Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats and more
The central match of the English Premier League 18th round will be played this Sunday, December 19, as Tottenham Hotspur take on Liverpool at home. The kick-off time is 22:00 IST.
The Omicron strain of coronavirus is at its peak in England – the number of people falling ill is once again breaking records. The EPL has also been affected. Over the past week, matches in the English league have been cancelled and postponed due to an outbreak of covid in different clubs. But as of now, the encounter is on the schedule and the coaches have confirmed that it is likely to take place, even though some important players have tested positive.
We will tell you what to expect from the upcoming match.
Tottenham Hotspur News & Current Form:
Tottenham are seventh in the EPL table. So far, Spurs have played only 14 games (for example, Arsenal had 17 games as of now), in which they have picked 25 points.
The previous two Premiership encounters of the Londoners have been postponed due to a coronavirus outbreak in the team. For the same reason, the match against French Rennes in the Conference League was cancelled.
In addition, Tottenham’s away match against Burnley was postponed even earlier due to difficult weather conditions.
Tottenham only managed to play two сlashes in December. First, Antonio Conte’s side beat Brentford and then defeated relegation-threatened Norwich.
It should be noted that Spurs have picked up 10 points in their last four encounters in the English Premier League, while conceding only one goal – seems solid.
Emerson Royal, Lucas Moura, Skartlett and Hill have been out with COVID-19 in isolation, but all players could be back in the squad for the game. Reguilon has a thigh injury.
Liverpool News & Current Form:
Liverpool, meanwhile, are second on the table with 40 points from 17 games. The Merseysiders have set a new England record this year, becoming the first team from the Premier Ligue to win all their Champions League group stage games.
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Earlier this week, Jurgen Klopp’s side were victorious against Newcastle 3-1.
Liverpool achieved the desired result despite the game being missed by essential Virgil van Dijk and Fabinho, who tested positive for the coronavirus. It remains to be seen whether they can take part in the game against Tottenham.
Liverpool’s winning streak in the EPL now stands at six games. The Red have scored 17 goals in that period – impressive.
Adrian, Origi, Elliott and Phillips, who has a head injury, cannot play today. Fabinho, Jones and Van Dijk are out with the coronavirus.
Tottenham Hotspur season form guide: W-D-W-L-W-W
Liverpool season form guide (all competitions): W-W-W-W-W-W
Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool Head-To-Head Record:
| Tottenham Hotspur | Draw | Liverpool |
| 48 | 42 | 87 |
Liverpool have won their last seven head-to-head encounters against Spurs. Last season, the Merseysiders took a 2-1 lead at Anfield before securing a 3-1 win in the British capital.
Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool Predicted XI:
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup (3-4-1-2): Lloris; Sanchez, Dier, Davies; Tanganga, Ndombele, Hojbjerg, Reguilon; Lo Celso; Kane, Bergwijn
Liverpool possible starting lineup (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Konate, Robertson; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Henderson, Thiago; Salah, Jota, Mane
Statistical preview of the match Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool:
- Liverpool won in their last 7 matches against Spurs in all competitions.
- The Merseysiders have won 9 of their last Premier League 11 away matches.
- Liverpool are by far the most scoring club in the Premier League as of now(48 goals in 17 games).
- In 5 of Spurs’ last 6 home games in EPL, more than 2.5 goals have been scored in total.
What has been said before the match:
“We are coming over a period of two weeks where we’ve not played, so at this moment to play against a strong team could be a good thing for us. These types of game give you excitement, give you more fire.”
“For sure, we will face difficulty and we have to be prepared to suffer during the game. We have to know this. We have to know, also, when we have the ball, we can hurt everybody. Liverpool are strong, always. So, what is the best way to tackle Liverpool? Sit back and soak up the pressure? Or fight fire with fire against the league’s top goalscorers (48 in 17 games). The best is to find a mixed solution.”
the Italian revealed.
“We’ve been preparing for the game in the right way, we are ready to play, and we know we’re facing one of the best teams now in Europe, maybe the world. At the same time, we want to play this game and to see where we are.”
“I have no idea in this moment what we can expect. After this press conference we have the analysis meeting; they will use old pictures obviously. We still don’t know what we can make of that, maybe we’ll have a little idea about the system, stuff like this, but that’s it pretty much because we have absolutely no information. But it’s not about now our preparation for the Tottenham game. That’s difficult. But for them it’s difficult as well, I know that – who wants to not to play for two weeks and all of a sudden you have to play again? It’s all not easy. I just think with all the things we are discussing and we don’t know, is there the solution? I don’t see it in the moment.”
Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool Prediction:
Given the current situation, Tottenham’s chances do not really seem very high. Firstly, it is unclear what kind of squad the Londoners will end up with. Secondly, the team is out of rhythm. Thirdly, Spurs have not been able to train properly for the whole week and a half – some of the players have been on self-isolation, on some days, according to the safety protocols, group exercises have been banned. Conte, of course, will set his boys up to fight in any line-up, but the Italian’s energy alone is not enough.
Liverpool, on the other hand, are now on the move. Even taking into account their personnel losses we expect them to claim 3 points. The chemistry of the team and the progress they have made – says a lot. All the more so, the whole attacking line is fine, which means we will see more than one goal scored. In addition, they need to chase Manchester City and get to the 1st place. The competition for the title is now.
Parimatch News staff prediction:
We say: Liverpool to win and individual total over 1.5.
