Andoni Iraola's first game in charge of Liverpool ended in a 4-2 pre-season friendly win over Sunderland in Nashville, though the match also exposed the thinness of his defensive options after Joe Gomez was forced off injured after just 10 minutes. With Gomez unable to continue, Liverpool were left fielding two 18-year-old central defenders, underlining concerns Iraola had already voiced about the club's lack of cover at the back ahead of the new season.

Second-half goals from Dominik Szoboszlai, Federico Chiesa and Lewis Koumas secured a comfortable victory at Geodis Park, where 24,897 fans watched a game preceded by a tribute to the late Kevin Keegan. Liverpool were missing several key players, including World Cup finalists, Florian Wirtz and Virgil van Dijk, while new £55m signing Jeremy Jacquet was rested as a precaution. With Ibrahima Konate having left for Real Madrid and Giovanni Leoni still recovering from an ACL injury, the makeshift pairing of teenagers Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe highlighted how much responsibility will fall on Van Dijk next season.