Why is Brentford vs Liverpool kicking off at 8pm tonight?

Liverpool travel to Brentford this evening looking to return to winning ways in the Premier League.

The Reds ended a damaging run of four straight defeats across all competitions by thrashing Eintracht Frankfurt 5-1 in the Champions League in midweek.

Hugo Ekitike was amongst the goalscorers against his former club in Germany.

Now, they take on a Brentford side buoyed by their first points on the road this term, after the Bees beat West Ham 2-0.

But there is something slightly different about this weekend’s fixture, which is slated for an 8pm BST kick-off at the Gtech Community Stadium.

This game was initially scheduled for the early Saturday kick-off, which is often broadcast live on TV in the UK on TNT Sports.

The reason why the game has been moved is because Liverpool played away in Europe on Wednesday.

Premier League rules stipulate that teams cannot play in the early slot on a Saturday if they have played Champions League football on the continent just three days previously.

Furthermore, teams will never be asked to play twice within 60 hours.

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp hugely opposed the lunchtime kick-off, calling it a “crime” for his side to play on a Thursday, Sunday and Wednesday ahead of a Saturday early kick-off.

"I was actually waiting for Amnesty International to go to them,” Klopp said back in 2024.

“I would like to be part of that meeting when someone says ‘Liverpool 12.30’ and the whole room is bursting into laughter."

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