Rafael Leao completed a blistering break to fire Milan ahead against Liverpool after 10 minutes of the teams’ pre-season friendly in Hong Kong on Saturday.
The Premier League holders had the better of the early stages before Christian Pulisic sent Portugal forward Rafael Leao away along the left with a pass from well inside his own half by the USA captain, allowing the 26-year-old to enter the box, shift away from Virgil van Dijk and lift a fierce finish into the roof of the net beyond Alisson from a tight angle.
Liverpool levelled 16 minutes later when 16-year-old winger or attacking midfielder Rio Ngumoha, who scored in a friendly against Stoke City six days earlier, completed a rapid, skilful run by teeing up Dominik Szoboszlai just inside the box to find the far corner of the net with a curling finish that drew coos of admiration around the 50,000-capacity Kai Tak Sports Park.
Liverpool vs Milan pre season friendly
Rafael Leao paid tribute to Diogo Jota after scoring, and fans around also honoured the late Liverpool forward in the 20th minute, denoting his shirt number at Anfield.
New signing Florian Wirtz, who has joined the Reds from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee that could rise to a British-record £116 million, used a clever pass to provide Mohamed Salah with an opening inside the box shortly after Milan went ahead, but last season’s Premier League top scorer opted to pass rather than shoot and the Rossoneri intercepted.
Midfielder Szoboszlai reacted nonchalantly to his superb goal, opening Liverpool’s account in the first of their two games in Asia.
Milan were dominated in a 1-0 defeat to Premier League runners-up Arsenal at the Singapore National Stadium on Wednesday in the first game of Max Allegri’s second spell in charge.
Liverpool won 3-1 at Preston North End on July 13 and beat Stoke – also a second-tier side – 5-0, including a Darwin Nunez hat-trick.
Joe Gomez injury: Arne Slot cautious
Centre-back Joe Gomez was not involved for Liverpool, having headed back to the UK for rehabilitation on an Achilles issue.
“We thought it was better to assess it back in England and for him to work on it in order to come back into the team in more ideal circumstances for him,” manager Arne Slot told LFC TV.
“We hope and expect to have him back soon.”
Striker Hugo Ekitike – signed from Eintracht Frankfurt for an initial £69m – was not involved, and nor was Alexis Mac Allister, who is recovering from an issue the playmaker sustained towards the end of 2024/25.
Liverpool starting XI: Alisson; Stephenson, Morton, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch; Ngumoha, Wirtz, Elliott; Salah
Liverpool subs: Mamardashvili, Woodman, Bradley, Frimpong, Kerkez, Konate, Tsimikas, Jones, Nyoni, Doak, Gakpo
Is Liverpool vs Milan on TV? How to watch live streams online
Kick-off on Saturday was at 12:30 BST (07:30 ET / 04:30 PT), with live coverage in the UK on All Red Video, which is free for a month and then costs £4.99 per month.
Milan TV is broadcasting the game via Amazon Prime Video, costing €3.99 a month with a free 15-day trial.
Liverpool pre season fixtures 2025/26
July 23 vs AC Milan (Singapore)
July 27 vs Newcastle (Singapore)
July 31 vs Spurs (Hong Kong)
August 5 vs Villarreal (H)
August 9 vs Athletic Club (H)
Liverpool vs Milan stats
- Liverpool have won four of the five competitive meetings between the teams, including each of the last three
- Both sides have scored in each of those games
- The Reds have won 19, drawn six and lost 18 of their competitive games against Italian clubs, scoring 57 goals and conceding 52
- Milan have won 13, drawn 14 and lost 19 of their competitive matches against English opponents, scoring 50 goals and conceding 59
- Their 3-1 home defeat by Liverpool in last season’s Champions League was their ninth loss in 14 such fixtures, drawing three times and winning twice
- Liverpool have won five of their last six matches against Italian teams outside of England
- Including friendlies, Liverpool have scored in nine successive away matches since a 1-0 defeat at Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup fourth round on February 9
- Milan had scored in 10 of their previous 11 games not held at Stadio San Siro before their friendly defeat to Arsenal on Wednesday, the exception being their 1-0 Coppa Italia final loss to Bologna on May 14
- Milan’s Mike Maignan and Youssouf Fofana are international team-mates for France with Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate
- Milan forward Noah Okafor and Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai played together at Salzburg in 2020/21
When does Liverpool’s 2025/26 Premier League season start?
The first round of Premier League matches in 2025/26 will be on the weekend of August 16 2025, with Liverpool starting the action at home to Bournemouth on Friday, August 15 at 20:00 BST (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT).
The game against one of the surprise packages of 2024/25 is being shown live in the UK on Sky Sports Premier League, Ultra and Main Event.
The last round of matches this season will all start at the same time on May 24 2026. No rounds will take place within 60 hours of each other and there will be no fixture on December 24.
How to watch Liverpool on TV: Sky Sports
Prices for Sky Sports and TNT Sports vary. Via Now TV, Sky Sports costs £14.99 for a day membership, £26 a month for a six-month membership or £34.99 a month with no contract.
Sky Sports memberships include access to all 12 live Sky Sports channels and Sky Sports+, which offers live streams and a dedicated channel.
How to watch Liverpool on TNT Sports
According to BT, TNT Sports costs £20 a month when bought with a broadband package or £30.99 a month without a contract.
Those prices include discovery+ Premium, which offers access to thousands of exclusive shows and originals.
Liverpool live streams: How to watch games online
Both broadcasters have dedicated apps allowing fans to live-stream the games: SkyGO for Sky Sports and discovery+ for TNT Sports.
Both apps are available on a vast range of devices.
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2025-07-26 14:17:20
