Liverpool take on the Malaysia XI this afternoon, a fixture which last took place back in 2011. Four years ago, the Reds won a thoroughly entertaining game 6-3, with some fine attacking play making up for our defensive frailties.
Incredibly, out of the 23 players to feature for Kenny Dalglish’s side in that game, just one still remains at Anfield – Jon Flanagan – who clearly won’t feature today, with injury having ruled him out of the tour.
Here’s a look at all of the players who played that day…
First-Half XI:
GK) Brad Jones – Left Liverpool this summer after five years at the club. Served as understudy to Pepe Reina and Simon Mignolet before being replaced by Adam Bogdan. The Australian is currently a free agent.
RB) Jon Flanagan – The only member of this squad who remains a Liverpool player. He enjoyed an excellent 2013-14 season as we finished second but missed the entirety of our last campaign through injury.
LB) Jack Robinson – Came through the ranks at the academy at the same sort of time as Flanagan but lacked the same qualities as his compatriot. He was signed by QPR last year and then spent the season at Huddersfield.
CB) Jamie Carragher – A firm fan favourite and a club icon. Carragher retired at the end of the 2012-13 season. It’s hard to imagine what might have been if the veteran defender has stayed on and played another year.
CB) Daniel Agger – Another good servant to Liverpool, who returned to his native Denmark at the end of the 2013-14 season. He remains with boyhood club Brondby, who finished third in their league last season.
DM) Conor Coady – Another youngster who was never quite able to make the grade. He spent last season at Huddersfield Town, and did well, earning himself a move to another Championship side – Wolves – this summer.
CM) Charlie Adam – Spent just one forgettable season at Anfield before being swiftly moved on by Brendan Rodgers. He’s done well at Stoke City and will no doubt be looking forward to facing us again on the opening day of our new Premier League campaign.
CM) Jay Spearing – A local lad and a firm fan favourite. He did well at Liverpool but didn’t quite have the quality to sustain a career at the top level. A solid Championship player who is currently with Bolton.
AM) Raul Meireles – The Portuguese enjoyed a decent year at Anfield, but surprisingly moved to Chelsea shortly after the start of the 2011-12 season. Moved to Turkey a year later and is currently with Fenerbahce.
AM) Joe Cole – Dalglish didn’t take to the England international and he was loaned out to Lille soon after this game. He returned to the club and played a handful of games under Brendan Rodgers before leaving permanently. Now with Aston Villa.
ST) Andy Carroll – The big man was preparing for what would prove to be his only full season at the club. He was loaned to West Ham the following year and made the move a permanent one twelve months later.
Second-Half XI
GK) Peter Gulacsi (replaced by Martin Hansen after 70 minutes) – After a series of loan spells Gulacsi joined Red Bull Salzburg in 2013. He’s now with RB Leipzig. Hansen is at Dutch club ADO Den Haag.
RB) Martin Kelly – Injury sadly disrupted Kelly’s progress on Merseyside and his 17 year stay with the club was ended last summer when he joined Crystal Palace. He enjoyed a solid first season in London and will now be looking to show Brendan Rodgers that he made a mistake in letting him go.
LB) Emiliano Insua – The Argentine was another of the players who departed this very summer. He moved to Sporting Lisbon and has since been with Atletico Madrid as well. He’s recently joined Stuttgart in Germany.
CB) Sotiris Kyrgiakos – The veteran defender was already in the twilight years of his career by this stage. After Liverpool, he joined Wolfsburg and had a loan spell with Sunderland. Finished his career in Australia last year.
CB) Danny Wilson – The Scot never looked up to Liverpool standards and was sold to Hearts in 2013. He controversially left the club to join his former side, Rangers, this summer.
DM) Christian Poulsen – A Roy Hodgson signing who was brought in to make up the numbers here. The Dane was on his way out soon after, ending his twelve month stay at Anfield. He’s without a club after leaving FC Copenhagen in the summer.
CM) Jonjo Shelvey – Joined Brendan Rodgers’ former club, Swansea City, on the advice of his manager. He’s made a real success of life in Wales thus far and will no doubt relish the chance to play against us again this year.
CM) Alberto Aquilani – One of the most forgettable signing in Liverpool history. This was one of the very limited number of games the Italian played for us. The 31-year-old is a free agent after leaving Fiorentina.
RW) Maxi Rodriguez – The Argentine was a fine player for Liverpool for a couple of year, playing an important role in us winning the League Cup later this year. He’s now with boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys, aged 34.
LW) Dirk Kuyt – A brilliant player for Liverpool down the years, who could always be relied upon to turn in a performance. He’s spent the last few years in Turkey, but has recently signed for former club Feyenoord.
ST) David Ngog – The 26-year-old remained in England after leaving the Reds, playing for Bolton and Swansea, before joining Stade Reims in 2014. He scored seven goals during his first season with the French club.
