Slot must boldly drop Liverpool’s “special” talent

Liverpool meet West Ham United on the London Stadium this night as Arne Slot seems to assert one other victory within the Premier League. First-placed and flying, the Reds have been rampant this season.

Nevertheless, West Ham have some extent to show after a disappointing begin to life below Julen Lopetegui however have hit a level of excellent type in latest weeks, unbeaten throughout their previous 4 top-flight fixtures (two wins, two attracts).

Whereas Liverpool have received ten of their previous 12 matches in opposition to the Hammers in all competitions, they drew on the London Stadium final time period in a heated contest that noticed tempers flare between Mohamed Salah and outgoing supervisor Jurgen Klopp.

Slot will demand cooler heads, however the concord woven collectively inside this Reds group is bound to stay intact and places the guests in a fantastic place to proceed their unimaginable title-chasing marketing campaign.

Liverpool group information

Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley will not be risked in east London, however each are in rivalry to return in opposition to Manchester United subsequent weekend. The defenders have been sidelined for the reason that starting of December.

In midfield, Slot will not be capable to name upon the tireless vitality of Dominik Szoboszlai, for the Hungarian has been suspended for one match after choosing up his fifth yellow card of the yr in the course of the Boxing Day victory over Leicester Metropolis.

Up entrance, Liverpool may be tempted to unleash an unchanged line, however given the duty at hand, Slot may be tempted to drop two members.

Slot should boldly drop Cody Gakpo

Salah, after all, will retain his beginning spot on the appropriate wing, seeking to proceed his staggering type this season, notching 19 goals and 15 assists throughout 25 appearances.

Nevertheless, Darwin Nunez didn’t take command at quantity 9 on Boxing Day regardless of loads of huff and puff. He introduced vitality and impetus, however Liverpool want Diogo Jota for this one.

Jota has been lowered to off-the-bench roles since coming back from damage this month, with Liverpool’s coaches cautious of his health file.

He ought to be match sufficient for a beginning position now although. With nine victories from ten matches in opposition to West Ham, the Portugal ahead might be the difference-maker, bringing a scientific edge that Nunez merely would not possess. As per FBref, Jota really ranks among the many prime 15% of forwards throughout Europe’s prime 5 leagues over the previous yr for objectives scored per 90.

If Jota is to start out up prime, Liverpool’s Dutch coach would possibly need to boldly drop the in-form Cody Gakpo too. The 25-year-old has scored four goals throughout his previous seven Premier League begins however Luis Diaz may be preferable to make sure Jota’s probabilities of scoring are maximised.

As soon as hailed for his “particular skillset” by Pep Lijnders, Gakpo has been a revelation this season, taking the positives from his season-and-a-half below Klopp’s wing and taking part in virtually completely on the left flank this yr, one thing that has sharpened his goalscoring edge after which some.

After all, he might thrive alongside Jota on the London Stadium, however Liverpool might do with Diaz’s electrical energy and multi-faceted menace.

The Colombian’s hardly a non-existent purpose menace himself, bagging seven goals from 11 league fixtures this season.

Such thrilling depth is a mirrored image of Liverpool’s devastating frontline, as lethal as it’s deep. Slot’s success has been largely right down to Diaz and Gakpo with the ability to rotate and assault issues with their very own distinct components.

No matter Slot picks, Liverpool will really feel they’ve what it takes to finish the job, however Diaz may be the higher man for the job right this moment.

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