Ipswich v Liverpool LIVE: Team news and line-ups ahead of Premier League clash in Arne Slot’s first match

So, will their signings be enough to keep Ipswich in the top flight?

Survival in the Premier League has become increasingly difficult for clubs newly promoted from the Championship.

Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton all went straight back down to the second tier last season, and plenty expect the same fate 2024/25’s new arrivals Leicester City, Ipswich and Southampton .

Which team, though, is in the best shape to avoid the drop? We’ve assessed each of the Premier League newcomers and their chances of remaining in the top-flight.

Where will Liverpool and Ipswich finish this season? The Independent’s sports desk has its say…

Hold on to your hats once again everyone: the Premier League is back this weekend.

Liverpool will be an intriguing watch under new manager Arne Slot and a total of five clubs will take to the new season with a fresh look in the dugout, with Enzo Maresca at Chelsea, Julen Lopetegui at West Ham, Steve Cooper at Leicester City and Fabian Hurzeler at Brighton.

Maresca at Chelsea will be a fascinating watch and how will Erik ten Hag fare at Manchester United after being given a new contract? The journeys of the newly-promoted trio of Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton will be interesting, too.

Now, our writers make their predictions for the next season:

New Liverpool manager Arne Slot faced the media ahead of his first official match in charge of the Reds against Ipswich Town and was predictably quizzed about the club’s lack of transfer activity – but he insisted the squad was good enough to compete and that the market wasn’t the only way to strengthen.

Slot, though, isn’t perturbed and has had a largely positive summer in the build-up to the start of 2024/25.

“I’ve said many times, our squad is really strong and it’s not easy to find player who can help us. Zubimendi was one to be fair but he decided not to come so we go on with the ones we have. We’re in a good place and in the background [sporting director] Richard [Hughes] is trying to strengthen the squad as he can.”

Liverpool are the only Premier League side not to sign a player so far this summer, with Martin Zubimendi perhaps deemed the only player of a high enough quality to be worthy of signing. They have been linked with Valencia ‘keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, but if he did sign he would likely be loaned out immediately.

Nevertheless, the Reds have been linked with a host of other players, including Real Sociedad’s Take Kubo and Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon.

The Reds have let several players leave this summer, including Adrian, Fabio Carvalho and young midfielder Bobby Clark.

Ipswich have been more active in the market, with Kieran McKenna recently adding both Kalvin Phillips and Sammie Szmodics, who was the top scorer in the Championship last season.

The Tractor Boys have also added Omari Hutchinson from Chelsea, Liam Delap from Man City and Ben Johnson from West Ham.

The 28-year-old midfielder, who spent the second half of last season with West Ham, could make his debut in Saturday’s clash with Liverpool at Portman Road.

“This is a day I’ve been waiting a number of weeks for now and I’m very happy to be here,” Phillips told the Tractor Boys’ website.

“I want to play as many games as possible, enjoy playing football again and help the team win as many games as possible in the Premier League.”

Last season had barely finished when one man at Anfield launched into a chorus of Arne Slot’s name. Many another joined in. It helped, of course, that the instigator of the chant was Jurgen Klopp, in a parting gift.

Klopp set the scene for Slot’s reign. His will also be the spectre that looms over it. Liverpool have lost their biggest character, their best communicator, their most charismatic figure. Their history shows that they can go on to greater success thereafter: Bob Paisley won more trophies than the iconic Bill Shankly. And if such a comparison applies pressure to Slot, the Dutchman has spent team meetings looking at areas where Liverpool can improve from last season.

Klopp gave “Liverpool 2.0” their nickname. He was their biggest advocate. At least, to continue the references to Liverpool’s past, Slot has not started off as the Graeme Souness to the German’s Kenny Dalglish. He has not taken an axe to the group of players he inherited; Klopp felt he left a “fantastic squad” and his selflessness in rebuilding and promoting younger players showed he was planning for a future without him.

Here’s everything you need to know if you want to catch today’s match live on TV.

Ipswich v Liverpool kicks off at 12.30pm BST on Saturday, 17 August and takes place at Portman Road in Ipswich, England.

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on TNT Sports 1, with coverage starting at 11am. Subscribers will also be able to watch on a live stream via the Discovery+ app and website.

If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch major sporting events, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help and includes deals on VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.

It promises to be an entertaining game at Portman Road, with Ipswich looking to lay down a marker in McKenna’s first game in the Premier League. Nevertheless, Liverpool’s preseason performances under Slot, coupled with the underlying quality in their squad, suggest that the Reds should have enough to come away with an opening win. Ipswich 1-3 Liverpool.

Ipswich XI: Muric; Tuanzebe, Burgess, Edmundson; Johnson, Morsy, Luongo, Davis; Hutchinson, Delap, Harness.

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Nunez, Diaz.

New Ipswich signings Arijanet Muric, Ben Johnson and Liam Delap both started the Tractor Boys’ final preseason game last week, so they are all in line to start.

However, the trio of Nathan Broadhead, Harry Clarke and George Hirst are unavailable due to injury.

Arne Slot has no new injury concerns, and has welcomed back Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo after their extended breaks. Andy Robertson managed 60 minutes against Las Palmas on Sunday, so he may be fit enough to start at left-back after missing the tour of the US through injury.

Whether the Dutchman prefers Jarell Quansah to Ibrahima Konate at the back remains to be seen, while Diogo Jota could start upfront for the Reds as he did several times in preseason.