Liverpool v Atalanta: Europa League quarter-final, first leg – live

This is the first proper European test for Liverpool. A much changed and weakened side fell to a sloppy defeat away at Toulouse in the Europa League group stage, but the Reds still qualified as group winners. You may have noticed this is Jürgen Klopp’s final season in charge of Liverpool, and everyone connected with the club is desperate to see him go out on a high. The Premier League, League Cup and Europa League treble would not match that of Manchester City last year, but … it’s not bad, is it?

In Liverpool’s way are Atalanta, who are a formidable opponent by anyone’s reckoning. The Champions League regulars have also fallen into the second European tier this season but were unbeaten winners of their own group – ahead of much-heralded Sporting Lisbon – and lie sixth in Serie A, still very much in the hunt for the top four and ahead of last year’s winners, Napoli.

They are not a team full of superstars , perhaps even lacking a talisman. Instead, players who have been cast aside by other clubs have been polished and coached into something collectively dangerous. Gianluca Scamacca, Ademola Lookman, Charles De Ketelaere have all previously failed to impress after big moves, but are finding their feet here in the blue and black. Marten de Roon, Mario Pasalic, Davide Zappacosta are all quietly impressive, proven internationals, while Teun Koopmeiners is having a brilliant season, with 10 goals since the turn of the year, and has been linked with Manchester United, Juventus and … Liverpool. Some are suggesting that he is currently the best midfielder in Italy.

So, this should be a good’un. The first of two legs, with a European semi-final at stake.

Kick-off: 8pm BST, 8pm in Bergamo.