
Liverpool and Crystal Palace are set to square off at Anfield on Saturday as the hosts look to maintain their promising start to the season.
Liverpool reminded AC Milan of the famous Istanbul final on Wednesday, recovering from a 2-1 half-time deficit to claim a 3-2 win in their Champions League opener.
Odds-on favourites against an improving Palace, Liverpool will try to keep pace with the Manchester clubs, Chelsea and Everton at the Premier League summit.
Liverpool Preview
After a disjointed 2020/21 campaign, Liverpool have rediscovered their mojo on the back of Virgil van Dijk’s long-awaited return to the field.
Last weekend’s 3-0 thumping of Leeds United at Elland Road extended the Reds’ almost perfect Premier League start to four matches (W3, D1) as they take the field as joint-league leaders.
Bringing the 2020/21 season into the equation, the hosts are unbeaten in their last 14 Premier League games (W11, D1), the longest ongoing such run in the top four tiers of English football.
Barring a 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Anfield on the eve of the international break, Jurgen Klopp’s men have netted 2+ goals in each of their remaining three league fixtures this season.
High-octane tempo, relentless press and quick transition have seen the Merseyside heavyweights become the second Premier League side since 2003/04 to attempt 100 shots in the first four matches of a new top-flight season.
As expected, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane have been of paramount importance to Klopp’s set-up, with the star duo having a hand in seven of Liverpool’s nine league goals this season.
The Senegalese forward could make history on Saturday and become the first player to score in nine consecutive Premier League appearances against a single opposition.
Crystal Palace Preview
Palace defied the odds to upset cross-city high-flyers Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 and throw their under-fire manager Patrick Vieira a lifeline in the capital.
Before coming out on top of their fourth London derby of the season, the Eagles had gone winless in their inaugural three Premier League games this term (D2, L1).
Palace’s upturn in form has seen them go from drawing a blank in their first three competitive matches this season to scoring 2+ goals in the last two in a row.
Odsonne Edouard, who bagged a late brace on his Palace debut against a 10-man Spurs side last time out, could be the danger man at Anfield.
The ex-Celtic striker has played his part in 21 goals across his last 24 league appearances, scoring 17 and assisting four.
However, Vieira will have to shore up his side’s defensive gaps to stand a chance against free-scoring Liverpool, as the Londoners have conceded at least twice in their last four Premier League fixtures away from home.
That said, a return of two clean sheets from their last three Premier League outings suggests the Frenchman has already made some improvements.
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Head-to-Head
Not long before Klopp’s takeover, Palace were considered Liverpool’s bogey team after racking up three consecutive top-flight wins at Anfield between 2014/15 and 2016/17.
However, the German has turned the tie in the Reds’ favour, as they have now won their last four Premier League H2Hs as hosts by an aggregate score of 11-3.
Home and away, the Merseysiders have defeated Palace in their last eight league meetings in a row, scoring an average of 3.00 goals per win.
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Predicted Line-ups
Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson Becker; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson; Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago Alcantara; Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Sadio Mane.
Crystal Palace (4-3-3): Vicente Guaita; Joel Ward, Joachim Andersen, Marc Guehi, Tyrick Mitchell; Conor Gallagher, Luka Milivojevic, Will Hughes; Jordan Ayew, Odsonne Edouard, Wilfried Zaha.
Read: Premier League – September 18, 2021 – Preview & Predictions.
