Entering the fourth match week of the season, Liverpool sit top of the table. It is far too early to look at that as a sign of where they will end up, but it is positive that they have kept three clean sheets and looked strong front to back as a side. The Reds travel for the second time this season to Leicester City and manager Claude Puel's Foxes. Puel has caused Klopp's men some trouble when at Southampton, not allowing Liverpool to score in four matches a couple of seasons ago, but they will hope for a better result against his new side on Saturday.
Team News:
It's a good moment in terms of fitness for this Liverpool side as, yet again, everyone but Dejan Lovren will be available. Lovren continues to deal with his pelvic injury and the hope is that he will be available for the match immediately following the international break against Tottenham, but in the meantime Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk will most likely be holding down the fort in defense. In other news regarding the team, four men, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Joe Gomez, and Trent Alexander-Arnold, were all named to the English international squad for their set of matches this upcoming break, including a showdown with Spain. Liverpool's four men has them tied for second with Manchester City for most English representatives in their side, with Tottenham having five men called up. All four are hoping to stake a claim back in the England squad, especially Gomez, whose injury likely meant a lack of a World Cup trip. The hope is that they will play well and remain healthy for the Reds.
While all are healthy, questions still loom over what sort of rotation we may see. The Reds have fielded an unchanged side for each of their first three matches, something Klopp has never done in his time at the helm of Liverpool. There continues to be speculation over who may start, and who may make the squad. I think two positions that could see rotation are right back and holding midfield. At right back, Alexander-Arnold has been very good still, but his attack going forward has been lacking lately. With Nathaniel Clyne available on the bench, I would not mind seeing him get the start. At holding mid, Gini Wijnaldum has been almost perfect, but Jordan Henderson's presence on the pitch is almost immediately felt whenever he subs on. Perhaps we could see a double pivot with Wijnaldum and Henderson, starting in place of Milner. You never want to shake things up when they're going well, though. And Klopp does have some tough choices to make with his club. That said, for a key reason I'll address later, I think Wijnaldum will continue to get the nod in midfield and, spoilers, I rate Liverpool to be unchanged yet again.
Leicester only have one injury miss in Matty James as he continues recovery from an Achilles injury suffered last season, but they have a much more notable player suspended. Jamie Vardy saw straight red against Wolves and will miss this clash with Liverpool as a result of a three-match suspension, this is match number three that the now-retired English international will be missing and Liverpool fans will be breathing a sigh of relief. Vardy torments top six clubs, but Liverpool have been a favorite target of his with seven goals in his last five matches against the Reds. It's a crucial miss for the Foxes, his pace would surely give the Liverpool back line something to worry about as usual.
Projected Liverpool Line-Up: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Milner, Keita; Salah, Firmino, Mane
Projected Leicester Line-Up: Schmeichel; Amartey, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell; Mendy, Ndidi; Pereira, Maddison, Gray; Iheanacho
Previewing the Match:
Leicester mark the third straight side Liverpool will be squaring off with that have the potential to be dangerous and make some noise in the table this season, while not being a more 'traditional' power club. Despite the Vardy red, Leicester won the match he was sent off in, 2-0. Against Southampton last weekend, up a man with the game level, Harry Maguire came through in a big way with a long-range strike to give them all three points. Their season has been far more dramatic than Liverpool's as of now, with a late goal to give them a shout against Manchester United in their opening match, but Liverpool's defense, they hope, will stay strong and they can be the first side to keep Leicester out of the net.
Under Puel, the Foxes run a 4-2-3-1 with two holding midfielders in the 'Kante' role. It's almost insulting to continually refer to players that Leicester signs for their midfield as answers to replacing Kante, but both Wilfred Ndidi and Nampalys Mendy possess his sort of energy in the midfield. Now, his season with Leicester as title-winners may never be replicated, but both Ndidi and Mendy are nightmares in the center of the park who combine for five tackles and three-and-a-half interceptions per game over this young season. Ndidi, in particular, won eleven tackles in a match against Liverpool in 2017. They're supplemented in front by a front four that are dangerous too with James Maddison one of the best already at slipping through defenders and drawing fouls. To his left is Demarai Gray, the young Englishman still bursting with potential, and his right is Ricardo Pereira, who may drop deeper at right back, but regardless gets forward regularly and leads the team in tackles per game with 4.3 currently. At striker is Kelechi Iheanacho, the former Manchester City starlet who is just 21, but yet to hit his best form. These are all rather young players too, and it seems that Leicester could be building something to last, something far more sustainable than the spending spree they went on after winning the league.
Leicester are a different challenge for Liverpool as they offer more getting forward than Brighton, and perhaps even more than Palace. Palace has their main man in Wilfred Zaha, but Leicester will be missing theirs. Still, as they showed against Southampton, they can be dangerous regardless of Vardy's presence on the pitch. When it comes to restricting their attack, I think a lot has to do with keeping the links between the front four cut off, especially the supply line for Iheanacho from Maddison. That part will be up to the midfield and perhaps this match does suit Wijnaldum better than Henderson. Wijnaldum is a bit quicker and can hold pace with Maddison, but also does well with holding pace but not fouling as well. I think the match-up between the Liverpool holding-midfielder and Maddison will be key in seeing if Leicester can get anything started in attack. Iheanacho can drop deeper and receive the ball, but I feel he's at his best, I feel, is making runs between center backs and finding holes in the defense. He can hit one when running forward, without question, but I think the delivery he can get from the three attacking players right behind him is more dangerous than him making those runs himself. If Liverpool can try and identify that and shut it down, I think that would be huge in frustrating him in the attack.
With Liverpool, I wonder where exactly they will look to attack this Leicester side. Going through the middle means you run into their two-headed midfield monster, but I also fancy their chances against the center backs. We saw last season Mo Salah absolutely destroy Harry Maguire on two goals and I think you could see that again because the skill set of this Liverpool team in the attack matches well with what Leicester do not generally do brilliantly in defense. At full back, though, I highly rate both Ben Chilwell on the left and Daniel Amartey on the right. I think they do well defensively and Chilwell, a former Liverpool target, can really get forward too. Looking at the wingers, I'm looking for them to be the key men this match dropping into spaces behind the midfield but in front of the defense, and within channels. On the right, it'll be Salah working to find space between Chilwell and Maguire while on the left it's Mane against Wes Morgon and Amartey. It will likely be a more physical battle than they may be used to (although now many teams are really trying to rough up the star men) but both players are quite strong on the ball and I don't think they'll be too concerned.
Final Thoughts:
This is probably Liverpool's toughest challenge yet of the season. This is a Leicester team who have looked very good all throughout the season so far and have different players with different points of attack. You have two very good midfields and I'm looking that as a key battle in terms of this match. King Power Stadium will be the venue of what will surely be an exciting early-morning/lunchtime in England clash between two well-balanced sides.
Score Prediction: Leicester 1: Liverpool 1:
I'm going to go a bit pessimistic and say this match will be a draw. Winning away is always tough, and Leicester will beat plenty of good teams throughout the season. In terms of both teams together, I did say that the Leicester defense falls into the hands of Liverpool's attack, I think it's getting to that defense that will be tough. As a bonus, it's not like the defense is full of slouches as well. Maguire and Chilwell are both two of the best young English defenders at the moment, along with Gomez. Morgan is a great leader and remains captain and a mainstay for a reason. I think both teams will snag a goal and will share the points in the match.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for more LFC coverage, including live Tweets during the matches, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Michigan basketball coverage!
Team News:
It's a good moment in terms of fitness for this Liverpool side as, yet again, everyone but Dejan Lovren will be available. Lovren continues to deal with his pelvic injury and the hope is that he will be available for the match immediately following the international break against Tottenham, but in the meantime Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk will most likely be holding down the fort in defense. In other news regarding the team, four men, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Joe Gomez, and Trent Alexander-Arnold, were all named to the English international squad for their set of matches this upcoming break, including a showdown with Spain. Liverpool's four men has them tied for second with Manchester City for most English representatives in their side, with Tottenham having five men called up. All four are hoping to stake a claim back in the England squad, especially Gomez, whose injury likely meant a lack of a World Cup trip. The hope is that they will play well and remain healthy for the Reds.
While all are healthy, questions still loom over what sort of rotation we may see. The Reds have fielded an unchanged side for each of their first three matches, something Klopp has never done in his time at the helm of Liverpool. There continues to be speculation over who may start, and who may make the squad. I think two positions that could see rotation are right back and holding midfield. At right back, Alexander-Arnold has been very good still, but his attack going forward has been lacking lately. With Nathaniel Clyne available on the bench, I would not mind seeing him get the start. At holding mid, Gini Wijnaldum has been almost perfect, but Jordan Henderson's presence on the pitch is almost immediately felt whenever he subs on. Perhaps we could see a double pivot with Wijnaldum and Henderson, starting in place of Milner. You never want to shake things up when they're going well, though. And Klopp does have some tough choices to make with his club. That said, for a key reason I'll address later, I think Wijnaldum will continue to get the nod in midfield and, spoilers, I rate Liverpool to be unchanged yet again.
Leicester only have one injury miss in Matty James as he continues recovery from an Achilles injury suffered last season, but they have a much more notable player suspended. Jamie Vardy saw straight red against Wolves and will miss this clash with Liverpool as a result of a three-match suspension, this is match number three that the now-retired English international will be missing and Liverpool fans will be breathing a sigh of relief. Vardy torments top six clubs, but Liverpool have been a favorite target of his with seven goals in his last five matches against the Reds. It's a crucial miss for the Foxes, his pace would surely give the Liverpool back line something to worry about as usual.
Projected Liverpool Line-Up: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Milner, Keita; Salah, Firmino, Mane
Projected Leicester Line-Up: Schmeichel; Amartey, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell; Mendy, Ndidi; Pereira, Maddison, Gray; Iheanacho
Previewing the Match:
Leicester mark the third straight side Liverpool will be squaring off with that have the potential to be dangerous and make some noise in the table this season, while not being a more 'traditional' power club. Despite the Vardy red, Leicester won the match he was sent off in, 2-0. Against Southampton last weekend, up a man with the game level, Harry Maguire came through in a big way with a long-range strike to give them all three points. Their season has been far more dramatic than Liverpool's as of now, with a late goal to give them a shout against Manchester United in their opening match, but Liverpool's defense, they hope, will stay strong and they can be the first side to keep Leicester out of the net.
Under Puel, the Foxes run a 4-2-3-1 with two holding midfielders in the 'Kante' role. It's almost insulting to continually refer to players that Leicester signs for their midfield as answers to replacing Kante, but both Wilfred Ndidi and Nampalys Mendy possess his sort of energy in the midfield. Now, his season with Leicester as title-winners may never be replicated, but both Ndidi and Mendy are nightmares in the center of the park who combine for five tackles and three-and-a-half interceptions per game over this young season. Ndidi, in particular, won eleven tackles in a match against Liverpool in 2017. They're supplemented in front by a front four that are dangerous too with James Maddison one of the best already at slipping through defenders and drawing fouls. To his left is Demarai Gray, the young Englishman still bursting with potential, and his right is Ricardo Pereira, who may drop deeper at right back, but regardless gets forward regularly and leads the team in tackles per game with 4.3 currently. At striker is Kelechi Iheanacho, the former Manchester City starlet who is just 21, but yet to hit his best form. These are all rather young players too, and it seems that Leicester could be building something to last, something far more sustainable than the spending spree they went on after winning the league.
Leicester are a different challenge for Liverpool as they offer more getting forward than Brighton, and perhaps even more than Palace. Palace has their main man in Wilfred Zaha, but Leicester will be missing theirs. Still, as they showed against Southampton, they can be dangerous regardless of Vardy's presence on the pitch. When it comes to restricting their attack, I think a lot has to do with keeping the links between the front four cut off, especially the supply line for Iheanacho from Maddison. That part will be up to the midfield and perhaps this match does suit Wijnaldum better than Henderson. Wijnaldum is a bit quicker and can hold pace with Maddison, but also does well with holding pace but not fouling as well. I think the match-up between the Liverpool holding-midfielder and Maddison will be key in seeing if Leicester can get anything started in attack. Iheanacho can drop deeper and receive the ball, but I feel he's at his best, I feel, is making runs between center backs and finding holes in the defense. He can hit one when running forward, without question, but I think the delivery he can get from the three attacking players right behind him is more dangerous than him making those runs himself. If Liverpool can try and identify that and shut it down, I think that would be huge in frustrating him in the attack.
With Liverpool, I wonder where exactly they will look to attack this Leicester side. Going through the middle means you run into their two-headed midfield monster, but I also fancy their chances against the center backs. We saw last season Mo Salah absolutely destroy Harry Maguire on two goals and I think you could see that again because the skill set of this Liverpool team in the attack matches well with what Leicester do not generally do brilliantly in defense. At full back, though, I highly rate both Ben Chilwell on the left and Daniel Amartey on the right. I think they do well defensively and Chilwell, a former Liverpool target, can really get forward too. Looking at the wingers, I'm looking for them to be the key men this match dropping into spaces behind the midfield but in front of the defense, and within channels. On the right, it'll be Salah working to find space between Chilwell and Maguire while on the left it's Mane against Wes Morgon and Amartey. It will likely be a more physical battle than they may be used to (although now many teams are really trying to rough up the star men) but both players are quite strong on the ball and I don't think they'll be too concerned.
Final Thoughts:
This is probably Liverpool's toughest challenge yet of the season. This is a Leicester team who have looked very good all throughout the season so far and have different players with different points of attack. You have two very good midfields and I'm looking that as a key battle in terms of this match. King Power Stadium will be the venue of what will surely be an exciting early-morning/lunchtime in England clash between two well-balanced sides.
Score Prediction: Leicester 1: Liverpool 1:
I'm going to go a bit pessimistic and say this match will be a draw. Winning away is always tough, and Leicester will beat plenty of good teams throughout the season. In terms of both teams together, I did say that the Leicester defense falls into the hands of Liverpool's attack, I think it's getting to that defense that will be tough. As a bonus, it's not like the defense is full of slouches as well. Maguire and Chilwell are both two of the best young English defenders at the moment, along with Gomez. Morgan is a great leader and remains captain and a mainstay for a reason. I think both teams will snag a goal and will share the points in the match.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for more LFC coverage, including live Tweets during the matches, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Michigan basketball coverage!
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