WE MUST IMPROVE AWAY IN EUROPE, SAYS KLOPP AS SALAH RETURNS

We must improve away in Europe, says Klopp as Salah returns


Klopp's side are looking to claim their first away win in this season's competition.

LIVERPOOL'S manager Jurgen Klopp says the Champions League holders must improve their away form to avoid an early exit from the competition.

The Reds beat Tottenham in last season's final but lost all three away group games and in Napoli this season.

Liverpool are second in Group E and play Genk in Belgium on Wednesday.

"Last year we were lucky with how tight the group was that we could lose three times away and still have a chance to make it through the group," said Klopp.

"That will not happen this year. It's completely different.

"We know it's not historically good what we have done (in the away group games) in the last few years, but in general the Champions League was obviously really good.

"We did the right things in the right moment but we don't rely on these things. We know we have to improve and we try again and again and again until it works out."

Liverpool have three points from two games after beating Red Bull Salzburg in the group opener at Anfield.

Salah returns for the Reds



Mohamed Salah (right) is joint top-scorer for the Reds this season with six goals

Mohamed Salah has returned to the Liverpool squad after recovering from an ankle problem.

The Egypt forward, 27, suffered the injury before the international break and missed Sunday's 1-1 draw against Manchester United.

Full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold (virus) and fellow defender Joel Matip (sore knee) will remain on Merseyside.

England defender Joe Gomez is likely to fill in for Alexander-Arnold at right-back with Croatia centre-back Dejan Lovren poised to play alongside Virgil van Dijk in place of Matip.

The match at Genk is the first of two back-to-back fixtures against the Belgian side.

Liverpool squad: Alisson, Fabinho, Van Dijk, Wijnaldum, Lovren, Milner, Keita, Firmino, Mane, Salah, Gomez, Adrian, Henderson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Brewster, Robertson, Origi, Kelleher.

English dominance - best of the stats
This is the first meeting between Genk and Liverpool in any competition.

Genk's only previous meetings with English opponents in European competition was in the 2011-12 Champions League group stage, drawing 1-1 at home and losing 5-0 at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea.

Liverpool have won all five of their European Cup/Champions League matches against Belgian teams, keeping five clean sheets in those games - one of those wins was in the 1978 European Cup final against Bruges (1-0).

English teams are unbeaten in their last 14 Champions League games against Belgian teams (W12 D2 L0) since Manchester United's 2-1 defeat at Anderlecht in October 2000 - five English teams have faced Belgian teams since then without losing (Leeds, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Leicester).

Liverpool striker Roberto Firmino is the only player since the start of the 2017-18 season to have both scored and assisted 10 Champions League goals (14 goals, 10 assists) - although he has only scored or assisted in one of his last seven away games in the competition (one goal away at Porto).