Opposition Focus: Liverpool

Form

06/11/18 – Crvena Zvezda 2-0 Liverpool
03/11/18 – Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool
27/10/18 – Liverpool 4-1 Cardiff
24/10/18 – Liverpool 4-0 Crvena Zvezda
20/10/18 – Huddersfield 0-1 Liverpool

Tactics

Much as with the rest of the big six in the Premier League, Liverpool have a very clear way of playing that that took them to the verge of Champions League glory in the 17/18 season. Playing a 4-3-3 system with aggressive fullbacks providing the overlapping runs – allows Salah and Mane plenty of opportunities to cut inside to create and take chances. The incredible positional awareness of Firmino has enabled the Reds to become a totally different team to that of their previous manager Brendan Rodgers. The January purchase of Virgil Van Dijk, the emergence of Joe Gomez and the arrival of Alisson in the summer have improved the weakest area of the Liverpool team and allowed them to a far more complete side than their previous iterations.

Battle to Watch

Alexander-Arnold vs SessegnonTwo of the brightest English talents will likely face off on Sunday at Anfield – regardless of where Sess plays on the left-hand side – in a battle which should prove pivotal to the outcome of the game. Alexander-Arnold has been impressive this season, although there have been the expected lapses in his performances that go along with being a young player at such a high level. With a great delivery into the box and effective link-up with Salah, Sess will have a job on to stop our left-hand side being a real issue. Hopefully, there is enough energy left in the tank for our own boy wonder to cause some problems going the other way.

Danger Man

Brought to the club with a great deal of intrigue in the few months before the departure of Rodgers, Roberto Firmino has gone on to become one of the most highly rated forwards in world football. Part of that devastating front 3, he is perhaps the most crucial of all due to his intelligence, work rate and reliable finishing. Having been rested in mid-week for the shock defeat in Belgrade we can fully expect to be seeing the Brazilian attempting to torment our defence on Sunday.

Last 5 Meetings

12/02/14 – Fulham 2-3 Liverpool
09/11/13 – Liverpool 4-0 Fulham
12/05/13 – Fulham 1-3 Liverpool
22/12/12 – Liverpool 4-0 Fulham
01/05/12 – Liverpool 0-1 Fulham

Head-to-Head

Fulham wins – 12
Draws – 16
Liverpool wins – 39

Stats & Facts

  • The clubs have met on 67 occasions in all competitions – Fulham have won 12, Liverpool have won 39 and there have been 16 draws.
  • Liverpool have won the last 4 meetings between the clubs, scoring 14 goals in the process and conceding 3.
  • Fulham have only won 1 of their 33 away matches at Liverpool in all competitions – a 1-0 Premier League victory in May 2012 courtesy of Martin Skrtel’s 5th-minute own-goal. The result also meant the Cottagers completed a 1st ever league double over the Reds having claimed another 1-0 success in London earlier that season.
  • Fulham have conceded 87 goals during those 33 trips to Anfield – an average of 2.64 per game. However, the Whites have kept clean sheets in 3 of the past 6 visits.
  • Fulham have lost the last 5 Premier League games, their worst run of form since losing 6 Premier League games in a row between October and December during the 2013/14 relegation season; that run included a 4-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield.

Players in Common

Peter Beardsley, Stan Collymore, Lauri Dalla Valle, Steve Finnan, Danny Guthrie, Ray Houghton, Alexander Kacaniklic, Paul Konchesky, Richard Money, Danny Murphy, Sheyi Ojo, Karl Heinz Riedle, John Arne Riise, Tony Warner.

Magic Moment

We might’ve won at Anfield in 2011 – but that isn’t the choice this time as we cast our minds back to October 1998 and a League Cup tie against the Reds while Fulham were still in Division Two (League One). Finishing that season with 101 points was amazing enough but Paul Peschisolido’s goal on the hour mark was genuinely incredible.

Cancelling out Simon Morgan’s second-half own goal, Peschisolido picked up the ball on the right-hand side of the penalty area and curled a stunner into the far top corner of the net. Our expectations aren’t high for Sunday and to see someone replicate that would be something at least for us fans to hold on to.

Opposition View (@samboevans)

How many fronts can this side compete on? Is there a certain competition that you should prioritise?

Despite some excellent player acquisitions over the last 2 transfer windows, I feel this Liverpool side still haven’t quite got the squad depth necessary to realistically challenge in all competitions. Manchester City are still streets ahead in terms of squad depth so Liverpool need to be a bit more creative with their squad rotation. This has already resulted in an early exit from the Carabao Cup and could leave us in danger of an early exit in the FA Cup too. There’s no doubt about it, Liverpool need to prioritise the league this season. Despite Manchester City threatening to comfortably accumulate another points total of in excess of 90 points again this season, Liverpool need to at least try to stay within touching distance for as long as possible in the hope City will start to falter when under pressure at the tail end of the season. The league should be the sole focus for this Liverpool side over the next 3 seasons. We have waited long enough.

Are Salah, Firmino & Manè the best forward line Liverpool have had in the Premier League era?

Last season Salah, Firmino and Manè were a formidable trio. They were feared throughout Europe and would cause problems for the most organised defences. But that was only one season. The second season together as a triumvirate has proven far more difficult so far. The really need to find a way to get back to their irresistible best if they are going to have any chance to be considered the best front 3 in the premier league era. But despite a difficult start, I am confident they will figure it out and find a way to bring back the free-flowing attacking football very soon. (Maybe starting against Fulham!)

Does Klopp need to win something this year to be considered a success?

This is now Klopp’s third full season at Liverpool and he is yet to win a trophy, but that doesn’t mean his tenure as Liverpool boss hasn’t been a success. Klopp inherited a floundering team back in October 2015 and the improvement in the team since then is nothing short of astounding. Despite not actually winning a trophy at Liverpool, Klopp has guided us to TWO European Cup finals (Europa League and Champions League) and the League Cup final. He was 45 minutes away from winning the Europe League, a disastrous goalkeeping performance cost him the Champions League title and they lost on penalties to Man City in the League Cup final. Very fine margins have been the difference between his tenure being seen as being very good to being exceptional. A trophy would be nice but the goalposts have changed since Man City received their dubious cash injection. So much more is needed to win the league now. So if Liverpool do fall short of a trophy again, they need to at least still be challenging come April.

How do you think the game will pan out on Sunday?

Following on from the dismal display in midweek against Red Star Belgrade, I fully expect a reaction from this Liverpool side. Jurgen Klopp will have no doubt given his side a firm kick up the backside after that performance, so I expect a much-improved showing from the reds against Fulham. Expect goals and huge amounts of possession for the home side.

Predicted line-up: Alisson, Robertson, Van Dijk, Gomez, Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Manè, Firmino, Shaqiri, Salah.

Score Prediction: 4-0 to Liverpool

Thanks to Sam Evans from Anfield Index (@AnfieldIndex)

Match Prediction

I’d love to be going into this game with a load of optimism but after being at our last away outing at Huddersfield on Monday night there really isn’t anything else to say apart from a comfortable Liverpool win. There are vulnerabilities to this Liverpool team and they look to be running out of energy already but after a shock defeat on Tuesday night, they will be desperate to put things right.

Predicted Line-up