Saturday Premier League – Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur Preview

February 11, 2017 17:30pm

Anfield Stadium

Recent Form (League):

Liverpool: LDLDD

Tottenham Hotspur: WDDWW

Having slipped out of the top four, Liverpool will hope to put the brakes on a five-game winless streak by overcoming the challenge of their second-ranked rivals at Anfield on Saturday evening. In stark contrast, their opponents will be looking to extend a nine-game unbeaten run when they make the long journey northwest.

With 13 points now separating the Reds and league leaders Chelsea, their title hopes appear to be disappearing over the horizon. However, Jurgen Klopp’s charges are still right in the hunt for the top four places. A win on Saturday could lift them as high as third if other results go their way.

The Merseyside team have lost just one of their last 19 games at home in the Premier League and have yet to be beaten by any of the top six this season. Despite some recent wobbles, they still lead the Premier League scoring charts with a total of 52 goals. What’s more, they have only failed to score in one of their last 19 home games.

Dejan Lovren (knee) and Ragnar Klavan (illness) will both be missing from the Liverpool defence, which could mean another start in the centre-back role for Lucas Leiva.

Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur can still be considered as genuine title contenders despite trailing the pace-setters by nine points. However, the Lilywhites will not want to fall any further adrift with just 14 games left to play.

The Londoners have not been great on the road, having triumphed in just two of their last nine away games. Their last trip away from White Hart Lane resulted in a 0-0 draw at lowly Sunderland. In the four games that they have played against the top four this season, they have yet to record a win.

The visitors also have defensive issues with Danny Rose (knee) and Jan Vertonghen (ankle ligament) both expected to miss out. Erik Lamela (hip) is the other significant absentee.

Prediction

Liverpool have been strong against their top four rivals this term, and as they proved against Chelsea recently, they still seem capable of turning up for the big games. Unfortunately, the reverse has been true for Spurs, who have yet to prevail against any of the top six.

You can back the home win at 5/4 with Betfair.