Liverpool handed a reality check after their dizzying summer of transfers and tragedy

Wembley was supposed to be a case of the men who weren't there. It ended up posing questions of the team asked to defend the Premier League title.

- John Brewin

Alexander Isak may become a Liverpool player. That will be decided soon enough by the transfer market; a game of charades is being played before money eventually dictates its conclusion.

Modern football's eternal melodramas fade into insignificance when considering the player Isak could replace as a Liverpool centre-forward. The club plays under the shadow of the loss of Diogo Jota, his death alongside his brother André Silva on a Spanish highway - its shattering of family and friends - a reminder that football is played by real people with real lives.

Liverpool's pre-match lineup did not feature a No 20, Jota's number retired.

The season ahead will be played in memory of a popular, skilled yet understated professional - 12 months ago at Ipswich he was the scorer of the first Premier League goal of Arne Slot's reign. Jota died a champion, a beloved teammate.

Before kick-off, Wembley was supposed to observe a minute's silence, only for an idiot fringe of Crystal Palace's fans to shame themselves by chanting - a tiny number, though enough for a booed response from Liverpool fans with the referee, Chris Kavanagh, blowing his whistle quickly. What should have been a moment of perspective was sullied.

Football's ability to crack on blithely in the face of tragedy is one of its worst qualities.

The Palace contingent, 99% of whom had been observant, wanted to get their own message across. "Uefa mafia" declared a banner, highlighted by burning pyro.