Aston Villa welcome Liverpool to Villa Park tonight, as Jurgen Klopp’s side look to keep their title chances alive, here’s the UF preview.
Steven Gerrard could play a big part in his former side’s charge for the title, with the Reds currently sitting three points behind Manchester City in first.
If the fixture was played on it’s original date, a week after Villa lost 4-0 at home to Tottenham, there would be a bit of scepticism in the Villa Park air.
The Villans come into this game in much better form, though, on the back of two wins and a draw including a win against the in-form side, Burnley.
Meanwhile, Liverpool dropped two valuable points last time out, drawing 1-1 at home to Spurs to give City the upper hand in the title race.
The Reds bombarded the Tottenham box with crosses but Antonio Conte’s side held strong to make sure they left Anfield with a point.
That draw ended a six-game winning run in all competitions for Jurgen Klopp’s side, as well as a 12-game winning run at home.
Liverpool travel to B6 to face a Villa side who have won just two of their last eight league games on home soil.
Whilst a replication of Villa’s 7-2 victory over the Reds’ last campaign is unlikely, Gerrard will be intent on picking up points to aid his side in their race for a top-10 finish.
A 1-0 win for Liverpool in the reverse fixture has meant they have won each of the last three meetings between the two sides, and they’ll be in the mood to make it four from four.
Team News
Gerrard has no new injury worries following their victory at Turf Moor, but he will still be without young midfielder, Jacob Ramsey.
The 20-year-old missed out last weekend due to a groin injury, and will not be ready for the visit of Liverpool.
Kourtney Hause and Leon Bailey are also missing for the Villans, whilst former Reds star, Phillipe Coutinho will be hoping to make the starting XI after being benched on Saturday.
Klopp could have Roberto Firmino to pick from once again after he returned to training last week but wasn’t risked for the Spurs game.
With the FA Cup final this weekend, it could force Klopp into a few changes, with Joe Gomez and Kostas Tsimikas pushing for a start.
Predicted Aston Villa Starting Lineup:
Martinez; Cash; Konsa; Mings; Digne; Chambers; McGinn; Luiz; Buendia; Watkins; Ings
Predicted Liverpool Starting Lineup:
Allison; Gomez; Matip; Van Dijk; Robertson; Fabinho; Keita; Thiago; Salah; Jota; Diaz
Stats Pack
Head to Head (Last Five) –
Liverpool 1-0 Aston Villa (11th Dec 2021)
Liverpool 2-1 Aston Villa (10th Apr 2021)
Aston Villa 1-4 Liverpool (8th Jan 2021)
Aston Villa 7-2 Liverpool (4th Oct 2020)
Liverpool 2-0 Aston Villa (5th Jul 2020)
Aston Villa:
Last Match – Burnley 1-3 Aston Villa
PL Form – W W D L L
PL Position – 11th
Ultimate Fan Points – 185 (11th)
Top Scoring UF Player – Ollie Watkins (176)
Liverpool:
Last Match – Liverpool 1-1 Tottenham
PL Form – D W W W D
PL Position – 2nd
Ultimate Fan Points – 325 (2nd)
Top Scoring UF Player – Mohamed Salah (394)
