Liverpool make their long-awaited return to the Champions League with a relatively easy -- at least on paper -- match against Ludogorets Razgrad at Anfield on Tuesday night.
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The Champions League Group B match is scheduled for an 7.45 pm BST (12.15 am IST, 2.45 pm ET) start with live coverage on Ten HD in India, ITV in the UK and Fox Sports in US.
Liverpool's first UCL match in five years can be watched via live streaming online in India HERE. Viewers in the UK can live stream all the action HERE. US viewers can watch the game live online HERE, while Germany viewers can live stream the match HERE, with audience in Canada able to live stream the action HERE. Catch the game in the Middle East and North Africa HERE, while South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa viewers can go HERE. Audience in Australia can watch the match via live streaming HERE.
Five years Liverpool were away from the Champions League, watching their English Premier League rivals go head-to-head with the best, and Brendan Rodgers' side will want to make their return to Europe's elite competition count beginning with the opening Group B match against Ludogorets.
"We're very excited as five years is a long time -- December 2009 being the last game here at Anfield in the Champions League," said Liverpool manager Rodgers. "In the last couple of years we've been working very hard and in particular last season we had a great season which earned us the right to be in it.
The Reds have been given a difficult but makeable group which also includes defending champions Real Madrid and Swiss side FC Basel, who shocked Chelsea last season.
The first match of the group does look like being the easiest one for Liverpool, though, with Ludogorets making their Champions League debut. The Bulgarian side got to the group stages in dramatic fashion, with their defender Cosmin Moti, forced to don the gloves after their goalkeeper was sent off and all three substitutions had been made, making a few outstanding saves to deny Steaua Bucharest in the playoffs.
Ludogorets will go into the match at Anfield with the same "we have nothing to lose" feeling, and Liverpool, if they are not careful, could be in for a surprise or two.
"Anfield is a stadium with a lot of history and Liverpool have won this competition five times. It's an honour to play here at Anfield against Liverpool," Ludogorets manager Georgi Dermendzhiev said.
"There is a saying in football that a team plays as much as the opposition allows them but, of course, if we need to play defensively we will, but we will also use every chance to attack. We have our own attacking style and we plan to use it whenever we can."
Liverpool are coming off a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa at home in the English Premier League, with Rodgers' team looking a little toothless in attack without Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling, who started the game on the bench.
Sterling, no doubt, will return to the starting lineup; but even without their diminutive playmaker, Liverpool should have plenty in the tank to see off Ludogorets and make a winning start in the Champions League.
"Obviously, we are at home for our first game and we aim to perform well and get three points, but I think our overriding objective initially is to come out of the group and qualify," Rodgers added. "Like all games at this level, it will be tough for us.
"They are the top team in Bulgaria. We've obviously had them watched and did a lot of research and analysis once we knew they were in our group. They play an open, attacking style. They are a team that want to attack and want to work well. We will respect them like we would if we were playing Real Madrid.
"But at Anfield it is very much about ourselves really. We need to start being really aggressive with our pressing and have a bit more tempo to our passing -- that will ignite the crowd here."
Team news: Liverpool: Sturridge is still a few weeks away from a return, so Rodgers is set to pin his goalscoring hopes on Mario Balotelli, who despite a couple of encouraging performances, is yet to score for Liverpool. Former Benfica man Lazar Markovic is suspended along with Emre Can, while Glen Johnson and Jon Flanagan also remain on the sidelines. Defender Martin Skrtel and midfielder Joe Allen are doubtful.
Ludogorets: Goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov is suspended while Ivan Cvorovic is out with a shoulder problem.
Expected lineups: Liverpool: Mignolet; Manquillo, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno; Gerrard, Henderson; Lallana, Sterling, Coutinho; Balotelli.
Ludogorets: Borjan; Caicara, A Aleksandrov, Moti, Minev; M Dyakov, Espinho; M Aleksandrov, Marcelinho, Misidjan; Bezjak.
Prediction: 3-0 to Liverpool
