Liverpool and its three new acquisitions, including former Black Cat Jordan Henderson, will kick off its 2011-12 season at home on Saturday with a matchup against Sunderland.
Stewart Downing and Charlie Adam will also be debuting for Liverpool. Adam scored 12 goals for Blackpool last year, and Downing scored seven last year for Aston Villa, including the one that defeated Liverpool on the last day of the season. Henderson score three goals with Sunderland.
The Reds will be facing a Sunderland team that made its own splash by signing Wes Brown, Connor Wickham, John O'Shea, Sebastian Larsson and Craig Gardner.
Dirk Kyut and Andrew Carrol led Liverpool in scoring with 13 goals each during the season, helping Liverpool to 58 points and a sixth-place finish. The club failed to qualify for the Europa League when it lost 1-0 to Aston Villa on the last day of the season.
Last season, the teams faced off twice. The first game, at Liverpool, resulted in a 2-2 draw, but Liverpool came back to win the next game at Sunderland 2-0.
Sunderland earned 47 points and the No. 10 spot, thanks to Asamoah Gyan's club-leading 10 goals.
Liverpool won its last preseason game against Valencia 2-0, while Sunderland played to a draw against Hibernian.
