It's here. There's nothing like the opening day of the Premier League season, is there? That feeling of sharp anticipation, wondering quite what will happen over the next nine months.

There is a total of seven matches being played in England's top flight today, and you're in the right place if you want to follow the opening fixture of the campaign as Liverpool host Stoke City at Anfield.

Looks like we've got some team news rolling in...

LIVERPOOL: Mignolet; Johnson, Enrique, Toure, Agger; Lucas, Henderson, Gerrard, Coutinho; Aspas, Sturridge

LIVERPOOL SUBS: Jones, Sterling, Wisdom, Ibe, Allen, Borini, Luis Alberto

There are a few competitive debuts in that Liverpool starting XI following a fruitful summer in the transfer market. Simon Mignolet, Kolo Toure and Iago Aspas all get the nod from manager Brendan Rodgers.

Of course, the big name absent from the Liverpool lineup is that of Luis Suarez. So much has been made over the Uruguayan's future in recent weeks, but he's unavailable for the next six weeks as he completes a ban for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic last season.

There were further developments in the Suarez situation earlier this week as he was quoted as saying that he would be staying at the club "for now". However, the striker later said that he was misquoted and that he still didn't know what was going on. Don't you just love a transfer saga?

STOKE: Begovic; Cameron, Shawcross, Huth, Pieters; Whelan, Nzonzi, Palacios, Walters; Crouch, Etherington

STOKE SUBS: Muniesa, Pennant, Jones, Wilson, Adam, Sorensen, Jerome

There's a competitive debut in the Stoke starting lineup today as Erik Pieters is chosen in defence by Mark Hughes. Elsewhere, former Reds striker Peter Crouch leads the line up front. There are also two other ex-Liverpool players on the Stoke bench in the form of Jermaine Pennant and Charlie Adam.

Liverpool fans will be interested to hear that Luis Suarez went onto the pitch with his daughter earlier and was given a good reception by the Anfield faithful.

So, what of Liverpool's chances for the new season? The Reds were wildly inconsistent during the last campaign, but a good finish saw them secure seventh place. However, the ended behind local rivals Everton which simply will not do. Some decent signings over the summer will give them an opportunity to improve on that, but keeping hold of Suarez will be key. That said, Steven Gerrard will be as important as ever and it's also a big season for Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge.

A rather depressing statistic for Liverpool is that they have failed to win on the opening day of the season for the past five years.

A more uplifting one is that Stoke have failed to score a league goal at Anfield since their return to the top flight in 2008.

Is that likely to change today? Stoke certainly have some handy attacking options in their lineup, and it will be interesting to see how Mark Hughes adapts the style of the team following Tony Pulis's reign.

Stoke enjoyed a somewhat robust approach under Pulis, but something tells me that Hughes will get them playing with a bit more dynamism. Don't be fooled: Hughes' teams have traditionally mixed it up much like Hughes himself did as a player, but the Potters may just be a touch more refined this year.

A win at Anfield for the Potters is an alien concept to the majority of the club's fans. The team last won here back in 1959 - a 4-3 thriller in the second division.

I'm sure Stoke would be happy to come away with a point today, but you feel that Liverpool have to get of to a winning start this season.

Right, with under 15 minutes to go until this one gets underway, how do you see it going?

Both teams are unknown quantities in many respects - Liverpool without Suarez but with new signings, Stoke under Mark Hughes - but you would be a brave soul to bet against the home side today.

Only five minutes to go until the start of the new Premier League season...

UPDATE: There's been a late change to the Stoke lineup as Wilson Palacios is taken ill, so Marc Wilson comes into the side as a replacement.

Here we go then! The new Premier League season officially starts as Liverpool start this match.

As you would expect, it's the home side who are showing plenty of intent at the moment. They've kept the ball well during the opening stages, but have yet to test Begovic in the Stoke goal.

Mark Hughes is already prowling the touchline, occasionally barking instructions at his players. He's still a fearsome bloke.

Something of a half chance for the home side as Johnson bursts clear down the wing, but he takes too long on the ball before seeing his shot blocked. There were a couple of red shirts in the box there waiting for a cross.

OFF THE BAR! Glorious chance for Stoke to take the lead, but Huth's effort crashes back off the woodwork! A simple cross wasn't dealt with by Mignolet, allowing the ball to drop to Huth. He hit the ball first time, only to see it narrowly fail to find the net.

GOAL DISALLOWED! Drama at the other end now as Sturridge heads in from a free kick, but the linesman's flag is up for offside. It's a close call, though probably the right one.

OFF THE BAR! Sturridge comes within inches of giving Liverpool the lead with a header that rattles the bar following a corner. Toure is there to convert the rebound, but the defender blazes his shot way over.

Sturridge has looked very bright indeed during the opening period of the match. His pace and movement are causing the visitors a lot of problems.

It must be said that it's been raining heavily today, so there's plenty of moisture on the pitch.

PENALTY SHOUT! Stoke want a penalty as Crouch gets sandwiched between Johnson and Toure when trying to latch onto a cross, but referee Martin Atkinson is not having any of it. It would have been a soft one.

There's some real tussling for the ball going on in midfield at the moment. Both sides are showing plenty of grit in trying to gain possession. Trouble is they're both giving it away quite a bit.

Rather disappointingly, there hasn't been too many flashes of inspiration from Coutinho so far, but he just showed what he is capable of with a little shimmy past two Stoke players before being brought down.

SAVE! Wonderful stop from Begovic to deny Enrique! The Spaniard was picked out by Coutinho in the area before the Stoke goalkeeper got down low to keep the effort out. The ball eventually found its way to Gerrard, but the Liverpool skipper smashed his volley over the bar. Good, incisive play from the home side.

Stoke continue to pose a minor threat on the break, but it's all Liverpool at the moment. They're really controlling this game now.

SAVE! It's another top stop from Begovic, this time keeping out Aspas. The Spaniard was played in superbly by Coutinho, only to see his low shot blocked by Begovic. The Stoke defence was cut to ribbons there. Ten minutes left to play in this first half.

It's been coming and it's arrived in glorious style from Daniel Sturridge as Liverpool take the lead. The striker finds the net with a powerful, low drive from 20 yards that goes through Huth's legs and into the bottom corner. Anfield erupts.

SAVE! Mignolet keeps Liverpool ahead with a fine stop from Walters. The Stoke winger hits a ferocious, first-time effort from the edge of the box that the Reds goalkeeper parries away acrobatically.

It's Begovic's turn to be worked at the other end now as he deals with a tame shot from Coutinho.

Late drama to this half when a Stoke corner causes all sorts of problems in the Liverpool area, but the hosts manage to get the ball clear.

All in all, that was a good 45 minutes from a Liverpool perspective. Stoke threatened occasionally, but it was the home side who were dictating play throughout. The build-up play wasn't as crisp as I'm sure Brendan Rodgers would want it, though he is likely to be happy with the ideas that his side displayed.

As for Stoke, that was a fairly uninspiring opening half. True, they could have taken the lead through Robert Huth, but after that they looked like a team unsure of itself.

I imagine that Brendan Rodgers will be unwilling to change his side at the break, though there could be early changes for Stoke.

Right, it looks like neither side has made a change at half time as Stoke get the second half underway...

CHANCE! So close for Coutinho! A slick counter-attack saw the Brazilian pick the ball up on the left before running at goal at firing narrowly wide. There were a couple of his teammates in the box, but he went for goal himself.

Liverpool fans will be pleased to know that Kolo Toure has been fairly impressive at the back this afternoon. He hasn't had a lot to deal with, but he's been typically robust when called upon.

Stoke make a rare foray into the Liverpool half before Pieters' cross sails out for a goal kick. Cue sarcastic cheers from the home fans.

Dare I say it, but Stoke have a bit of life about them now. They're committing a few more men forward when they go on the attack.

SAVE! Begovic comes to Stoke's rescue yet again as he parries away Sturridge's fierce effort at the near post. The resulting corner falls to Aspas, who heads wide.

Wilson has a crack at goal from 20 yards for the visitors, but it's a tame effort that's easily held by Mignolet. Stoke totally lacking in ideas now.

Sturridge again comes within inches of scoring a second goal of the afternoon when he flashes a long-range drive narrowly wide of Begovic's far post. That would have torn the net out had it been on target.

YELLOW CARD! Toure goes into the book for a sloppy challenge on Pieters that takes the Stoke full-back down.

SAVE! What a stop from Begovic to keep out Gerrard's free kick! The shotstopper flew through the air as the Liverpool captain struck the ball sweetly from 30 yards. That one was heading for the top corner.

SUBSTITUTION: Peter Crouch gives all four corners of the stadium a hand as he comes off for Kenwyne Jones. It's been a frustrating afternoon for the big man.

Great last-ditch defending from Pieters to halt Henderson from continuing his run into the box. The game is starting to become a bit stretched now as Stoke go in search of an equaliser.

PENALTY FOR STOKE! Incredible late drama at Anfield as Daniel Agger handles the ball in the area following Charlie Adam's free kick.

SAVED! Amazing scenes as Mignolet keeps out Walters penalty.. His teammates are mobbing him as if he's just scored the winning goal in the Champions League final.

There will be three minutes of added time...

WIDE! Coutinho has a pop from the edge of the box, but the ball flies agonisingly wide.

Well, what a finish that was. Liverpool win on the opening day of the season for the first time in five years as they beat Stoke City 1-0 thanks to Daniel Sturridge's first-half strike. The visitors had the chance to earn what would have been an undeserved point in the final stages, but debutant Mignolet saved Jonathan Walters's penalty.

Anyway, that's all from me for now. However, don't forget that we have live text commentaries of all today's Premier League matches right here on Sports Mole, so stick around and enjoy the rest of the action.