By Rik Sharma
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Join Rik Sharma for live coverage of Liverpool's pre-season friendly against Celtic at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
It's Brendan Rodgers' side's final warm-up game before the real stuff kicks off next weekend.
The game kicks off at 5pm. Page will auto-refresh every 120 seconds.
Follow Rik on Twitter @rbsfeatures or email him rik.sharma@dailymail.co.uk
Liverpool 0 Celtic 1
Liverpool: Mignolet, Johnson, Toure, Wisdom, Enrique, Lucas, Gerrard, Allen (Henderson 58), Downing (Ibe 72), Aspas (Sturridge 46), Coutinho.
Subs: Jones, Alberto, Assaidi, Coates, Borini, Sterling, Kelly, Flanagan.
Celtic: Zaluska (Forster 46); Matthews, Lustig, Mouyokolo, Izaguirre (Findlay 64); McGeouch, Kayal (George 84), Irvine, Stokes; Balde (Atajic 70), Watt (Henderson 84).
Subs: Fisher, Herron.
Goal: Balde 12.
Booked: Stokes.
FULL TIME
90+2m: Coutinho finds Henderson... but his cross is blocked for a corner. Nothing comes of it though.
90m: Ibe makes a mug of his man but his shot from a tight angle on the right is tipped away by Forster. Four minutes of added time.
87m: Another good chance for Sturridge but his strike brushes the roof of the net. His positioning is good, but his finishing needs a little bit of recalibration. With more match fitness, this could be a good season for him.
85m: Sturridge is played in on goal... but lofts the ball over Forster... and wide of the far post.
80m: Brilliant run from Ibe, but Finlay just about managed to keep him at bay.
75m: Liverpool pushing hard for an equaliser but this young Celtic defence is performing well.
72m: Young gun Jordan Ibe comes on for Downing. He's one to watch.
69m: Sturridge flicks it on to Coutinho, who runs towards goal and, after getting as close as 20 yards, fires narrowly wide.
66m: Celtic are having trouble with defending set-pieces. Liverpool have put several average corners into the box and each have caused more trouble than they should have.
Dominic King: Liverpool were laboured in the first half but the introduction of Daniel Sturridge has certainly provided a lift. That is going to be key for Liverpool, if they are going to be successful.
Can Brendan Rodgers get him, Philippe Coutinho and Luis Suarez, fit, firing and focused in the same team? If he can, their chances of progress will improve dramatically.
Sturridge is playing for the first time in pre-season but his sharpness is good. A word, too, about the crowd: if Liverpool have a goal that is allowed to stand, the foundations will be in jeopardy.
62m: Deflected strike from Downing goes for a corner, which Gerrard will whip in. It falls to Wisdom but his shot is blocked and Celtic clear.
58m: Allen comes off for Henderson.
55m: Goal! Or not. Gerrard's whipped free-kick is headed in by Toure but he was fractionally offside.
52m: Downing drags the ball across the box and Coutinho runs onto it but can't make contact and the chance is gone.
48m: Gerrard strokes a pass down the right and Johnson finds Sturridge in the box. The Englishman lashes a shot wide of the left hand post, but he already looks dangerous.
Headache: Balde (left) caused Brendan Rodgers (right) and his team all kinds of havoc during the friendly game
SECOND HALF
Aspas has impressed in pre-season but today hasn't been able to do much damage. Sturridge is warming up on the pitch and he'll be coming on soon. Whether he'll play alongside the Spaniard - or replace him - is another matter.
And the answer arrives almost immediately - he comes on for Aspas. England youngster Fraser Forster replaces Zaluska too.
HALF TIME
44m: Crunch! Celtic skipper Anthony Stokes goes in hard on that man himself, Coutinho, and is shown a yellow card. Probably deserved - it was an over-zealous challenge for a friendly.
Dominic King: No sign of any flags for Luis Suarez and certainly no sign of any songs being sung about him. The reason is this: Liverpool supporters have put his antics to one side and are concentrating on the prowess of Philippe Coutinho instead.
In the roads outside the Aviva Stadium before kick-off, his chant to the tune of "Feeling Hot! Hot! Hot!" was boomed out and it is easy to see why he has been put on a pedestal.
He has a sumptuous range of passing and there would be worse bets than to have a wager on him to win PFA Young Player of the Year. He oozes quality.
Scrap: Iago Aspas and Jackson Irvine battle for the ball
39m: Toure hacks the ball to safety after a goalmouth scramble in Liverpool's box. Balde is causing the Reds all manner of trouble.
36m: Another good save! Zaluska denis Iago Aspas, who has looked dangerous in pre-season. The Spaniard was fractionally offside as it happens, and Celtic are awarded a free kick.
Sportsmail's Dominic King: Wonderful atmosphere at the Aviva Stadium and it feels more like a European final is taking place rather than a pre-season friendly.
Liverpool were sloppy in the first 10 minutes but have enjoyed more and more possession. You can't help but look at them, though, and think they need a sprinkling of extra quality somewhere.
Never mind the absence of Luis Suarez, it just feels like Liverpool are lacking something to lift their game. This, after all, is the team that – injuries not withstanding – could start against Stoke in seven days.
26m: The game's settle down now and Liverpool have more of the ball, but Celtic are defending in numbers.
21m: Downing slips in Johnson but the right-back's strike was dealt with by Zaluska. The Pole is in good form.
50:50: Glen Johnson (left) battles for the ball with Celtic's Tony Watt
16m: Stewart Downing cuts in menacingly from the right and lashes a shot at goal from 15-yards-out, which Zaluska tips away acrobatically.
15m: Great chance for Coutinho but Lukasz Zaluska is out quickly to deny him. Good goalkeeping there. The Brazilian curved his run to meet a low Glen Johnson ball across the box, but the stopper was alert to the danger.
On target: Balde celebrates his strike while Phillipe Coutinho stands dejected
That's the way to do it: Balde's new team-mates celebrate with him after he broke the deadlock
12m: GOAL! Balde - Celtic 1-0 Liverpool
Balde cut inside from the right, took the ball past Kolo Toure and from the edge of the box fired a low shot towards the onrushing Simon Mignolet.
The ball hit the goalkeeper and looped into the air, before coming back down to earth and bouncing into the net.
8m: Fine play by Joe Allen down the left, but his cross from the byline doesn't find a target.
3m: Good early pressure from Celtic and new striker Amido Balde, a big man who could prove hard to handle.
KICK-OFF
Happy days: Liverpool and Celtic fans together and in great spirits too
4.55pm: This is the first time that this stadium has EVER been full for a football match... and this is just a pre-season game.
4.50pm: Some musical treats for fans at the Aviva Stadium. Firstly, a band delivers a rendition of 'The Fields of Athenry', and soon we'll have both sets of supporters singing 'You'll Never Walk Alone'.
4.45pm: Good afternoon and welcome to Sportsmail's live coverage of this pre-season friendly. Liverpool's fans will be pleased to see Daniel Sturridge return to their side's bench after injury.
All together now: Young Liverpool and Celtic fans pose with the European Cup before kick-off
They deserve each other. Not an ounce of class between them off the field.
- Ben Elf , The Little Kingdom, 10/8/2013 17:51
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