Liverpool host Bologna at Anfield on Wednesday night in the second match of their 2024/25 Champions League season.
The Reds began their European campaign in an impressive manner, easily beating AC Milan 3-1 at the San Siro in what will be one of their most difficult fixtures of the competition’s new league phase.
However, with teams including Real Madrid and German champions Bayer Leverkusen to come, Arne Slot will be keen to get what could be an important three points in his first European night at Anfield.
Bologna have lost both a manager and some key players since qualifying for the competition last season, and they currently languishing in 13th place in Serie A with just seven points, having drawn their opening Champions League match 0-0 with Shakhtar Donetsk.
Follow all the latest build-up, team news and updates below, as well as the reaction to the evening’s other Champions League matches:
Liverpool vs Bologna LIVE
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Liverpool face Bologna in their second match of the Champions League league phase, with kick-off at 8pm BST | Live on TNT
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The Reds host the Italian side having won the first game of their campaign 3-1 against AC Milan at the San Siro
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Bologna drew their first game in the competition 0-0 with Shakhtar Donetsk
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Liverpool XI: Alisson, Van Dijk, Konate, Diaz, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Mac Allister, Salah, Robertson, Gravenberch, Alexander-Arnold
Liverpool FC 0 – 0 Bologna FC 1909
Liverpool 0-0 Bologna
20:09 , Sonia Twigg
8 minutes: Liverpool are definitely playing a high press, and Nunez is working hard to chase down the goalkeeper and defenders when they get the ball.
Whether this an early tactic, or if they planning on playing the whole match at this tempo remains to be seen
Liverpool 0-0 Bologna
20:06 , Sonia Twigg
6 minutes: Liverpool have kept up the tempo from their early start, and it is a big night for Darwin Nunez, who has a chance to impress his new manager Arne Slot.
Liverpool 0-0 Bologna
20:02 , Sonia Twigg
2 minutes: It’s a stunning ball across the box and Diaz is just unable to reach it, Bologna nearly turned the ball into their own net, but it has been a high tempo start from Liverpool.
Liverpool 0-0 Bologna
20:00 , Sonia Twigg
1 minute: Bologna kick the game underway
Liverpool fans boo Champions League anthem
19:58 , Sonia Twigg
The teams are out, the Champions League anthem has been played, and the match is about to get underway.
Some sections of the Liverpool crowd booed the Champions League anthem.
Liverpool vs Bologna
19:54 , Sonia Twigg
You’ll Never Walk Alone is being played and sung around the ground and the players are about to emerge from the tunnel.
Liverpool vs Bologna
19:52 , Sonia Twigg
The match will get underway in just 10 minutes’ time so here are some photos from around the ground as the atmosphere heats up:
What Slot has said
19:45 , Chris Wilson
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Arne Slot said that he sees “things we have to improve if we want to stay where we are”.
“Every fixture is difficult in the Premier League and we have to do things better. But one of the reasons we can stay up there is we have a lot of quality.
He went on to add that Liverpool “cannot accept mediocrity” and need to show “the highest standards every day”.
On Bologna, he said: “We know how difficult it is to play against a team that man mark.
“We don’t underestimate them at all because that is not what they deserve after their finish last season.”
He finished by adding that he is hoping for “a special night for everyone involved”.
Liverpool match stats
19:30 , Chris Wilson
Bologna will be Liverpool’s 10th different Italian opponent in European competition, after Inter Milan, Juventus, Roma, Genoa, Milan, Fiorentina, Napoli, Udinese, and Atalanta.
The Reds have lost three of their last five at home to Italian sides (W2).
Liverpool have won each of their last 10 group or league stage games at Anfield in major European competitions.
They have scored two or more goals in their last nine in a row. Their last defeat was to an Italian side – they lost 0-2 to Atalanta in November 2020.
The Reds also lost 3-0 to Atalanta in the quarter-finals of the Europa League last season.
Mohamed Salah could become the first Liverpool player to score in five consecutive home games in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League. He has scored in all four of his appearances at Anfield in his previous season in this competition (four goals in 2022/23).
Arne Slot’s perfectionism will be defining factor of Liverpool’s Champions League campaign
19:20 , Chris Wilson
As Arne Slot looked forward to his first European night at Anfield, Alexis Mac Allister harked back to his Champions League bow. Which was all of two weeks ago. As the Liverpool midfielder noted, it is remarkable he had won the World Cup before even playing in the premier club competition. “For some people it was a surprise I won a World Cup but I made my debut against [AC] Milan in the Champions League so it is quite crazy,” the Argentina international said.
But, swift as Mac Allister’s rise was, it was nonetheless a sign of Liverpool’s enduring appeal that they could recruit him when in the Europa League. Slot was in the Champions League last season but, while Jurgen Klopp is a Champions League winner and four-time finalist, his predecessor was not.
The Dutchman nevertheless has particular reasons to relish Bologna’s visit to Anfield. “I am privileged enough to work at Feyenoord where Champions League nights last season were also really special. People tell me it will be even more special here tomorrow,” he said.
Slot’s perfectionism will be defining factor of Liverpool’s Champions League campaign
Liverpool v Bologna head-to-head
19:10 , Chris Wilson
These two sides have never previously met in a competitive fixture.
The Reds currently sit 12th in the Champions League’s new league phase table, though they have played a game less than many teams. In the Premier League, Slot’s side sit top of the league with 15 points, one above both Arsenal and Manchester City.
Bologna are seven-time winners of Serie A and finished fourth last season, though they are struggling in 13th this season, with just seven points. They have lost several key personnel since last season, including manager Thiago Motta (who moved to Juventus) and Manchester United signing Joshua Zirkzee.
The unintended effect of the new Champions League – and why Liverpool can benefit
19:00 , Chris Wilson
Heading into the first few weeks of the new Premier League season, one of the most frequent questions aimed Arne Slot’s way was that of rotation. At Feyenoord, he candidly explained, there was little reason to switch up his first team too much; fewer league games, one fewer domestic cup to navigate and more difficulty in reaching the latter stages of Europe. His final campaign at the Eredivisie side saw Slot’s team play only 48 matches – and that included the Johan Cruyff Shield, the Dutch season-opener, and going the distance to win the KNVB Cup.
A few weeks later and the new Liverpool boss has shown a deft hand at altering his lineup without, so far, dramatically reducing the quality on show; while the performance against West Ham was somewhat stutteringafter nine changes, so too was the win over Wolves with a regular first XI in place.
League Cup aside, Slot has shown an early preference for making a couple of switches, keeping the bulk of his starters in situ and letting others find form and push for places two or three at a time. Cody Gakpowas perhaps the first to stake his claim; more recently, Curtis Jones has done likewise.
The unintended effect of the new Champions League – and why Liverpool can benefit
Liverpool team news
18:48 , Sonia Twigg
Liverpool made one change, with Darwin Nunez starting against Bologna and Diogo Jota on the bench.
Liverpool XI: Alisson, Van Dijk, Konate, Diaz, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Mac Allister, Salah, Robertson, Gravenberch, Alexander-Arnold
Subs: Jaros, Kelleher, Gomez, Endo, Jones, Gakpo, Jota, Tsimikas, Quansah, Morton, Bradley, Nyoni
Team news
18:38 , Chris Wilson
The line-ups will be announced in just under 10 minutes, but here’s a reminder of the early team news.
The Reds have Alisson back and have three potential absentees as a result. Harvey Elliott is definitely out, while Federico Chiesa has suffered a muscular injury that could rule him out until the international break. Darwin Nunez, who missed the weekend game through illness, is the other doubt.
Lewis Ferguson, Oussama El Azzouzi and Tommaso Pobega are the three likely absentees for Bologna.
Liverpool suffer Federico Chiesa injury blow – but another forward set to return
18:30 , Chris Wilson
Liverpool forward Federico Chiesa has suffered an injury blow that denies him a first Champions League night at Anfield and could rule him out until the international break.
The Italy international has a muscular problem that means he will sit out Wednesday’s game against Bologna and makes him a doubt for Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace.
Manager Arne Slot believes it will be a particular blow for Chiesa, a £10m summer signing from Juventus, to miss a match against against a team from his home country.
Liverpool suffer Chiesa injury blow – but another forward set to return
Arsenal’s impressive win over PSG shows the Champions League has surrendered its competitive edge
18:20 , Chris Wilson
A “big Champions League night” that ended up being quite a nice run-out for Arsenal. Qatari-owned Paris Saint-Germain looked less a sportswashing project and more a youth project. The level of superiority in this 2-0 win is again to Arsenal’s credit, but should also be a worry for Uefa.
This was one of the big-name fixtures that the new Champions League was sold on – more games between the best, more fixtures, more, more, more – and yet it didn’t really feel like either side treated it as a match of much consequence. It was a world away, say, from 2000-01 when Lyon came to North London and Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal absolutely knew they had to do something.
If it is by now becoming tedious to read about these issues, it is worth remembering that such themes only arise because very little of consequence happens on the pitch. Here, in just the second of eight games, Arsenal got the win that already puts them more than halfway to the top 24.
How the Champions League surrendered its competitive edge
Prediction & odds
18:10 , Chris Wilson
Odds
Liverpool 1/6
Draw 6/1
Bologna 14/1
Prediction
The Reds to record another home victory against a side struggling to match their own exploits of last term.
Liverpool 2-0 Bologna.
Predicted line-ups
18:05 , Chris Wilson
LIV – Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Gomez, Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Salah, Jones, Gakpo, Jota
BOL – Skorupski, Posch, Beukema, Lucumi, Lykogiannis, Freuler, Aebischer, Urbanski, Orsolini, Castro, Ndoye
Team news
18:00 , Chris Wilson
The Reds have Alisson back and have only two potential absentees as a result – Harvey Elliott, who is definitely out, and Darwin Nunez, who missed the weekend game through illness.
Lewis Ferguson, Oussama El Azzouzi and Tommaso Pobega are the three likely absentees for Bologna.
Is Liverpool vs Bologna on TV tonight? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch Champions League fixture
17:50 , Chris Wilson
When is the match?
The match kicks off at 8pm BST on Wednesday 2 October at Anfield.
Where can I watch it?
All Champions League games are shown on TNT Sports in the UK. This game is on TNT Sports 2 and can be streamed for subscribers on the discovery+ app.
You can purchase a TNT Sports subscription via discovery+ here, for only £30.99 per month.
Liverpool vs Bologna LIVE
17:40 , Chris Wilson
Liverpool will attempt to make it two wins from two in the new-look Champions League, with their first home encounter of the European campaign coming against Serie A side Bologna.
The Reds won in relative comfort at the weekend despite a poor overall performance against Wolves, but have generally been impressive this term and sit top of the Premier League table. They also saw off another Italian outfit in AC Milan in the first gameweek in Europe.
Bologna haven’t faced Milan yet in their domestic league, but they sit four points behind them and nine places lower in the table after managing just two wins from six to-date, 12th following a home draw with Atalanta at the weekend.
Arne Slot may opt to change one or two from his starting lineup following a low-key weekend outing, particularly given the lack of real concern over progression from this stage of the Champions League.
Liverpool vs Bologna LIVE
17:31 , Chris Wilson
Good evening and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of tonight’s Champions League match between Liverpool and Bologna.
Arne Slot’s side face another Italian side in their second match in the competition this season, having put in an impressive performance in their opener as they beat AC Milan 3-1 at the San Siro.
Bologna have had a mixed start to the season and drew their opener 0-0 to Shakhtar Donetsk, though a trip to Anfield is certain to give them another gear in tonight’s match.
