MX23RW : Sunday, November 24 07:32:49| >> :120:27204:27204:

How Liverpool could line up against Chelsea

Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at how Liverpool could line up for Thursday's Premier League showdown with top-four rivals Chelsea at Anfield.

In a season defined largely by injury problems, Liverpool could be handed a trio of timely boosts ahead of this match with some key players set to come back into contention.

Jurgen Klopp mentioned after the victory over Sheffield United that both Alisson Becker and Fabinho are expected to return in time for Chelsea, and the Brazilian duo could both go straight back into the starting lineup.

Alisson missed out at Bramall Lane on compassionate grounds following the tragic death of his father in a swimming accident in his native Brazil last week.

The shot-stopper will be granted as long as he needs to recover, and Adrian is on standby again after a keeping a clean sheet at the weekend, but Alisson is expected to come back into the side for this one.

Fabinho, meanwhile, has been sidelined for almost a month and it will be interesting to see whether he returns at centre-back, where he has featured for most of the season so far, or in his more familiar central midfield position.

Klopp could be tempted to give Nat Phillips and Ozan Kabak - his 18th centre-back pairing of the season - more time to build a partnership given that Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip are all likely to miss the rest of the season, but Fabinho has excelled at the heart of the defence and so is expected to return in that position.

Kabak appears to be above Phillips in the pecking order following his January arrival, but a couple of shaky performances against Everton and Sheffield United could see Klopp favour Phillips for this match.

The other fitness boost comes in attack, where Diogo Jota could make his first appearance since December having now recovered from a knee injury.

The Portuguese forward missed the Sheffield United game through illness after returning to training last week, and he is likely to be eased back in via a substitute's role rather than being thrown straight back into the starting XI.

Jota's return should give Klopp the chance to rest some of his front three over the coming weeks, although Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane are all expected to start this game.

Mane scored both goals in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge to make it seven goals in 16 appearances against Chelsea across all competitions - only against Crystal Palace and Aston Villa has he scored more in England.

The champions will still be without captain Jordan Henderson, while backup goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher is also sidelined.

Liverpool possible starting lineup: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Phillips, Fabinho, Robertson; Thiago, Wijnaldum, Jones; Salah, Firmino, Mane

> Click here to see how Chelsea could line up for this contest



Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:


ID:437493: cacheID:437493:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5769:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Liverpool's Fabinho trudges off after suffering an injury against FC Midtjylland in the Champions League on October 27, 2020
Read Next:
Liverpool handed triple injury boost?
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
6pm
Vikings
@
Bears
6pm
Lions
@
Colts
6pm
Patriots
@
Dolphins
6pm
Buccaneers
@
Giants
6pm
Chiefs
@
Panthers
6pm
Titans
@
Texans
6pm
Cowboys
@
Washington
9.05pm
Broncos
@
Raiders
9.25pm
49ers
@
Packers
9.25pm
Cardinals
@
Seahawks
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Crystal Palace121561017-78
19Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
20Southampton11119721-144


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!