Wolves vs Liverpool early team news: LEAGUE TWO defender set to play

Liverpool are set to play against someone whose biggest league experience is League Two when the Reds face Wolves later today.

Wolves are struggling going into their Premier League clash with Liverpool on Saturday evening. Gay O'Neil's side have been hit with a virus that leaves a large number of players in doubt.

The home side could really be missing half of their first team here. To make matters worse, Yerson Mosquera has suffered a knee injury that could end his season. In fact, it's likely to.

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And so O'Neil has 20-year-old Alfie Pond on standby, per the Athletic. Pond has played for the Wolves senior side before - two Carabao Cup appearances, to be precise.

But he's never played in the Premier League. Pond has never played in the Championship, either, nor made it as high as League One. The highest level of league football for the defender is League Two - something he achieved with loan spells at Exeter and Stockport County.

Now, Pond has faced Premier League opposition before. One of his League Cup efforts came earlier this month away at Brighton. That's the highest level he knows, however - Liverpool in the Premier League would be a massive step up.

Liverpool team news

Liverpool have far more positive news. Alisson Becker is back and will almost certainly start, meaning Caoimhin Kelleher steps aside.

Harvey Elliott remains injured, but Liverpool should be virtually full-strength for this one. Arne Slot was able to rotate against West Ham United in midweek and still oversee a 5-1 win - so his players are flying and fresh.

Picking between them will be the real challenge and one that's particularly notable on the left-wing. Luis Diaz or Cody Gakpo? We believe we know the answer but it's a question that will give Slot headaches for the rest of the season.