England Premier League
Wednesday 23rd February 2022
Kick off at 7:45pm GMT
Venue: Anfield
Match Preview:
Harry Kane has never played for Liverpool and probably never will but it felt like he did at the weekend as his last minute goal for Tottenham was enough to beat league leaders Manchester City and open up the title race once again.
This game is huge for Liverpool with a capital H, it is their game in hand and if they win they will be just 3 points behind Manchester City, ten days ago it was 12. Liverpool will still have to play City too so the title is far from over but the Reds cannot afford any slip ups in this game and with the way they have been playing they should have few problems at home to Leeds.
Liverpool stay at home which is an advantage for Jurgen Klopp’s team who were also at home at the weekend. That game was an expected win over Norwich although the Canaries shocked everyone in the stadium when they took the lead but the Reds came back and won 3-1. Mohamed Salah created a record by becoming the fastest Liverpool striker to get to 150 goals, Sadio Mane scored to boost his confidence and new signing Luis Diaz also scored, so everything is looking pretty perfect for the Reds at present.
Liverpool have the best form in the league and at home they are unbeaten and have won an incredible 30 points from 36 and they are also seven points in front of third placed Chelsea.
Leeds were involved in a glorious grudge game against Manchester United in the pelting rain at the weekend. They came back from two goals down but ultimately United’s class and Leeds leaky defence showed in the end and Marcelo Bielsa’s side lost 4-2. It was a very good and exciting display from Leeds but at the end of the day it was another loss. The club are certainly not out of the danger zone and are just 5 points from the bottom three.
Away from home Bielsa’s side have won just 2 games and lost 50% of their games and their last defeat was also on Merseyside as they went down 3-0 against Everton.
Team News:
Liverpool: Diogo Jota has an ankle injury and is only 50/50 to make this game though he could be rested ahead of the EFL Cup final at the weekend. Roberto Firmino has a muscle injury and is 50/50 to make this game but there are whispers he is still about 10 days away from a full recovery.
Leeds: Robin Koch is a doubt with a head injury and will be assessed. Kalvin Phillips is out for at least two weeks more with a hamstring injury. Leo Fuhr Hjelde has a knee injury and isn’t due back for another three weeks. Sam Greenwood looks long term with his recent knee injury and no significant update has been given on his condition. Liam Cooper is being pencilled in to return at the beginning of March from his hamstring injury. Patrick Bamford is out long term with a foot injury.
Liverpool vs Leeds Head to Head:
Last season this game finished in a seven goal thriller as Liverpool won 4-3.
Liverpool have scored 8 goals past Leeds in the their last three meetings.
Leeds haven’t beaten Liverpool for 12 games.
There is a 60% chance to see over 2.5 goals.
Liverpool vs Leeds Prediction:
Even though Leeds are not nearly collecting the points they need at this point of the season they are also not lying down. There is fight in the team but the problem is that they almost need to go behind in games until we see it. Witness their 3-3 draw at Aston Villa a few weeks ago, they were 3-1 down. This past weekend they came back to 2-2 for a moment after being 2-0 down against Manchester United. Even their 3-0 defeat against Everton could have been different had Rodrigo’s two shots that hit the bar been a few inches under, but again the reaction happened only when they went behind.
Liverpool are the huge odds on favourites and they only lose this one if the players do not perform. We can’t see that happening, and Liverpool should ease to a decent win. In truth Norwich played their part at Anfield over the weekend and Liverpool looked sluggish at times, but they did get a scare that they were not expecting and reacted well to it. Perhaps total complacency will be put aside now and we expect the Reds to come out with a full intent attack. You have to wonder how this leaky Leeds side are going to keep Liverpool at bay, the odds are certainly against them.
For goalscorers Luis Diaz looks like good value and he has fitted in like a glove at Liverpool. We were going to back Mohamed Salah who is scoring goals and against Leeds at home one would think he would get plenty of opportunities but he is no value at 1.44. Instead it might be better to back Virgil van Dijk, the defender can score a few goals during the season and usually players of his calibre feel more confident coming up in attack for set pieces against teams like Leeds, his value is outstanding and it could be worth a small stake.
Liverpool vs Leeds Betting Tips:
Half Time/Full Time: Liverpool/Liverpool at 1.55
Correct Score: Liverpool to win 3-1 or 4-1 at 10.00 and 14.00
Anytime goalscorer: Luis Diaz at 2.20
Anytime goalscorer: Virgil van Dijk at 6.00
© Copyright topfootballtipster.com 2019
