Liverpool kicked off their pre-season campaign with a 3-1 win against Preston North End at Deepdale.
It was the Reds’ first outing since the tragic passing of Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva, and tributes were paid throughout the day in memory of the beloved forward.
Preston 1-3 Liverpool – Match Report
Preston captain Ben Whiteman walked across the pitch to lay a wreath in front of the travelling Liverpool fans during a moving rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone. The entire stadium stood for a minute’s silence, and chants of “Ohhh he wears the number 20…” rang out powerfully during the 20th minute.
On the pitch, Arne Slot named two separate elevens for each half, with a blend of youth and experience. Georgian goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili made his unofficial debut in the first half, while Rio Ngumoha, Trey Nyoni, and Luca Stephenson were all handed starts. Mohamed Salah captained the side.
Liverpool took the lead just after the half-hour mark, with Conor Bradley finishing a smart move involving Dominik Szoboszlai and Ngumoha. It was a composed finish from the right-back, who found space in the box and saw his deflected shot sneak into the corner.
After the break, Slot changed his entire XI. New signings Freddie Woodman, Milos Kerkez, and Jeremie Frimpong all made their first appearances, and it didn’t take long for Darwin Núñez to make his mark.
Pouncing on a poor back-pass, the Uruguayan rounded Preston keeper Daniel Iversen and coolly slotted home to double Liverpool’s lead. The celebration was just as memorable: Núñez first mimicked Jota’s iconic clapping gesture, followed by his signature “shark chop” and the famous gamer pose, kneeling, hands up like a controller, bringing loud cheers from the away end.
Preston pulled one back late on through Liam Lindsay’s powerful header from a corner, but Liverpool restored their two-goal cushion with minutes to go.
Ben Doak pressed high and won the ball in the box, then squared unselfishly to Cody Gakpo, who calmly finished after a clever dummy by Núñez. Gakpo also celebrated with a tribute of his own, flashing Jota’s number 20 gesture toward the sky.
Next up, Preston heads to Spain to face Getafe on July 18. Liverpool, meanwhile, will play as the home team against AC Milan at Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong on July 26.
