The Reds will be back in action with another important Premier League fixture this weekend as they lock horns with a struggling Newcastle United side at Anfield on Thursday. Liverpool will be out to make it eight wins in a row across all competitions and maintain pressure on table-toppers Manchester City.
Liverpool are in second place in the Premier League standings and have been excellent this season. The Merseyside giants edged Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa to a narrow 1-0 victory over the weekend and will need to take it up a notch in this fixture.
The above visual is an overview of Liverpool’s game against Aston Villa on the weekend. The xG and xT timelines indicate that Liverpool created most of the chances in the game and had a rising xG in the second half of the game as they attempted more shots on goal in search of the breakthrough. Nine Liverpool players attempted a shot on goal, and Mohamed Salah attempted six shots on goal with two of them on target. He scored the only goal of the game through a second-half penalty.
Liverpool have been in excellent form under Jurgen Klopp but will need to work hard to keep up with Manchester City in the title race. Mohamed Salah has been sensational for his side and will want to make his mark in this fixture. Salah has racked up 14 goals and has also provided nine assists so far in the season. He is currently one of the best forwards in the world and can tear apart any team with the form he is in right now. Liverpool have also successfully rotated their squad with the current fixture crunch and will be looking to give enough rest to all their key players.
Newcastle United, on the other hand, are in 19th place in the league table at the moment and will likely face a relegation battle in the coming months. The Magpies suffered a 4-0 defeat against Leicester City in their previous game and will need to play out of their skins to stand a chance in this game.
With only three points taken from a possible 24 on the road this term, Newcastle’s away form is the worst in the 2021-22 Premier League, and they have only managed to find the back of the net five times on rival turf all season. They have scored 17 goals so far in the season, but most of these goals have been consolation goals. They have only won one game this season and are most likely to have the same record after this game. They attempted 12 shots on goal against Leicester but only had three efforts on target. Most of their shots were off target and were attempted from positions far away from the goal.
Newcastle United have become relegation contenders this season and will need to display a brilliant performance to deny Liverpool a win. Liverpool is definitely the better team at the moment and should be able to win all three points from this fixture.
