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Liverpool Players in the World Cup 2023: Key Matches and Insights

The World Cup is back on Liverpool’s horizon, only this time it stretches from Vancouver to Mexico City and down the spine of the United States. Forty-eight nations, three host countries, and a packed June schedule that will scatter Liverpool’s core across the globe.

Here is where the Reds’ key men fit into football’s biggest show.

(All kick-off times are BST.)

Alisson Becker (Brazil)

A third World Cup for Alisson, and he is poised to be the first Liverpool player to step into this expanded edition.

Brazil arrive with expectation, as they always do. Five titles, a new era, and Carlo Ancelotti at the helm. Alisson remains the anchor in goal, the calm presence behind a squad that blends familiar names with fresh energy. Former Liverpool midfielder Fabinho, now at Al-Ittihad, also makes Ancelotti’s 26-man list, a reminder of the club’s lingering imprint on the Selecao.

Brazil open in Group C against 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, a side that tore up the script in Qatar and will not be overawed by the five-time champions. Then comes Haiti, before a meeting with Andy Robertson’s Scotland to close the group – a fixture that will carry a sharp edge on Merseyside.

Brazil’s fixtures

  • v Morocco – June 13, 11pm
  • v Haiti – June 20, 1.30am
  • v Scotland – June 24, 11pm

Wataru Endo (Japan)

Wataru Endo’s season looked in danger of ending early when he damaged his foot in February. It did not. He worked his way back, and now he leads Japan into another World Cup as captain.

"It wasn't an easy way to recover from the injury but I believed in myself to make this happen and will keep working hard to get fit for the games," he said when the squad was announced. That line sums him up: stubborn, steady, relentless.

Japan’s Group F is laced with Anfield interest. Endo will face four Liverpool teammates across three games, starting with the Netherlands, then Tunisia, then Sweden. The memories of Qatar linger: four appearances, a group stage that saw Japan outplay Spain and Germany, and then the heartbreak of a penalty shootout defeat to Croatia in the last 16.

This time, he arrives as a Premier League midfielder and the heartbeat of his national side.

Japan’s fixtures

  • v Netherlands – June 14, 9pm
  • v Tunisia – June 21, 5am
  • v Sweden – June 26, 12am

Cody Gakpo, Ryan Gravenberch, Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands)

Three Dutchmen, three different World Cup stories.

Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo know this stage. They went deep in Qatar, falling in a dramatic quarter-final shootout to eventual champions Argentina. Gakpo lit up that tournament, scoring in all three group games before his move to Anfield from PSV Eindhoven was sealed.

Ryan Gravenberch is the newcomer. This will be his first taste of World Cup football, a chance to step out from the shadows of his more established teammates and stake his claim in the Oranje midfield.

The Dutch begin against Endo’s Japan, a game that will pit Liverpool’s captain of Japan against its Dutch contingent. Then they face Sweden and Tunisia, a group that offers danger but also opportunity for a side that expects to be in the latter stages.

Netherlands’ fixtures

  • v Japan – June 14, 9pm
  • v Sweden – June 20, 6pm
  • v Tunisia – June 26, 12am

Alexander Isak (Sweden)

For Alexander Isak, this is overdue.

Sweden missed out on Qatar, and a talent of his calibre had to watch the last World Cup from afar. They forced their way into this one through the play-offs, sneaking in on the strength of their UEFA Nations League ranking, then holding their nerve when it mattered.

Graham Potter arrived as head coach on a short-term deal in October, tasked with steadying the ship. He did more than that. His contract now runs to 2030, a sign of trust and a belief that this side can grow around players like Isak.

Sweden’s group is familiar territory for Liverpool watchers: Tunisia first, then the showdown with the Netherlands, then Japan. Isak’s first World Cup minutes will come with real stakes attached.

Sweden’s fixtures

  • v Tunisia – June 15, 3am
  • v Netherlands – June 20, 6pm
  • v Japan – June 26, 12am

Alexis Mac Allister (Argentina)

Alexis Mac Allister knows what it takes to win a World Cup. Now he is chasing history.

Argentina arrive as defending champions, hunting a place in the most exclusive of clubs. Only two nations have ever retained the men’s World Cup: Italy in 1934 and 1938, Brazil in 1958 and 1962. No one has done it since.

Lionel Messi will captain Argentina again, appearing at his sixth World Cup at the age of 38. In 2022, Mac Allister started the tournament on the bench at Brighton & Hove Albion, watching that stunning 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia. From then on, he started every game. His influence grew with each round, his composure and intelligence becoming a key thread in their run to the trophy.

Now, as a Liverpool midfielder, he steps into Group J with a different status: champion, starter, leader in all but armband. Argentina open against Algeria, then face Austria, before closing against Jordan.

Argentina’s fixtures

  • v Algeria – June 17, 2am
  • v Austria – June 22, 6pm
  • v Jordan – June 28, 3am

From Alisson’s Brazil to Mac Allister’s Argentina, from Endo’s resilience to the Dutch core and Isak’s long-awaited debut, Liverpool’s fingerprints will be all over this World Cup. The only question left is which of them will be flying back to Anfield with a medal – and who will return with something to prove.

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