Liverpool vs. Brentford – Preview prediction, team news and lineups

Seeking revenge on the team that made the start of 2023 miserable, Liverpool welcome Brentford to Anfield on Saturday night for their penultimate home game of the Premier League season.

Jurgen Klopp’s side recorded a 1-0 win over Fulham in midweek, while the Bees won against Nottingham Forest in similarly nervous circumstances last weekend to triumph 2-1.
Game preview

After Issa Diop was yet to pay in a penalty shootout against Arsenal last month, Mohamed Salah came on Wednesday night to give Liverpool the lead against Fulham after Issa Diop defeated Darwin Nunez, albeit in controversial fashion.

While the penalty was in dispute, there was no mistaking goalkeeper Alisson Becker, who single-handedly tackled Carlos Vinicius twice to keep a costly win and clean sheet for his side, and was praised by Klopp for his contributions “sensational” at trial. Liverpool, now enjoying a five-game winning streak, are not waving the white flag in the Champions League qualifying race and have locked themselves in fifth place with four games to go while Manchester United failed to extend their lead with the Reds to seven points after losing to Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday, they are still one game short.

The Reds have failed to string together a six-game Premier League winning streak since April 2022 and while realistically it may be too little too late for their first four chances, Klopp’s men are really finishing beautiful countryside.

The hosts go into the evening clash having gone seven consecutive games unbeaten since their 4-1 win over Manchester City while their unbeaten streak at Anfield now stands at 10 Premier League games, but Brentford had the number from Reds earlier in the season.

Three days after Brentford completely put their swords on west London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, Brentford faced a tougher test of their European credentials against relegation contenders Nottingham Forest, who were stunned at half time by Danilo’s second goal in so many instances. matches.

Brentford watched the defeat and were indebted to Ivan Toney, who leveled them with an accidental top-flight 20th goal of the season – a deflected free-kick from Keylor Navas – before substitute Josh Dasilva was pinched in extra time. post of Costa Rican. Brentford have racked up consecutive top-flight victories since the turn of the year and are yet to give up on their European dream as they occupy ninth in the table – four points behind Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa – but eighth-placed Brighton & Hove Albion can fade from sight if they win their three games in hand.

They still face Spurs and Manchester City before another solid season of progress comes to a close. The Bees – who aren’t quite the force they were at the start of the season – travel to Anfield having won just two of their last eight Premier League away games. matches, although their stunning 2-1 draw against Etihad in November means Thomas Frank’s side shouldn’t be counted down until the first ball is kicked.

New Year celebrations continued well into the night at the Gtech Community Stadium as Frank’s side secured a 3-1 win over Liverpool in January, but the Reds had won 3-0 at Anfield 12 months earlier and they suffered no damage. internal defeat against counterparts in the capital from behind to prevail 2:1.

TEAM NEWS 

The injured Thiago Alcantara, who is limping to the benches ahead of last weekend’s win over Tottenham Hotspur, is expected to miss the rest of the season as he prepares for surgery on a hip problem – the latest in a long line of setbacks for the 32 year old.

Stefan Bajcetic (adductor) and Calvin Ramsay (knee) welcome Thiago to the injury club, while Naby Keita and Roberto Firmino are speeding up their recovery from muscle problems but need careful assessment in the coming days.

Diogo Jota overcame another hit to join the bench on Wednesday and could now threaten to fight his way forward alongside Cody Gakpo, while Andrew Robertson enjoyed a midweek break but was expected to return directly for Kostas Tsimikas.

Likewise, Brentford will face a quintet of injury problems for Saturday’s game as captain Pontus Jansson (hamstring) and Keane Lewis-Potter (knee) face a race against time to return before the end of the season.

No timetable has been set for Christian Norgaard’s recovery from a calf problem either, but Kristoffer Ajer played for the Under-21s last week and could potentially come back strong – the same goes for the second-choice keeper Thomas Strakosha.

Two substitutes, Frank Onyeka and Dasilva, broke Forest’s heart together last weekend and although the former is unlikely to be rewarded with a start, Dasilva – who also made all four dribble attempts that day – could challenge Mikkel Damsgaard’s place.

Possible starting lineup for Liverpool:

Alison; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Jones, Fabinho, Henderson; Salah Gakpo Iota

Possible starting lineup from Brentford:
Raya; Hickey, Mee, Pinnock, Henry; Jensen, Janelt, Dasilva; Mbeumo, Toney, what a pity

We say Liverpool 2-1 BrentfordNeither Liverpool nor Brentford have impressed in their recent one-goal wins and there may not be much to choose from in this clash as the hosts’ weary legs start to feel tired. However, Klopp still has the chance to refresh his forward line and the in-form Reds’ home wins stand in stark contrast to the Bees’ uneven results on the road, so we still have faith in Klopp’s side to get the job done. But it can’t be beautiful.

Also.. 

Five Liverpool stars set to depart Anfield as Jurgen Klopp planning summer overhaul

Liverpool kept their dim Champions League hopes alive with a win over Fulham on Wednesday, but Jurgen Klopp still has big work ahead in the transfer market

A hectic few days for Jurgen Klopp quieted down on Wednesday night after his Liverpool side recorded a 1-0 win over Fulham at Anfield.

Mo Salah’s penalty kept their waning Champions League hopes alive, although Manchester United trail by two points after two more games, a Europa League place now looks the more likely outcome. As is often the case at Anfield these days, the result was not without controversy, with the visitors storming off in anger at the penalty which proved to be decisive.

As for Klopp, he has the potential for a lengthy touchline suspension hanging over his head after being charged by the FA this week over his controversial behavior during last Sunday’s clash with Spurs.

However, the German manager is continuing to plan an overhaul of his squad this summer after the Reds missed key target Jude Bellingham. Klopp is preparing for the summer

Four iconic Liverpool shirts could be on offer this summer as Jurgen Klopp prepares for both arrivals and departures.

The club may have given up on pursuing Jude Bellingham but a major recruitment is still underway. current offers all expire in June.

This would suddenly free up the number 7, 8 and 9 shirts in the squad, with the number 10 still free since Sadio Mane’s move to Bayern. The race for numbers previously worn by the likes of Kevin Keegan, Steven Gerrard, Ian Rush and John Barnes will soon begin.

Fulham star claims ref admitted penalty error

The fallout from Liverpool’s win over Fulham has been nothing to match the explosion that signified the aftermath of the Spurs clash, but Tom Cairney has made a stinging claim over the game’s defining moment.

Darwin Nunez fell into the box after dispossessing Issa Diop and referee Stuart Attwell pointed to the spot, with his call seemingly confirmed by a quick VAR check. However, slow-motion replays appeared to show Diop avoiding making contact with the Uruguayan striker, and the Fulham player Cairney later said Attwell acknowledged that notion.

“He (Attwell) told one of our players in the second half that it wasn’t a penalty, so it’s frustrating because it’s for other people to make the correct decision,” he told Fulham’s official website. “Issa Diop didn’t touch it, Nunez took another step and then went over, and then you lose to something like that at Anfield, which is frustrating when we try to go as high as we can.”

Alisson close to tears after keeping clean sheet

Despite Fulham’s complaints, they could still have snatched a point at Anfield were it not for an outstanding save by Liverpool’s Brazil keeper Alisson in the 77th-minute to keep out countryman Carlos Vinicius.

And the stopper was surprisingly emotional after conceding a first goal in five Premier League games, with Klopp afterwards saying: “Alisson almost cried with just one goal. It’s quite rare for us this season. It’s very nice, especially for him.

It was perhaps a measure of his standards that meant “rarely” a 12th goalkeeper ban this season – the third most in the league and surpassed only by David de Gea and Nick Pope. Allison himself said: “Really happy to keep a clean sheet. Tonight was great to keep the three points as well. It was a very difficult match against a very good team.”