HJK Helsinki vs. Liverpool: Team News, Preview, Live Stream and TV Info

Liverpool head to Finland for their penultimate pre-season friendly, as they face HJK Helsinki on Saturday evening.

Brendan Rodgers' squad return to England immediately afterward, with a game against Swindon Town the next day. That game, though, "is expected to feature the club’s younger players," according to the Guardian's Andy Hunter—meaning the Helsinki match will feature the Reds' strongest first-team outfit.

The game is to be played at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, which was initially built to host the 1940 Summer Olympics, but due to the Second World War, didn't host the games until 1952. Don't worry, the stadium was renovated more recently—in 2005. It now seats just under 40,000 spectators.

The match should provide Liverpool's toughest test of the pre-season so far, with HJK the dominant Finnish side and currently top of the Finnish top flight and playing in the Champions League qualifying rounds.

It should also provide plenty of clues over how Rodgers intends to set his side up in the 2015/16 season.

Date: Saturday, 1 August 2015

Time: 5:30 p.m. BST/12.30 p.m. EST/7.30 p.m. local time

Venue: Helsinki Olympic Stadium

TV Info: N/A

Live Stream: LFC TV

The Opposition

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HJK are the most successful Finnish side, having won the title on 27 occasions—most recently last season, when they did so by finishing 13 points ahead of second place. It was their sixth successive league title, showing their dominance.

As the Finnish league runs through the summer, HJK are in the midst of their campaign and are currently top of the league again. They will, therefore, be at peak fitness.

This game arrives in between their two-leg Champions League qualifying-round play-off against Astana. They drew the first leg 0-0 on Wednesday, leaving next week's return leg evenly poised. For this reason, they will have one eye on that game and could opt to rest key players in this friendly.

Liverpool Team News

The big question here is whether new signings Christian Benteke and Roberto Firmino will get their first taste of action in Liverpool shirts. 

The duo were not named in the squad on Thursday, with Hunter reporting that "a late decision will be taken on the pair before Liverpool depart on Friday."

If indeed they do make the trip, they are likely to play only 45 minutes, having not featured yet in pre-season. Alternatively, they could make an appearance in the game at Swindon on Sunday, benefiting then from an extra day training on Merseyside.

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One player who is travelling is Brazilian playmaker and last season's Liverpool Player of the Year Philippe Coutinho. He, along with Emre Can, played 45 minutes for the under-21s at Corby Town last weekend after returning the week prior.

Rodgers will no doubt look to give his key personnel a full run out in order to build full fitness ahead of next weekend's opening fixture against Stoke City. That means Martin Skrtel, Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Simon Mignolet, Nathaniel Clyne and, hopefully, Mamadou Sakho, will get a full 90 minutes.

It will be interesting to see who gets the nod at left-back between Alberto Moreno and new boy Joe Gomez. Moreno has missed the majority of the four games so far due to injury, while Gomez has impressed in his absence.

The team selection should provide some clues over who will start at the Britannia Stadium.

Not in the squad are exiled trio Mario Balotelli, Fabio Borini and Jose Enrique, who are reportedly being made to train separately from the rest of the squad.

Possible Starting XI: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Sakho, Moreno, Can, Henderson, Milner, Jordon Ibe, Danny Ings, Coutinho.