FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED from Liverpool's draw with Greuther Furth

Liverpool got a worthy workout in their second of five pre-season friendlies on Monday - but Jurgen Klopp’s new-look team could only draw to German second-tier side Greuther Furth in an end-to-end thriller.

The Reds led 3-1 in the second half after a Darwin Nunez brace added to Luis Diaz’s opener but questions must be asked of their defence as the Germans scored three goals in quick succession to go 4-3 ahead. Mo Salah then scored an 89th-minute equaliser.

It ends the first leg of Liverpool’s pre-season preparations in Germany, with Klopp’s men set to arrive in Singapore on Thursday ahead of two matches against Leicester and Bayern Munich. They then play Darmstadt at Preston’s Deepdale in a fortnight.

Klopp’s men changed their entire XI at half time with senior professionals and young fringe stars getting minutes. New signing Dominik Szoboszlai sat out after rolling his ankle in training but the Hungarian star is said to be fine and will feature in Singapore.

Here are Mail Sport’s five main takeaways…

Diaz and Nunez like new signings

Diaz missed six months of last season with a knee injury and never really recovered his best form upon returning, scoring just one league goal in 2023 so far.

But the Colombian could be like a new signing for Liverpool this season. He was the star of the first half here, combining well with fellow attackers and scoring the opening goal.

That strike was well taken, with Diaz standing a defender up on the edge of the penalty area, darting past another and then squaring up to finish well with his instep.

Nunez is another set for a big season after perhaps not living up to the sky-high billing in his opening campaign on Merseyside and he was clinical here in scoring on his first two sights of goal. He also assisted Salah’s goal and then missed a sitter at 4-4 to cap off a lively half.

Knock-on effect of midfield maestro Alexander-Arnold

Klopp is a big admirer of young full back Conor Bradley and the Northern Irishman could be set for a big season at the club. With Alexander-Arnold looking likely to start the season in the much-discussed midfield role, Bradley might fancy himself for regular minutes.

The 20-year-old scored five goals and assisted five more from full back on loan at League One Bolton last season and he has impressed during the pair of friendlies in Germany.

Liverpool are not understood to be targeting a right back this summer as Alexander-Arnold moves into a more permanent midfield role, with the Reds instead focusing attention and budgets on freshening central areas with Jordan Henderson and Fabinho likely to leave.

Southampton’s Tino Livramento was considered last summer but Klopp is likely to enter the new season with Bradley and Joe Gomez as his two right backs, with Alexander-Arnold of course still able to fill in there.

Versatile and new-look midfield

Diaz played on the left wing in the first half, with Diogo Jota leading the line and guilty of missing a couple of big chances. Ben Doak, the 17-year-old Scotsman, was a bright spark on the right wing and showed nimble footwork and a positive directness.

It meant the Reds had a very new-look midfield. Trent Alexander-Arnold sat in the traditional No 6 role, with Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo either side of him.

Gakpo will begin his first full season at Anfield as a useful versatile asset, having played on both wings, the No 9 striker role and now as a deeper-lying creative midfielder.

He played some nice one-touch passes and threaded a tidy pass through to Andy Robertson but the full back fluffed his lines in front of goal.

Need for defensive reinforcements?

A theme of recent seasons has been the lack of depth in central defensive areas and Liverpool’s back four was all over the place in the second half, to put it mildly.

Furth looked like scoring every time they broke into Liverpool’s half, with Joel Matip at fault for the first of Armindo Sieb’s two goals in three minutes.

It is not time for mass panic as this was a mere workout but Klopp will have plenty of things to ponder after his defence was torn apart by German second tier opposition.

Jones and Elliott boost

It was pleasing to see Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott return to the fray after missing last week’s outing in Karlsruher. They were given extra time off after their summer exploits with England Under 21s, where they made history in winning the European Championships.

That experience might set the pair back in terms of preparation for the new campaign but it will have long-term benefits, with the two youngsters getting invaluable experience and confidence during their trip to Georgia.

With exits in midfield this summer, Jones and Elliott could be set for a pivotal role this season.

Elliott was instrumental in Liverpool’s second goal with a delightful pass to break the lines of Greuther Furth’s defence and allow Salah space to be creative. The Egyptian teed up Nunez to finish off a sweeping move.