Why Dominik Szoboszlai Isn’t in Liverpool Squad for Huge Man City Clash

Not content with the absences of Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo, the fickle fitness fates have robbed Liverpool of Dominik Szoboszlai thanks to a reported hamstring injury.

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The legendary former Reds boss Bob Paisley used to say: “You keep your fingers crossed about injuries. That is in the lap of the gods.” Those looking down upon Andoni Iraola have not been favorable this weekend.

The Basque boss was already denied the chance to field his leading scorer and most prolific creator, with short-term injuries sustained on international duty ruling out Isak and Gakpo. Liverpool’s reigning Player of the Season can be added to the list absentees, with The Athletic‘s James Pearce first to report of a hamstring injury for the midfielder.

Szoboszlai had previously started all six of Liverpool’s Premier League and Champions League fixtures this season, operating in a range of roles in an area of the pitch which Iraola hasn’t quite figured out yet. Hungary’s captain dutifully started all four of his country’s Nations League fixture this fall and was spotted back in Liverpool training this week.

Nevertheless, he clearly wasn’t fit enough to make Sunday’s squad, let alone the starting XI.

Liverpool Confirmed Lineup vs. Man City

Starting XI: Alisson; Ronald Araújo, Jérémy Jacquet, Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch; Víctor Muñoz, Lewis Koumas, Bradley Barcola.

Substitutes: Giorgi Mamardashvili, Joe Gomez, Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa, Kostas Tsimikas, Jeremie Frimpong, Trey Nyoni, James McConnell, Rio Ngumoha.

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In place of Szoboszlai, Iraola was left with Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch in a midfield pairing behind Florian Wirtz. While Liverpool’s No. 8 had been an ever-present, his two defensively minded colleagues were fighting for the spot next to him.

Gravenberch started the season alongside Hungary’s skipper but his natural inclination to push up the pitch only exposed the yawning chasms which can readily appear in Iraola’s front-footed system. Mac Allister was brought in to shore up that central slice of the pitch and has helped Liverpool keep three consecutive Premier League clean sheets. Now the duo will have to work together to shut out the likes of Erling Haaland.

Andoni Iraola’s Youthful Leap of Faith

Ironically enough, it was Szoboszlai who insisted earlier this season that Lewis Koumas, the 21-year-old academy graduate with scarcely any senior experience, “deserved to play” ahead of some of Liverpool’s expensively acquired forwards.

Iraola has openly shared this stance, repeatedly lauding the industry, rather than dexterity, of the hard-running forward who, prior to Sunday, had just 22 minutes of Premier League soccer under his belt.

“The energy he shows is contagious for the rest,” Iraola gushed last month. “When they see the ones up front doing it, they are forced to go from behind.”

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This story was originally published October 11, 2026 at 7:53 AM.