Liverpool host Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon and they will look to pick up their first win of the season.
The Reds were held to a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge last week against Chelsea and they will be confident of grinding out all three points here.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth played out a 1-1 draw against West Ham United in their opening game and it remains to be seen whether they can pull off an upset against Liverpool.
The last time these two sides met back in March, Bournemouth picked up a 1-0 win at home and they will be hoping for a similar result here.
Liverpool will be desperate to do well this season and get back into the Champions League. They should be winning these games in order to stay in touch with their top four rivals and the fans will be expecting a comfortable victory here.
We’re LIVE with Jürgen Klopp ahead of tomorrow’s @PremierLeague return to Anfield. 🗣#LIVBOU https://t.co/LYAW2XW8KJ
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 18, 2023
Team News and Tactics
Liverpool
The home side will be without the services of Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic. Both players have recently recovered from their injuries and they are unlikely to start here.
Liverpool are likely to start in their usual 4-3-3 formation with Alisson Becker in goal.
Trent Alexander Arnold and Andrew Robertson will be deployed as the full-backs and the two players will look to add creativity and defensive cover to the side.
Ibrahima Konate will start alongside Virgil Van Dijk in central defence and the two players will look to keep things tight in the middle.
In the middle of the park, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai will look to add creativity and control. Curtis Jones will add work rate to the side alongside them.
Cody Gakpo is expected to lead the line for the hosts with Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah on either side of him.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Jones, Mac Allister, Szoboszlai; Salah, Gakpo, Diaz
Bournemouth
The visitors have a number of injury problems heading into this game. They will be without Lewis Cook, Marcus Tavernier, Ryan Fredericks, Alex Scott and Dango Ouattara.
The visitors are likely to start in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Neto in goal.
Max Aarons and Milos Kerkez will be deployed as the full-backs. They will be expected to contain the likes of Diaz and Salah while providing cover to the central defenders.
Marcos Senesi and Illia Zabarnyi will start as the central defenders. Phillip Billing will start alongside Joe Rothwell in the midfield pivot and the two players will look to shield the defence and break up the opposition attacks.
David Brooks and Jaidon Anthony will be deployed as the wingers here and the two players will look to hit Liverpool on the counter.
Ryan Christie is likely to be deployed as the attacking midfielder and he will look to link up with the striker and create opportunities from the middle of the park.
Former Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke will be the target man here and he will look to hold up the ball and bring others into the play.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Neto; Aarons, Senesi, Zabarnyi, Kerkez; Billing, Rothwell; Brooks, Christie, Anthony; Solanke
Key Stats
- Liverpool have drawn their last three matches in the Premier League.
- Liverpool have been winning at both half-time and full-time in 6 of their last 7 home matches against Bournemouth in all competitions.
- 23 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two sides.
- Liverpool have won five of their last six matches against Bournemouth.
- Liverpool have kept four clean sheets in their last six matches against Bournemouth.
Key Player
Mohamed Salah
LIVERPOOL | Bajcetic and Thiago are "really close" to a return but GW2 will come too soon.
Klopp also had this to say on Mo Salah after his early substitution in GW1 👇#FPL | #LFC 🔴 pic.twitter.com/LkspB3tiFM
— Fantasy Football Scout (@FFScout) August 18, 2023
The Egyptian international is undoubtedly the best player at the club and he will look to lead the Liverpool attack tomorrow.
Salah will look to create goal-scoring opportunities and get on the scoresheet himself.
Although he did not manage to get on the scoresheet against Chelsea it was his creativity that allowed Liverpool to score at Stamford Bridge.
He will look to take the Bournemouth defence apart with his movement, pace and flair. The Egyptian is our man to watch out for this weekend.
Prediction
Liverpool 2-0 Bournemouth
The Reds have an impressive record against Bournemouth having picked up 5 wins from the last 6 meetings against the Cherries. The last time these two sites met at Anfield, Liverpool picked up a crushing 9-0 win and they will look to pick up another comfortable victory here.
Bournemouth are no pushovers and they showed that when they beat Liverpool earlier this year.
However, Liverpool are a formidable unit at Anfield and the gulf in class between the two sides should see them emerge victorious in the end.