Preston North End welcome Premier League giants Liverpool once again this Saturday in the first of three pre-season friendlies to be played at Deepdale over the summer period.
Following North End’s 3-2 victory against Chorley on Tuesday night in which 23 different players in total featured, Preston are expected to welcome Bailey Wright, John Welsh, Jack Ryan, and Scott Wiseman into the fold for their first run outs of the season.
The game is a re-match of last season’s pre-season encounter where both North End and Liverpool contested the Shankly shield in honour of Bill Shankly’s 100th birthday.
Goals from Philippe Coutinho, Jordan Ibe, Raheem Sterling, and Iago Aspas that day saw Liverpool run out as 4-0 winners - which set them up nicely for the rest of the season, as the Reds enjoyed their highest league finish in five years.
Despite narrowly missing out on the Premier League crown finishing as runners-up, the Merseyside outfit have Champions League football to look forward to this season, and have made a number of acquisitions to accommodate the extra games.
The first saw Liverpool-born Rickie Lambert join the club at the age of 32 after being released by the club as a 15-year-old.
Lambert was soon followed to Merseyside by £10m signing Emre Can, along with fellow Southampton player Adam Lallana for £25m.
Although Can and Lambert could make their Liverpool bows at Deepdale, with Lambert putting himself in the frame to play after returning to training two days early, Lallana isn’t expected to feature with the first of Liverpool’s contingent only just returning to training.
However, the likes of Coutinho, Daniel Agger, and Joe Allen could all play a part against North End, whilst Jose Enrique is due to play his first game for the club since undergoing a knee operation in November.
For Preston, new recruits Calum Woods, Jamie Jones, Jordan Hugill, and Andy Little could all make their Deepdale debuts against Liverpool, although Kyel Reid will have to wait a little longer before playing his first game in Lilywhite colours with the winger still recovering from his cruciate ligament injury.
The referee for the game will be Jeremy Simpson, who’ll be taking charge of a PNE match for the second time having previously officiated the 1-1 draw with Carlisle in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy in 2012.
Tickets are still available for the first pre-season clash at Deepdale, and prices are as follows.
Adults - £15
PNE Ambassadors – (renewed season tickets for 2014/15) - £10
Concessions (U16s, Ambassadors aged 60 and over or non-Ambassadors aged 65 and over) - £5
The game will be shown live on BT Sports, but for North End coverage PNE Player will be offering full commentary on the friendly with Jonathon Breeze – he will be live on air from 2.30pm from the Invincibles Pavilion gantry.
We will also have extended highlights on our online TV channel, plus reaction and many of our exciting behind the scenes features all online within 48 hours of the game.