Five presents more live football action with coverage of this pre-season friendly. Liverpool limber up for another testing season in the Premier League with a trip to the Wisla Stadium in Poland to take on Wisla Kraków. Presented by Colin Murray with commentary from Dave Woods.
The European Championships are still fresh in the memory, but another season of football is just around the corner. Liverpool’s preparations involve a pre-season tour of Europe, including this match against Wisla Kraków.
Liverpool have been playing their cards close to their chest in the close season, with much speculation about the sort of transfer budget available to manager Rafael Benítez. The club have yet to make any big purchases in the transfer market, although they have made no secret of their desire to lure Aston Villa captain Gareth Barry to Anfield. Peter Crouch, meanwhile, may be on his way out of the side. Liverpool recently rejected Portsmouth’s £9 million bid for the gangly forward, but could be willing to accept an improved offer.
Elsewhere, the pre-season talk has focused on Liverpool’s star man Fernando Torres, who netted 33 goals last season. This tally, coupled with some championship-winning performances for Spain in Euro 2008, has made Torres the subject of much interest from Europe’s big clubs.
Liverpool insist the player is not for sale, but the final line-up of the squad will continue to be a matter of speculation until the opening day. Liverpool’s destination for this friendly is the 20,000-capacity Wisla Stadium in beautiful Kraków. Wisla Kraków have a proud history in the Polish top flight, having won the first division 11 times. They have developed something of a stranglehold on the league, winning it six times in the last ten years – most recently in 2008.
Wisla have rarely troubled the later stages of European competitions; in their last UEFA Cup appearance in 2006, they lost 2-1 at home to Blackburn Rovers in the group stage. The club’s 36-year-old manager, Maciej Skorza, will be hoping his side can battle through the Champions League qualifying stages this season – and what better way to kick off their attempt than with a morale-boosting victory over a club that have won the trophy five times?
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