Liverpool Lunchtime Round-Up, Tuesday 20th October 2026: Nine Out for Villarreal Clash as Iraola Juggles Injury Crisis
Liverpool host Villarreal at Anfield tonight in the Champions League, and the big story is team news - Andoni Iraola is set to be without nine players after further injuries were picked up against Brentford (Liverpool Echo). Despite the depleted squad, lineup predictions suggest Iraola will make changes, with Kostas Tsimikas and Cody Gakpo tipped for starts, while decisions also loom over Alexander Isak and Jeremy Jacquet (Liverpool.com) (Liverpool Echo). For those wanting to tune in, there's a full guide out on how to watch the match for free in the US and UK (Liverpool.com).
There's also a bit of needle before kick-off, with This Is Anfield reporting that Iraola has reportedly "stopped talking" to his Villarreal counterpart ahead of what's being described as a "special game" (This Is Anfield). Elsewhere, there's a training mystery to solve, with a "Victor Munoz clue" potentially explaining a recent Liverpool training absence (This Is Anfield).
Captain Virgil van Dijk has been having his say in the matchday programme, stressing that "winning is a habit" the squad want to build on as they look to leave a tough run behind them, while also pointing to the advantage of four straight games at Anfield (LiverpoolFC.com) (Liverpool Echo) (This Is Anfield).
On the Florian Wirtz front, Steven Gerrard has offered support to the midfielder, telling people not to "give up on him" as he and Bradley Barcola show signs of shaking off slow starts to their Liverpool careers, according to the Echo (Liverpool Echo) (This Is Anfield).
Away from matters on the pitch, Liverpool.com reports that Graeme Souness has launched a scathing attack on Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, branding him a "cheat" over his conduct against Nottingham Forest (Liverpool.com), while another former Red has warned of a "car crash" scenario regarding any potential Manchester City title sanctions and what it could mean for the title race (Liverpool.com). Finally, LFC.com's Road to Rome '77 series recalls a difficult European trip to Trabzonspor that needed an Anfield comeback (LiverpoolFC.com), and This Is Anfield has previewed a predicted black and pink away kit for the 2027/28 season (This Is Anfield).
This round-up is written with the help of AI, using only the day's headlines from the publishers credited above. Each point links to the original report — tap the source name to read it in full.