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Liverpool v Brentford – Preview, Predictions, and Best Bets

Liverpool face Brentford in the English Premier League on Sunday.

Liverpool v Brentford

Liverpool face Brentford in the English Premier League on Sunday. Both sides won their opening day fixtures, and the Reds have netted 15 goals in six clashes vs the Bees since their promotion. Liverpool have lost just once in the last 48 league matches at Anfield.

Liverpool Form

Liverpool had a mixed end to last season. A 3-0 home loss to Atalanta and a 1-0 home loss to Crystal Palace ended their hopes in the Europa League and Premier League. A 2-0 loss at struggling Everton followed 10 days later.

The final four league matches yielded two wins and two draws. Jurgen Klopp’s final four fixtures saw 11 goals scored but seven goals leaked. A 2-2 draw at West Ham was followed by a 4-2 win over Tottenham and a 3-3 draw at Aston Villa. They beat Wolves 2-0 on the final day. This season began with a 2-0 win at Ipswich Town after a strong second-half display.

Liverpool Team News

Coach Arne Slot is expected to recall Ibrahima Konate after he replaced Jarell Quansah at halftime of the last match. Darwin Nunez is set to remain on the bench with Diogo Jota up front.

The rest of the XI could remain the same. Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo will have to settle for a place amongst the substitutes.

Liverpool Motivation

The Reds will attack and throw numbers forward at home. They will expect to take three points, and a draw would be a poor outcome.

Liverpool could have 65% possession in this one and will need to be patient to break Brentford down.

Brentford Form

Brentford suffered three months of terrible form last season, losing 12 of 15 league matches from early December to mid-March. After three draws, including having 31 shots vs Man Utd, they beat Sheffield United 2-0 and won 5-1 at Luton Town.

After losing 1-0 at Everton and drawing 0-0 at home to Fulham, they won 2-1 at Bournemouth. The final day brought a 4-2 home loss to Newcastle. This season began with a 2-1 home victory over Crystal Palace. The Bees were outshot 14-9 but produced three ‘big chances’.

Brentford Team News

The Bees are still in a left-back crisis with Rico Henry and Aaron Hickey out injured. Newly signed striker Igor Thiago is out injured for a few months and Ivan Toney is not expected to be involved with an exit looming.

Kristoffer Ajer is set to cover in defence for the fullback injuries. Thomas Frank may drop winger Kevin Schade for an extra defender in Ben Mee. A recent signing from Liverpool, Fabio Carvalho is set to feature from the bench.

Brentford Motivation

For these big games, coach Thomas Frank tends to play a 5-3-2 shape and make life difficult for the top six clubs.

He would take a draw from this match and will focus on counters and set pieces as the main source of goals.

Key Stats

Liverpool’s last 48 home league matches have seen just 1 loss (37 wins, 10 draws)

Liverpool have scored 17 goals in their last 6 league matches at home

LFC have scored 15 goals in their last 6 matches vs the Bees

Brentford have lost their last 3 league matches at Anfield to zero

Brentford have lost 10 of their last 14 away EPL matches

Verdict

The Reds enjoy this fixture and tend to win to zero at home vs Brentford. A similar outcome is likely here. Salah is a good tip to score after looking sharp last weekend.

Best Bet: Liverpool win to zero at 2.45
Alternate Bet: Liverpool win (-1 handicap) at 1.64
Goalscorer Tip: Mo Salah to score 2 or more goals at 4.30

James is a football analyst who writes about the tactics of the PSL and English Premier League. He holds the UEFA A coaching licence and has previously worked for several clubs in analysis roles.Twitter: https://twitter.com/footy_analysis

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