Match Preview - Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur - Key Battle, Team News, Prediction

Liverpool will welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Anfield on Saturday. The Premier League clash will kick-off at 7:45pm BST.

The Reds go into the match having defeated Villarreal 3-2 midweek (Champions League semi-final, second leg). Liverpool progressed to the final 5-2 on aggregate.

So, Jurgen Klopp's side should be full of confidence heading into the weekend.

Tottenham on the other hand defeated Leicester City 3-1 in North London last Sunday (Premier League). In other words, Spurs are also coming off a good result.

Key Battle - Harry Kane/Son Heung-min vs Liverpool's defence

There is no denying that Kane and Son are Tottenham's biggest assets going forward. Kane has scored 23 goals and registered nine assists in 46 appearances this season.

Son on the other hand has found the back of the net 20 times and secured nine assists in 41 appearances this campaign.

Therefore, if Liverpool can keep the two forwards quiet, they will give themselves a great chance of winning the game.

The Reds have been good defensively this season. They have only conceded 22 goals in 34 Premier League matches.

Liverpool's back four does consist of some very good players (Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson) after all.

The aforementioned battle will be interesting to watch.

Team News

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has revealed that striker Roberto Firmino, who has been struggling with a foot injury since mid-April, has returned to training.

However, the German is unsure if the Brazil international is fit enough to feature against Tottenham on Saturday.

In team news for Spurs, manager Antonio Conte has confirmed that defender Sergio Reguilon will miss the clash against Liverpool due to a calf issue.

Previous Premier League Meeting

Liverpool drew 2-2 with Tottenham back in December 2021.

Kane put Spurs ahead after 13 minutes of action. However, Diogo Jota got the Reds level just before half-time.

After the break, Robertson found the back of the net. But, Son scored shortly after to ensure that Tottenham went home with a point.

Klopp was not too disappointed with the performance from his team, but he did imply that the result could have been very different had Kane been sent off for a wild tackle on Robertson early on in the game.

As quoted by the club's official website, the 54-year-old said the following during his post-game press conference: "So let's start with the result maybe. The result is fine, would've been different, I think, with different decisions from the ref.

"But with the decisions, how he did it, I'm fine with the result. It's a 2-2 at Tottenham – that's absolutely OK. It was a difficult game for us for plenty of reasons."

Klopp further added: "You have to ask the VAR (about Kane's tackle on Robertson). That's a clear, absolutely 100 per cent red card.

"Very often you cannot see clearly or whatever but in this situation, if Andy Robertson's foot is on the ground, his leg is broken – I think we all agree on that. But luckily for both, he was in the air. It's still a red card but the ref saw it differently."

Prediction

Liverpool are one-point behind league leaders Manchester City. With what is on the line for the Reds, we are expecting them to get the job done against Tottenham.

Also, Liverpool are simply a better side than Spurs. They have proven that for a number of years.

The only concern we have regarding Liverpool is their short break.

The Reds' midweek Champions League fixture might have taken a bit out of them. Tottenham on the other hand haven't played since last week.

Only time will tell if that will be a factor.

Liverpool 2 Tottenham 1