Team News
The Merseyside club are fielding an fresh lineup, with the vast bulk of first-team players rested. Kerkez, desperate to play himself into some form, stands as the sole individual to retain his starting spot after the setback at Thomas Frank’s side last weekend. Backup shot-stopper Freddie Woodman and youngster the winger make their club debuts, while the lineup also features teen talent Ngumoha and 18-year-old midfielder Nyoni. Nobody on their bench is above 21 years; the substitute is the most experienced sub with nine senior appearances on his CV.
Crystal Palace in comparison field six from the team sent out for the reverse at Arsenal on Sunday. Marc Guéhi, The centre-back, Muñoz, Ismaïla Sarr, Pino and Daichi Kamada all keep their places. The Senegalese international has several finishes against Liverpool in eight appearances for Palace and Watford, while one of the players making an appearance, Nketiah, netted the decisive goal when the teams met at Selhurst Park last month.
Match Squads
Anfield outfit: Freddie Woodman, Ramsay, The youngster, The defender, The left-back, The midfielder, The defender, The winger, Mac Allister, The attacker, The forward.
Subs: The sub, Gordon, The player, Kone-Doherty, Pinnington, The defender, The sub, The player, Laffey.
The visitors: The goalkeeper, The defender, The centre-back, The defender, The full-back, Will Hughes, Kamada, The wing-back, Sarr, The winger, Eddie Nketiah.
Reserves: The keeper, Mitchell, Jefferson Lerma, The player, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Clyne, The youngster, Devenny, Cardines.
Match referee: Craig Pawson (Yorkshire).
Preamble
The Merseysiders have often struggled against Crystal Palace as tricky foes. Not exactly always – they’re 36-16 up on wins – but when the Eagles overcome the Liverpool, they strike hard, and hit hard. The 1990 FA Cup semi-final. The memorable comeback. The pre-season match. The game at Selhurst last month that sparked this astonishing collapse of the champions, the beginning of a poor run in a string of losses.
Consider another set of results into the mix. Of the previous fixtures between the clubs, Crystal Palace have won three (we’re counting the season opener as a win), the home side just two wins. More concerning the hosts are the recent results at Liverpool’s stadium: Palace have triumphed once and tied twice of the previous three. The Londoners have a firm grip over Liverpool at the moment.
However, the Eagles are in a bit of a rut of their own. They have suffered three defeats of their last four matches in various cups, not securing a win domestically since that previously mentioned loss-inducing visit of Liverpool to Selhurst Park. So here are two sides who need a spark to rejuvenate their campaign. This factor should give us a good possibility of some entertaining action tonight, though any season-defining impact may be influenced by what teams Slot and Oliver Glasner decide to select; they’re unlikely to be full-strength teams. The teams will be revealed about that soon enough. Kick-off is at 7.45pm GMT. We’re underway!
