia are hosting an event at World Cafe Live! where local fans will have an opportunity to hear a panel discussion, take photos with Arsenal players, and enjoy live entertainment into the late hours of the night. The event features Poorly Drawn Arsenal, Andrew Mangan of Arseblog/Arsecast, James McNicholas of The Athletic, Gunnerblog, & Arsecast, and more guest and Arsenal Legends are still to be announced!
Like the event held by OLSC, Arsenal Philadelphia will be raising funds for the Anti-Violence Partnership of Philadelphia on Tuesday night. After things wrap up at World Cafe Live!, an after-party will commence at Misconduct Tavern (Logan Square, 1801 JFK Blvd. Philadelphia) from 11pm – 2am. The event held by Arsenal Philadelphia is ticketed and currently sold out, but you’re able to sign up for a “wait-list” for any tickets that may become available. Link to that here: https://arsenalphiladelphia.com/store/unhingedwaitlist
LFC at The Fillmore @ The Fillmore – 9am – 12pm
Tuesday morning The Fillmore will be hosting a unique morning of Football festivities featuring Susannah Fuller of CBS Sports, music entertainment by Jamie Webster, and appearances from Liverpool players of past and present. The event is free but requires an RSVP at the following link: https://www.universe.com/events/lfc-at-the-fillmore-live-tickets-philadelphia-30C26G
Live recording of The Anfield Wrap @ Brauhaus Schmitz – 7pm
OLSC is hosting another event on Tuesday night at Brauhaus Schmitz (718 South St.), featuring a live recording of The Anfield Wrap, one of the most widely known and popular Liverpool-focused podcasts. Unfortunately, the event is sold out.
July 31st
Liverpool Tailgate @ Lincoln Financial Field – 2:30pm
OLSC will be hosting a BYOB tailgate in the lots of Lincoln Financial Field starting at 2:30pm on Wednesday afternoon. At 4:30pm, the group will gather and march to the stadium together hoisting LFC banners, flags, and scarves. Once inside The Linc, an LFC fanzone will be available for fans to check out prior to kick-off, giving fans plenty of time to hang out, grab some food or a drink, meet up with other fans, and find their seat before at 7:30 kickoff.
Arsenal Tailgate @ Xfinity Live! – 5pm
I wasn’t able to find much info on this event, but it looks like Arsenal fans will be congregating inside Xfiniy Live! pre-match on Wednesday afternoon – which might be smart given the forecast for the night.
Tickets to Rivals In Red!
Rumor is, the pre-season friendly on Wednesday night is selling pretty well. But if you’re reading this article and feeling a bit of FOMO for not having tickets yet – you’ve still got some time. Both General On-Sale Tickets and re-sale through various platforms are available for Wednesday night’s match at The Linc. Tickets for the mach available at the following link: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0200604FEDFA66EE
AP Photo/Jon Super
