2020/21 Premier League fixtures announced

Liverpool begin their defence of the Premier League title with a home game against newly-promoted Leeds United.

The 2020/21 Premier League fixtures have been released which will begin the hype surrounding the new football campaign.

After Leeds comes a tough pair of fixtures against Chelsea (A) and Arsenal (H).

The Merseyside derbies are pencilled in for October 17 at Goodison Park and February 20 at Anfield.

Manchester United come to town on January 16, before the Reds head to Old Trafford on May 1, in their fifth last game.

Many will expect Manchester City to be Liverpool's closest challengers once again and those fixtures take place on November 7 (A) and February 6 (H).

The season will conclude with a home game against Crystal Palace on May 23.

Fixtures are subject to change, due to broadcasting rights and selections.

Key Fixtures

It is a ridiculously packed season due to the late start. There are only four spare midweeks right through to the Champions League final on May 29.

Some see the revealing of fixtures as an over-hyped occasion, but it is good to see when the key games will be played. It is also important to take note of potentially difficult runs of games, or ones that will be remembered as vital at the season's end.

There are six fixtures that fans traditionally look towards at the beginning of each season.

These are the first and last matches, the pair of Merseyside derbies and the two games against Man United.

The Reds' season begins with a bang, as the Premier League champions take on the Championship winners. Liverpool vs Leeds United is a great start to the season as the pair are two of England's biggest clubs.

Jurgen Klopp's men take on United late in the season. The game at Old Trafford on May 1 could be a make-or-break fixture for both sides.

Manchester City are out of the way relatively early. The second fixture against the Citizens takes place in early February.

This may be a bad thing from a neutral standpoint, as it would have been an exciting game to have near the season's conclusion.

Liverpool have a tough start as they play Chelsea, Arsenal and Everton within the first five fixtures.

However, they face an easier run-in on paper. The final four games are against Southampton, West Brom, Burnley and Crystal Palace.

The Boxing Day game comes at home to the newly-promoted Baggies.

Hopefully, the Reds will lift the Premier League trophy at Anfield after the final game of the season. It would be better again if there were fans in attendance but who knows what will happen in the next number of months.

The Liverpool fixture list is available in full on liverpoolfc.com.