Liverpool plays their second successive match at Anfield this week as they face West Ham in midweek EPL action. They will look to prove that their victory over Manchester City wasn’t a false dawn and was instead a genuine shift in the trajectory of their season.
Liverpool has won their last seven midweek fixtures in a row. The aggregate score in those seven fixtures is 20-3. That will add to the confidence they gained by defeating league champions Manchester City.
In the same fixture last season, The Reds picked up a 1-0 victory over The Hammers at Anfield. The Kopites bossed possession in that fixture and rained 22 shots at goal. Only five of them were on target, however, and some would say Liverpool was lucky to escape with a draw.
The West Ham defense will fear facing Mohamed Salah. Not only is the Egyptian back in form, but he loves facing the east London club. Salah has scored nine goals in ten fixtures against The Irons.
Liverpool vs West Ham FYIs
Kick Off: Oct 19, 2022, at 7.30 pm UK at Anfield
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Starting XI Prediction: Liverpool West Ham
Google Result Probability: Liverpool 67% Draw 19% West Ham 14%
PL Position, Form Guide: Liverpool 8th, 13pts WDDLW West Ham 12lth, 11pts LLWWD
Starting XI Prediction
The Reds might have found some form, but they haven’t been able to shake the injury crisis that has blighted them this season. Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip and Diogo Jota are the latest trio to be admitted to The Reds treatment room.
With their depth being consistently tested this season, here is how we envisage Liverpool lining up against West Ham.
GK- Alisson
DEF- Alexander Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Tsimikas
MID- Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago
ATT- Firmino, Salah, Nunez
Match Prediction
This will be a fascinating clash. West Ham is in reasonable form and will be desperate to return to winning ways. And despite Liverpool seemingly turning a corner in the last week of football, they are still very much a vulnerable outfit.
The Liverpool defense should glean some confidence from their outstanding performance against Man City. We are not convinced it will be enough to shut out the West Ham attack. This will be a draw 2-2.
Stuart Kavanagh is a journalist currently residing in Broken Hill, Australia. He writes for the Barrier Truth newspaper, along with being the owner of the sports and entertainment website thepyrrhic.com, He co-hosts the ‘After Extra Time’ podcast and contributes at edgeofthecrowd.com when time permits. He is also the Media & Communications Director at the Newosis Mental Health Foundation. You can find more about the work Newosis Mental Health Foundation does here.
Football mad, he is always down for debate and discussion at @stueyissickofit on Twitter.