Jamie Carragher: 'Liverpool face tough start'

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has branded the club's start to the new Premier League season as "difficult".

The Reds host Southampton on the opening weekend, before facing Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur away from home, and the former centre-back thinks that the first three fixtures will prove to be a tough task for Brendan Rodgers's side.

"It's a decent [opening] game for them considering Liverpool have taken all of Southampton's players," Carragher told Sky Sports News.

"That's what it looks like, there may be even more to come, who knows? But the next two are difficult games for them. Manchester City and Spurs away, so that's a difficult start for Liverpool really, the first three games.

"Then you have the international break, so the first three games are vital to get off to a good start."

Carragher retired in 2013 after making 737 appearances for the Reds.