Former Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored as Premier League champions Liverpool were defeated 4-2 by AC Milan on Saturday in a pre-season friendly in Hong Kong. Liverpool, featuring record signing Florian Wirtz in his first start, dominated much of the game under the closed roof at Kai Tak Stadium, but their shaky defence was exposed on the break, leading to all four Milan goals. Rafael Leao put the Italian side ahead in the 10th minute, and Dominik Szoboszlai’s superb strike equalised 16 minutes later, making it 1-1 at half-time. However, goals from Loftus-Cheek and substitute Noah Okafor, along with Cody Gakpo’s late header, secured victory for AC Milan. Liverpool manager Arne Slot acknowledged there were positives to take from the match but admitted his team needs improvement before their first competitive match, the Community Shield against Crystal Palace on August 10. “I saw a few good things,” he told reporters, referring to the first half when a predominantly first-choice Liverpool created numerous chances but only converted one. Slot made nine changes at the break, resulting in a makeshift defence that was repeatedly caught out. “We wanted to give 20 players some playing time, so too many players didn’t play in their own position. We were a bit too open. We must improve in certain areas because we were counter-attacked too much today.” Loftus-Cheek, who has also played for Crystal Palace and Fulham, said it was special to score against Liverpool. “It’s nice to play against a Premier League team again,” said Loftus-Cheek, whose team had lost 1-0 to Arsenal in a friendly on Wednesday. “Liverpool are one of the best teams in the world. It was a good test for us tonight. It’s just about feeling better physically, gelling as a team, and there’s a lot for us to improve. So we’ll take that and move on.” Liverpool’s Hong Kong fans vastly outnumbered those supporting AC Milan in the sellout crowd of 49,704. They paid a heartfelt tribute to Diogo Jota, who passed away this month in a car crash. Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish laid flowers in front of fans, who held up a mosaic spelling out “DJ20” in honour of Jota’s number 20 shirt, which has been retired by the club. Leao also remembered his fellow Portuguese player Jota, offering a silent prayer and forming the number 20 with his fingers after scoring the opener. Wirtz played 45 minutes and looked comfortable directing operations, showing hints of why Bayer Leverkusen were paid a reported British transfer record of $150 million for the German playmaker. Other new Liverpool signings, defenders Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong, both came on as substitutes at half-time. Another defender, Joe Gomez, has flown home for treatment of a minor Achilles problem. Striker Hugo Ekitike, signed from Eintracht Frankfurt for a reported $92 million, was not ready to take part, having only flown in to join his new teammates two days earlier. Liverpool started without a recognised central striker as Darwin Nunez, who was injured, and Luis Diaz, linked with a move away from Anfield, were left out. Liverpool will now fly to Japan to face Yokohama F-Marinos on Wednesday. With AFP Inputs