Premier League: Liverpool v West Ham predictions and preview


Premier League: Liverpool v West Ham predictions and preview
Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Diogo Jota are in fine form heading into this fixture

Liverpool host West Ham at Anfield on Friday and can top the league table if they win the match. However this is easier said than done as West Ham put in an attacking performance against Manchester City. Liverpool have a defensive crisis as Virgil Van Dijk, Joel Matip and Fabinho are ruled out from the match due to fitness. This means that young Rhys Williams will make his first Premier League start, unless Jordan Henderson slots in there. However with Thiago and Naby Keita being a doubt, it wouldn’t happen.

Therefore we have an inexperienced defender who was playing sixth-tier non-league football last year making his start today. In the matches he’s played so far, Rhys Williams has played strongly and shown maturity beyond his age. It remains to be seen if David Moyes’s men take advantage of this situation. In-form striker Michael Antonio is injured with a hamstring and therefore won’t be playing this match.

Aside from Rhys Williams, Jurgen Klopp can play Nathaniel Phillips and highly rated Billy Koumetio.

FS Video

Injuries

Liverpool: Virgil Van Dijk, Konstantinos Tsimikas, Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Joel Matip Fabinho, Thiago Alcantara (doubtful) and Naby Keita (doubtful)

Thiago trained ahead of this fixture alone after his injury against Everton

West Ham: Michael Antonio

Predicted Line-ups:

Liverpool: Alisson Becker (GK), Trent Alexander-Arnold, Rhys Williams, Joe Gomez, Andy Roberston, Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah

West Ham: Lukasz Fabianski (GK), Aaron Cresswell, Angelo Ogbonna, Fabian Valbuena, Arthur Masuaku, Vladmir Coufal, Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek, Pablo Fornals, Jarrod Bowen and Sebastian Haller

Mohamed Salah in action against West Ham last season

Predictions

West Ham last defeated Liverpool in the Premier League in 2016. Apart from a solitary loss in the FA Cup, Liverpool have beaten them since then. The only area of concern is the defense. Watford last year exploited the presence of Dejan Lovren and defeated Liverpool 3-0. A repeat is possible this time too. However, the form of Sadio Mane, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah would mean that Liverpool is right now at its attacking best.

Therefore this match is going to be a close affair with a 2-1 win for Liverpool.

Also read: Wolves v Crystal Palace match report