“They just haven’t got to grips with it” - Mark Lawrenson delivers his prediction ahead of Burnley vs Liverpool 

Former Liverpool star Mark Lawrenson has backed the Reds to comfortably defeat Burnley (2-0) in their upcoming Premier League fixture at Turf Moor later today (Tuesday, December 26).

Jurgen Klopp and company looked impressive in their 1-1 draw against Arsenal on Saturday but were unable to make the most of their opportunities to seal all three points. They have won 11 games, drawn six, and lost one this season in the Premier League, and have accumulated 39 points from 18 games. They are currently second in the league table, one point behind the Gunners.

Liverpool will be aiming to return to winning ways against Vincent Kompany's Burnley. To their credit, the Clarets have won two of their last five league games, but are struggling in 19th place with only 11 points.

The Reds will be confident of securing all three points. They have won seven of their eight away games against Burnley with a win percentage of 88 — the highest win rate against any club they have faced away from home in the league.

Lawrenson wrote (as per Paddy Power News):

"This will be a comfortable Liverpool win. Burnley have struggled and have won just the one home game. They just haven’t got to grips with it so far."

Lawrenson's Prediction: Liverpool 2-0 Burnley

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Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp addresses left-back situation following Kostas Tsimikas' injury

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has admitted he could be forced to play Joe Gomez as a left-back for the foreseeable future after Kostas Tsimikas suffered a broken collarbone against Arsenal.

The Reds have been left short of options at left-back due to injuries to both Tsimikas and Andy Robertson. The latter is not expected to return until the end of January after sustaining a dislocated shoulder while on international duty in October.

Tsimikas is also expected to be out of action for two to three months. During the Burnley pre-match press conference, Klopp stated (via Liverpool's official website):

"We will see. Can Joey play all the games coming up now until – I don’t know when – Robbo will be back? Kosti is now definitely out for a while, so I don’t know, we have to see. I didn’t have time now to think it through, but somebody will play the position I am pretty sure."

He added:

"It is for us obviously really tough, it’s really tough. You have injuries sometimes and we accept all of them, but a broken collarbone is really bad because it just takes long. Same what Robbo had: a different injury but that takes long as well, how we all know."

"We all know we need luck in these moments to get through and now we will have Joey there and just have to make sure we put him in cotton wool and we have to make sure he is always ready for the games."

Gomez has returned to his best form this season, having played both as a right-back and center-back. The 26-year-old conveyed his versatility against Arsenal by impressing at left-back, effectively shutting down Bukayo Saka's threat level.