Tottenham Hotspurs FC v Liverpool FC – Match Preview
Jürgen Klopp and his Liverpool team travel down to Wembley this Saturday to take on Tottenham Hotspurs. Many will consider being their toughest test yet in this current campaign. Will The Reds be able to maintain their 100% record?
Overview
Jurgen Klopp will want to see an improved performance following the relatively under-par performance against Leicester last time out. Notwithstanding the fact that they came away from the King Power Stadium with three points.
Many thought Naby Keïta should have started, given his impact on the game when he came on as a 71st-minute substitute. It will be interesting to see if the manager will deploy the Guinean. Especially as this game will not be as “rough” – the reason Klopp gave for not starting his new signing.
Tottenham, on the other hand, will be looking to bounce back following their “shock” loss away to Watford in the last Gameweek. Despite taking an early second-half lead against the Hornets at Vicarage Road, Mauricio Pochettino’s men fell to two goals within a ten-minute spell.
The Argentinian boss will be looking to benefit from the fact that Liverpool have not won away at Spurs for over four years now. The omens look increasingly dim when one considers the Reds have not won at Wembley since beating Everton in an FA Cup semi-final in 2012.
Line-Ups
Liverpool will be without Adam Lallana, Oxlade Chamberlain, Rhian Brewster and Dejan Lovren through injury. Simon Mignolet should be available after a finger injury. Apart from this, Klopp has a fully fit squad from which to choose going into this fixture.
Nathaniel Clyne, Alberto Moreno and Joel Matip are the most notable waiting to see some first-team action this weekend. However, it’s likely they’ll be spared for the forthcoming Champions League game against PSG on Tuesday. Personally, I’d like to see Keïta return to the starting line-up in place of Jordan Henderson. Or even Xherdan Shaqiri starting ahead of either Roberto Firmino, again with an eye on Tuesday’s game.
Tottenham, on the other hand, have a number of injuries including ‘keeper Hugo Loris. Stand-in Michel Vorm is able enough, but I consider this to be a major blow for Pochettino. Against arguably the most clinical striking trio in the league, you need your best “last line of defence”. Without Loris, Spurs don’t have that. And as if that wasn’t enough.
The north Londoners will also be without Vincent Jansen, Kazaiah Sterling, Moussa Sissoko and another of his shining lights – Dele Alli, who suffered a hamstring injury on England duty.
Prediction
Despite the negative omens, this is a good time for Liverpool to break their duck and get a positive away result against this Tottenham side. The Reds are in a rich vein of form. Despite the lacklustre performance in their last game, the squad has sufficient quality to shake things up and bring a different approach. I can see this being a draw 2-2.
Follow us on Twitter: @TheLFCFile
