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This weekend, table toppers Liverpool take on Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium.
After defeating Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford, Spurs looked like one of the favourites to challenge Manchester City for the title this season but an in-form Watford came back from a goal down to win 2-1 against Spurs just before the international break.
On the other side, Liverpool team looks very dominant after winning all the 4 opening matches. Key to their performance is their solid defence, which has given away only one goal in 4 matches and kept 3 clean sheets. They will be looking to keep their 100% win record.
Let's look at the combined XI of the two teams.
Goalkeeper and defenders
Goal Keeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Alisson has impressed in Premier League after a record-breaking move to Liverpool from Roma. He has made some fantastic saves and also a few errors, a major one was against Leicester, which eventually led to the goal against them. He still has a lot to prove in the Premier League.
Hugo Lloris will miss the match due to injury, because of which he is expected to be out for several weeks. Even if Lloris was available, we would have picked Alisson because the stats show that Alisson has done a better job than Lloris.
Lloris has kept only one clean sheet to Alisson's 3 in 4 matches. Lloris has given 2 goals, whereas Alisson has conceded only 1 goal. Lloris has made 8 saves compared to Alisson's 10. So, Alisson of Liverpool is our Goalkeeper in this combined XI.
CB: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Van Dijk is undoubtedly one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League right now. Liverpool's defence was shaky before his arrival but now it has become one of the best. In fact, in 4 matches they have given away only one goal this season by keeping 3 clean sheets. Much of its credit should go to this man who has made a whopping 22 clearances, has won 17 aerial battles and made 12 headed clearances.
CB: Joseph Gomez (Liverpool)
Joseph Gomez has formed a formidable centre-back partnership with Virgil van Dijk, which has made Liverpool concede only one goal in 4 matches. Joseph Gomez has made 6 interceptions, 7 tackles and 10 clearances in the process. He edges Toby Alderweireld for the other CB in the combined XI.
Left-back: Andrew Robertson (Liverpool)
Liverpool's Andrew Robertson gets the nod ahead of Ben Davies, Danny Rose of Tottenham Hotspur. He has made 4 appearances in this year's Premier League in which he has given 2 assists and has got 3 clean sheets. Hence, he is the left-back in our combined XI.
Right-back: Kieran Trippier (Tottenham Hotspur)
Even though Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) is another great option, we are going with Kieran Trippier. In 3 appearances for the North London club, Kieran Trippier has scored 1 goal and given an assist compared to 0 assists and goals from Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The Liverpool man has made 6 interceptions and 9 tackles compared to 1 interception and 5 tackles made by Trippier but he has played one game more than Trippier. Also, the headed clearances made and aerial battles won by Trippier are more. Hence, he just edges Trent Alexander-Arnold for right-back position in our combined XI.
Midfielders
CM: Naby Keïta (Liverpool)
After making his move to Premier League from RP Leipzig, he has made a very good impression in the midfield for Liverpool. He was also rested for the match against Leicester, which means Klopp wants him to be at his best against Spurs.
CM: Mousa Dembélé (Tottenham Hotspur)
Mousa Dembélé is the player who controls the midfield and with a good ball controlling ability, it will be challenging for the teams to dispossess him. With 5 tackles and 4 interceptions in Premier League this season, he will be one of the key players for Spurs against Liverpool.
CM: Christian Eriksen (Tottenham Hotspur)
After showing great form at the International break for his national team, Christian Eriksen will be ready to be back with Spurs against an in-form Liverpool side, which is boasting a great defensive record. He has the capability to split any defence and pop up with a goal or two of his own. Hence, he makes it into our combined XI.
Forwards
LW: Sadio Mané (Liverpool)
Sadio Mané has started this season's Premier League in red-hot form by scoring 4 goals in 4 appearances for his team. He is currently the joint leading goal scorer, along with Fulham's Mitrovic, in the Premier League.
CF: Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)
Between Tottenham's Harry Kane and Liverpool's Roberto Firmino, we are going with Harry Kane as the striker in this combined XI. He has got 2 goals and an assist to his name this season, compared to Firmino's 1 goal and 2 assists.
RW: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Last season's top scorer (32 goals) has got only two goals and an assist this season but expect him to start firing more soon. He is also nominated for FIFA Best Men's Player award alongside Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo. The Egyptian Magician is our RW for our combined XI.
