LASK vs Liverpool prediction, odds and preview

Liverpool will look to continue their strong start to the 2023/24 season when they face LASK in their opening game of the Europa League.

The Reds’ are on the road for their first European game of the campaign and will look to make it another win for the season.

Jurgen Klopp’s side have only failed to win a game once so far this season, playing out a 1-1 draw with Chelsea on the opening day of the Premier League.

The Reds fell to the second-tier division of European football after finishing fifth in the Premier League last season, while the hosts defeated Zrinjski Mostar 3-2 in qualification to extend their continental trip.

LASK is unbeaten in seven competitive games heading into Thursday’s opener.

Thomas Sageder’s men made it three league wins in a row with a 3-1 victory away to Austria Klagenfurt on Saturday, and they have also won each of their past four games at the Raiffeisen Arena, scoring two goals and allowing just one.

The hosts’ exploits in front of their home fans are nothing to sneeze at, but the standard of competition will rise dramatically when an in-form Liverpool visit, having seen their six-year series of consecutive Champions League qualification come to an end in 2022-23.

It was fitting that serial Europa League winner Unai Emery would be the one to send the Reds back to the competition for the first time since the 2015-16 season, as a 1-1 draw with the Spaniard’s Aston Villa ended any slim hopes Jurgen Klopp’s side had of finishing in the top four.

Liverpool extended their winning streak to four games over the weekend, coming from behind to defeat Wolverhampton Wanderers 3-1 thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo, Andy Robertson, and a Hugo Bueno own goal, securing third place on the Premier League table at this early stage.

LASK and Liverpool have never met on a competitive level before, although the hosts have only escaped defeat in one of their previous four meetings with English opponents, a thrilling 3-3 home draw against Tottenham Hotspur in the 2020-21 group round.