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For the third consecutive match, Liverpool needed a late winner to get a result over the weekend, winning on a stoppage time penalty vs. Burnley. Will the Champions League see their luck run out? Arne Slot has been pushing all the right buttons with three winners after the 83rd minute in their last three matches as the cardiac Reds have stayed perfect on the young season. They've all come from different players too, with 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha scoring on Newcastle United, Dominik Szoboszlai scoring a long range free kick to take down Arsenal, and Mohamed Salah taking care of business from the penalty spot to defeat Burnley. 

One wrong kick and they wouldn't be far off from their Champions League opposition in Atletico Madrid who have only won one game in LaLiga this season. Margins are thin in soccer, and this is where Slot's management to keep Liverpool atop the league while also figuring out how to fit five new faces into his starting XI.

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How to watch Liverpool vs. Atletico Madrid, odds

  • Date: Wednesday, Sep. 17 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
  • Location: Anfield -- Liverpool, England 
  • Live stream: Paramount+
  • Odds: Liverpool -210; Draw +340; Atletico Madrid +550

After being out of the squad while facing Burnley, the newest signing in the side, Alexander Isak, is available to make his debut for the club after joining from Newcastle United for $168 million. Due to the standoff that Isak was in with the Magpies, the Swedish striker was training on his own. Isak didn't even feature much for Sweden during the international break, so it makes sense as to why Slot would want to bring him along slowly. But now, Isak could feature for at least a half if needed, which will help build his fitness.

Involved in first team training, Isak will now give Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone something else to worry about. Struggling to score in league play, Atleti won't want to get in a shootout, but the Liverpool attack can be relentless, especially at home. If Szoboszlai has to line up at right back again, that will give space for Atleti to attack into, but that's only half the battle. The Reds have shown that even when they aren't at their best, if a team isn't locked in for 90 plus minutes of soccer, they'll get a victory. That level of self-confidence is tough to stop, but in the Champions League, clubs need to rise to the occasion. 

Atletico Madrid have slipped from the side that used to challenge for the LaLiga crown, but a way to show that their best version of themselves is in there would be to get points off of a vulnerable Liverpool, and that's exactly what will make Wednesday's chess match at Anfield fascinating. Both clubs need the points and while a draw could be a fair result, it would still feel like an opportunity missed.