Bournemouth, on the other hand, are looking to change their recent history against Liverpool. The Cherries have not won at Anfield since 2013, and Liverpool have won their last six home games against Bournemouth by an aggregate of 23-2. They have also won 11 of the last 12 English top-flight matches against Bournemouth and haven't lost a season opener in 12 years.
Stats show that Bournemouth could be in for a tough game. Liverpool have only lost once on opening day out of the 19 previous occasions, and that was in 1923/24 against West Brom. Bournemouth, on the other hand, are unbeaten in their last seven opening day games, but they last lost against West Brom in 2017/18.
The fixture also offers up another quirk, as Liverpool are starting their league season on a Friday for only the second time in their history. The only previous occasion was in 2019/20 when Norwich were beaten 4-1 at Anfield, and the squad went on to lift their first Premier League title at the end of that campaign.
Reigning Premier League champions rarely lose on opening day, with only three losses in the previous 33 seasons. Mo Salah will be looking to continue his rich form against Bournemouth, with 11 goals scored against them being the most of any Premier League player. He also has nine goals on opening day, which is way ahead of anyone else.
Salah's teammate, Florian Wirtz, will be looking to score his first goal in the Premier League on Friday, which would make him the third German to open his account on the EPL's opening day. He has already shown his skills in the top five European leagues, with 12 assists for Bayer Leverkusen last season.
Bournemouth will be missing five players, including Justin Kluivert, Ryan Christie, Lewis Cook, Luis Sinisterra, and Enes Unal, which makes it a very tall order for them to get any foothold in the game. Their brand of football has been a joy to watch, but it's difficult to see where they can better their opponents anywhere across the pitch.
The pace from wide areas coupled with a creative hub centrally in Wirtz gives Liverpool some serious attacking options, and new Bournemouth centre-back, Bafode Diakite, could have a baptism of fire on debut.
Bournemouth need to take a leaf out of Palace and Forest's book, who have shown that consistent raiding down the channels can be picked apart by balls over the top and into the wider areas. If they approach the game with confidence rather than the whipping boys everyone expects, there's the slightest of chances that they could spring a huge surprise.
With the right application and mindset, Bournemouth can follow the blueprint from Nottingham Forest's win at Anfield in 2024/25 and potentially spring a huge surprise.
