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# Low-key Reds on the move as new forward option makes case to Andoni Iraola

- **Source:** 
- **Published:** 24 Jul
- **Club:** Liverpool
- **Original URL:** https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/liverpool-tour-diary-low-key-34348297

Liverpool will fly into Nashville on Friday after a training session at Chicago’s Endeavour Performance Centre.

The Reds will remain based in Chicago for the duration of their pre-season tour of the United States but will make the near 500-mile journey for their clash with Sunderland at GEODIS Park on Saturday before returning to the Windy City, where it's generally been a subdued affair for the players so far.

Double sessions have been the order of the day at the base of Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire but the players have been able to walk around the city streets relatively free of fanfare, which has come as something of a novelty for a squad used to being mobbed at almost every turn.

The players were granted an afternoon off on Thursday which enabled Curtis Jones, Joe Gomez and Freddie Woodman, fresh from his new contract, the chance to peruse some of the high-end boutiques of Chicago's Magnificent Mile.

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It's as simple as 1-2-3.

It's unclear if the trio eventually acted on the recommendation of sandwich shop Potbelly, however. The establishment, as the name suggests, might not be ideal for elite athletes on a pre-season training camp but it's been a regular haunt of many over to cover this tour in recent days.

Hugo Ekitike was greeted by a Liverpool-supporting father and his young son, who was sporting the striker's name and squad number on the back of his shirt on Thursday when the players returned to the hotel.

The No.22 was more than happy to pose for pictures with the young fan, who was clearly delighted to meet his hero, but those sort of interactions have been noticeably less frequent than previous years.

That might change when they fly south on Friday with the activities from the wider club set to be ramped up. Ian Rush, Natasha Dowie and Robbie Fowler are all part of that contingent alongside Phil Thompson and the club will launch their brand new away kit at an event in Brooklyn, New York next week.

Rush spoke to a handful of media on Friday morning at a Nashville hotel with plenty more sessions planned over the next week or so. The ECHO will also have an opportunity to catch up with the greatest goalscorer in club history on the trip.

One player who may get an opportunity to shine in the absence of some big-name forwards is Lewis Koumas, who returns to Liverpool after a positive loan stint with Hull City last season.

“They’re really good sessions, positive sessions,” Koumas told Liverpoolfc.com. “We’re all just trying to adapt to the new gaffer and how he wants to play. We’re all looking forward to getting to know him more.

“I took a lot [from the loan]. It was a really tough experience to start with but it ended up turning into a really good one. I learned a lot from Hull and obviously we got promoted, which is a massive achievement. So, yeah, it was a great season in the end.

“I think I’m a player that the gaffer could sort of like, with the way I press and the energy I can give to the team. I’m always looking to impress so I’ll just see where it takes me.”

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