Liverpool will look to bounce back after two back to back Premier League draws when they take on Bournemouth on Saturday.
The Reds took the lead in their last two games but weren’t able to hold on as Leicester City and West Ham stopped the Merseyside outfit from extending their lead at the top.
Jurgen Klopp’s side need to put the draws behind them quickly, but Bournemouth will provide a stern test to the Reds.
Eddie Howe’s side have had a topsy-turvy few days as they humiliated top-four contenders Chelsea, before losing 2-0 to relegation candidates Cardiff City.
Liverpool Team News
Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum weren’t fit enough to face West Ham. While Henderson’s injury wasn’t that serious which might see him return against Bournemouth, Wijnaldum might miss the clash against the Cherries.
It remains to be seen if Trent Alexander-Arnold will feature against Howe’s side, but he might make the bench.
Predicted Liverpool Lineup vs Bournemouth
Defence
Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk weren’t the most comfortable against West Ham, and will hope to be more assertive come Saturday. Andy Robertson and James Milner are expected to continue in the full-back areas.
Alisson keeps his place in the Liverpool lineup, and will hope for a clean sheet after going three league games without a shutout.
Midfield
The jury is still out on Naby Keita who had an impressive second half after he was deployed in his favoured central role.
With Fabinho and Henderson behind, he might be best suited to a number 10 role against Bournemouth who play more open, expansive football.
Keita’s strongest position is in the number 10 role from where he can interlink play well and distribute the ball, and he needs to be used in that position to get the best out of him.
Attack
Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah need to be used in their favoured positions considering Liverpool are in a rut.
The 4-3-3 in the second half against West Ham did bring more cohesiveness into the game, but the attackers need to be more assertive if they are to test Bournemouth come the weekend.
Firmino had a lacklustre game against West Ham as his short passes often failed to find the intended teammate, and he’ll need to step up as his game play is vital to the set-up.
