Liverpool v Fulham – Preview, Predictions, and Best Bets

Liverpool host Fulham in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at Anfield on Wednesday. The table-topping Reds needed two late goals to win the reverse fixture and are without Mo Salah in this match. The Cottagers have lost their last four away league matches.

Liverpool Form

The Reds are having a very strong season. They’re in three-cup competitions still and sit top of the league table. In-home league matches, it’s eight wins and two draws in ten fixtures. A 0-0 draw at home to Man Utd felt like a defeat considering they had 29 shots and 3.16 Expected Goals.

Klopp’s team bounced back to beat West Ham 5-1 at home in the Carabao Cup before a 1-1 home draw vs Arsenal and a 2-0 win at Burnley. A very strong performance with an incredible 7.11 xG produced. On Sunday, they won 2-0 at Arsenal thanks to two late goals. Up to scoring in the 80th minute, Liverpool had only put up 0.47 xG.

Liverpool Team News

Jurgen Klopp remains without Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas at left back but Virgil Van Dijk should return from injury in the middle. Mohammed Salah and Wataru Endo are away on international duty.

Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic are injured in midfield and Dominik Szoboszlai is also set to miss this match with injury. Harvey Elliott hopes to start again his former club.

Liverpool Motivation

The Reds are expected to start fast, as they did against Newcastle. Nothing less than a win will do in this match.

They will keep attacking Fulham if leading but will have less on the bench to chase the game without Salah.

Fulham Form

Marco Silva’s side are very inconsistent. They followed four losses in six league matches with successive 5-0 wins. They beat Nottingham Forest and West Ham by that margin in two home matches just four days apart. Three league defeats in a row followed those big wins.

They lost 3-0 at Newcastle, 2-0 at home to Burnley, and 3-0 at AFC Bournemouth. To highlight their swings in results, they followed that losing streak with a fine display to beat Arsenal 2-1 at home. On Friday, they beat Rotherham United 1-0 at home.

Fulham Team News

Adama Traore and Tim Ream remain absent and could face two more weeks on the sidelines. Calvin Bassey, Fode Ballo-Toure, and Alex Iwobi are all unavailable due to AFCON commitments.

Issa Diop will start at the centre back whilst Palhinha was rested over the weekend and will return. Willian is expected to be fit enough to start down he left.

Fulham Motivation

The Cottagers play an open game and take on the big sides. They recently beat Arsenal and will play to win at Anfield.

Realistically, Marco Silva could settle for a draw in the second half here.

Key Stats

Liverpool’s last 52 home league matches have seen just 1 loss (39 wins, 12 draws)

Liverpool have scored 26 goals in their last 10 league matches at home

Fulham have lost 5 of their last 6 matches at Anfield

Fulham have lost 3 of their last 4 league matches

Fulham have just 1 win in 10 away EPL matches this season

Verdict

On current form, Liverpool should win this first leg even without Salah. However, Fulham are a threatening team and can surprise the big sides. Both teams should have enough to score.

Best Bet: Liverpool win and both to score at 2.75
Alternate Bet: Liverpool to score Over 2.5 goals as a team at 2.10

James O'Connor

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