On a day where Liverpool are set to play Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena, a lot of debate has been caused over the starting XI for the match.

We all know that, as a pre-season friendly, the dynamics of this game are different to a competitive Champions League night. Both teams are likely to approach the game in different ways to which they would a fully competitive fixture, most likely taking a more experimental approach. But it did beg the question in the office- Bayern Munich are one of the world’s best teams. If Liverpool wanted to beat them at competitive level, they would probably have to field what we would consider to be our best ‘starting XI’, but who exactly does that include? For the first time in a couple of years, we’re starting to develop a good, in-depth squad with options. When you look back at last season, there was so little choice when picking a team that this article wouldn’t be worth doing. However, now there are choice to be made and players to be dropped.

Let’s first assume that everyone is fit and in form. This is never the case for everyone but for the purpose of a hypothetical situation let’s pretend it’s the 2013/14 season and everyone is in the form of their lives. I think, even though there were some promising performances from Karius in the second half of the season last season, the goalkeeping choice is pretty obvious. Simon Mignolet stepped up big time last season, made very few errors and made some big penalty saves. He’s really starting to win back even some of the more critical fans. Karius will get opportunities this season for sure, most probably in EFL and FA Cup games. But, for now, Simon Mignolet is first choice goalkeeper for Liverpool. As so, we move on to the rest of the back 5. The ‘Robertson vs Milner’ debate sparked some interesting conversation on Twitter. After a poll and plenty of discussion, the general consensus was that it should be Robertson that made it into this team ahead of the man who did a very reasonable job there last season. If Robertson is in the team, who takes the penalties? That’s the big question.

Anyway, onto the centre-backs. I think they also select themselves. Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip. You would hope that by the end of the window we’ll also be bringing Virgil van Dijk into this equation. We all know that he is still pushing for an exit out of Southampton, but will he actually manage it before the end of the window. It is, in theory, a similar situation to the one we find ourselves in with Coutinho. There’s a situation where it’s possible the player wants to leave and the club have to decide whether to stand firm. For now though, we have two solid choices when it comes to centre-backs. The same can be said for Nathaniel Clyne at right-back. While there is certainly competition brewing for him in his position, for now he is the secure no.1 right-back. In a year’s time, this might be a different story. Trent Alexander-Arnold is making great progress in his development into a very good player. He put in some great performances this season, not least the start against United at Old Trafford in January. He’s certainly on the radar, that’s for sure.

That’s the easy part over. When it comes to midfield, we suddenly have a lot more choice and a lot more to discuss. We’ll put this team into our standard 4-3-3 formation. Players capable of playing in a midfield 3 are as follows: Henderson, Lallana, Wijnaldum, Emre Can, Coutinho, Woodburn, Milner. A lot to choose from. A lot of these players are flexible and have a few positions. But choosing our best 3? Now that’s a bit of a task. Henderson’s the club captain, and I actually think he’s our strongest sitting-in midfielder. So I think he belongs in the position he played for the majority of last season, the anchor role at the bottom of the midfield 3. The next two choices are tricky and also depends on who is picked in the top 3.

Our forward options are as follows: Sturridge, Firmino, Mane, Origi, Solanke, Salah, Coutinho, Lallana, Ings. Again, riddled with options. However, I think the best way to get our best players into the team is to sit Coutinho a little deeper in the midfield 3, and play Mané and Salah on the right and left wings.

This leaves one spot in the midfield 3 open, along with the main striker. Now these two positions are largely up for debate. I think Adam Lallana wins a spot in the middle 3 for his work-rate and pressing ability. What I’ve always admired about Lallana is his footballing brain. He has the ability to spot passes and space that other players simply don’t. I think that’s one of the things Klopp appreciates about him and a valuable ability l to have in your skillset.

My final choice my cause intense debate. However, working on the assumption that everyone is fit and firing. I would choose Sturridge as the main striker ahead of Firmino. Both are excellent players, but I think Sturridge has the unique ability to pull a moment of pure quality from absolutely nowhere. Look at his goal in the Europa League final, a truly world-class finish. Firmino is a quality player but I can’t think of many occasions where he has produced moments like that in big games. I also have more faith in Sturridge to bury his chances than I do Firmino. His goal vs West Ham towards the end of last season proves my point.

That was a big moment for us in the quest for Champions League football, and there was high pressure on Sturridge after Coutinho played slotted the ball forwards and he found himself 1-on-1 with the goalkeeper. Yet, he was calm, collected, and safely rounded Adrian to give us the lead in an important game. I’m not saying Firmino wouldn’t have buried that chance just as effortlessly than Daniel did, I’m saying I have more confidence in Dan to turn those types of chances into goals more often than not.

So there we have it, my team. Right now, that’s who I think is Liverpool’s strongest starting XI. Again, the choices we now have in our squad make this a much more interesting sort of thing to write, and hopefully the Reds bring in a couple more signings between now and September to make those choice even more difficult.

By Ben Kelly