Liverpool and Arsenal Secure Wins, Chelsea and Palace Play to Draw

Liverpool's new manager Arne Slot marked his debut at Anfield with a convincing 4-1 victory over Sevilla. Slot took over the Reds following Jurgen Klopp's departure and entered the match after a successful pre-season tour in the United States, where Liverpool defeated Real Betis, Arsenal, and Manchester United.

Diogo Jota opened the scoring for Liverpool with a first-time left-foot volley from Trent Alexander-Arnold's pass. Several key players made their first pre-season appearances, including Alexander-Arnold, Alisson Becker, Luis Diaz, Virgil van Dijk, and Alexis Mac Allister.

Luis Diaz scored two additional goals for Liverpool before halftime, with assists from Jota and Dominik Szoboszlai. Sevilla managed to pull one back through Peque Fernandez in the second half, but Liverpool responded with a fourth goal from 17-year-old substitute Trey Nyoni, who finished smartly.

Later, Liverpool played Las Palmas in a behind-closed-doors friendly, with Darwin Nunez making his first pre-season appearance after returning from Copa America duty with Uruguay. Andy Robertson, who also started against Las Palmas after recovering from injury, came closest to scoring, hitting the post in a goalless draw.

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca also oversaw his first match, with the Blues earning a 1-1 draw against Italian champions Inter Milan. Maresca took over from Mauricio Pochettino and had Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella available after their returns from Euro 2024.

Marcus Thuram opened the scoring for Inter before Chelsea equalized in the final moments through Lesley Ugochukwu. Chelsea introduced new signing Pedro Neto to their fans at halftime; the Portuguese forward joined for an initial £51.3 million, with a potential further £2.6 million in add-ons.

Arsenal concluded their pre-season campaign with a 2-0 victory over Lyon. Both goals came from defenders William Saliba and Gabriel, who scored with headers from Declan Rice corners in the first half. Riccardo Calafiori, a summer signing from Bologna, made his first appearance for Arsenal when he replaced Oleksandr Zinchenko in the second half.

Crystal Palace faced Nantes and drew 1-1. Defender Marc Guehi has been linked with a move to Newcastle United, while fellow centre-back Joachim Andersen has attracted a £20 million bid from Fulham. Despite the transfer speculation, both players started for the Eagles, with Jean-Charles Castelletto putting Nantes ahead before Daichi Kamada equalized.