After back-to-back wins, Liverpool travel to London to face West Ham United. The Reds are currently 7th in the Premier league standings while West Ham United are just below them in 8th. Liverpool won their last game 1-0 against Sunderland while West Ham beat Southampton 2-1 at home.
The Reds will be looking to continue their good form after winning against Leicester City and Sunderland while West Ham United haven’t lost in their last 6 games and will be hoping to keep it that way. Jurgen Klopp’s side will be hoping to start the year strongly if they want to close the gap between the top 4, and should not take Slaven Bilic’s West Ham side lightly.
Kickoff and Live Telecast
Channel: Star Sports 4 and Star Sports HD4
Live Stream: starsports.com
Date and Time: Saturday, 2 January 2016 – 18:15 IST (12:45 BST)
Venue: Boleyn Ground
Team News
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic will be delighted to see Dimitri Payet back into the team as the Hammers struggled without him. Victor Moses, Winston Reid, Aaron Cresswell and Nikica Jelavic are also in contention after recovering from their injuries. Former Liverpool striker Andy Carroll is expected to start up front while Manuel Lanzini will play just behind him.
Liverpool are once against struggling with too many injuries. James Milner is still out with a calf injury and Skrtel with a hamstring injury. Daniel Sturridge has not traveled with the squad despite being fit. Jordan Henderson picked up an ankle injury in the last game while Jon Flanagan is still recovering from his ACL injury. Joe Allen has traveled with the squad after recovering from illness while Lucas Leiva is expected to replace Henderson in the starting XI.
Christian Benteke is likely to start up front, after scoring in back to back games and Jordon Ibe might replace Adam Lallana. Dejan Lovren and Mamadou Sakho will start at the back after keeping back-to-back clean sheets.
Probable Lineups
West Ham United (4-2-3-1): Adrian, Tomkins, Collins, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Kouyate, Noble, Antonio, Lanzini, Valencia, Carroll
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Mignolet, Clyne, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno, Lucas, Emre Can, Ibe, Firmino, Coutinho, Benteke
Form
West Ham have won just once in their last 5 Premier League games while the rest have ended in a draw. The Hammers won their last game against Southampton 2-1 at home, while the four games previous to that against Manchester United, Stoke City, Swansea and Aston Villa ended in a draw. They have 29 points from 19 games, and could surprise Liverpool tomorrow.
Last 5 matches: D-D-D-D-W (Last Match: West Ham United 2-1 Southampton)
Liverpool have won two, lost two and drawn one in their last five games in the Premier League. They won their last two games against Leicester City and Sunderland but lost 2-0 to Newcastle United and 3-0 to Watford. The game against West Bromwich Albion at Anfield ended in a 2-2 draw. Klopp’s team are chasing for a top 4 finish, and should take an advantage of the situation at Manchester United and Chelsea.
Last 5 matches: L-D-L-W-W (Last Match: Sunderland 0-1 Liverpool)
Key Stats
- The Hammers have won the same number of games against Liverpool in their last three games as they won in the 22 years before that (2)
- West Ham are unbeaten in 7 games at Boleyn Ground (W3 D4), with their last defeat coming on 22 August
- Liverpool have scored more than one goal in just four league games this season
- West Ham have won just one of their last 8 games in the Premier League, with six of them ending in a draw
Key Battles
Christian Benteke vs James Collins
Benteke looks in good goal scoring touch after scoring in back-to-back games against Leicester City and Sunderland. A lot has been said about his work rate and off the ball movement, but he looks like the only goal scoring threat in the Liverpool team right now.
James Collins has not started regularly for the Hammers this season and has struggled at times. Benteke can be a nightmare to defend against, with his physical strength and aerial qualities, and Collins should be at his best to stop him from scoring.
Andy Carroll vs Dejan Lovren
Andy Carroll scored in the last game against Southampton and is expected to start tomorrow against his previous club. Liverpool defenders always seem to struggle against big forwards, and Carroll should be itching to score against his former club. Dejan Lovren has been brilliant since Jurgen Klopp has arrived at the club, and has kept 5 clean sheets in 7 games alongside Mamadou Sakho.
Prediction
The lack of squad depth is a real concern for Liverpool and Klopp’s style makes it difficult for them to stay fresh during such a busy period of games. West Ham had a couple of more days to rest than their opponents, and it might prove to be a big advantage for them. The Hammers have had a few big results in their favour this season and have a good chance tomorrow to hurt Liverpool who have several key players out due to injury.
Predicted score: West Hame United 2-0 Liverpool
Betting Odds (bet365)
West Ham United – 3/1
Draw – 5/2
Liverpool – 21/20
