LIVERPOOL VS SOUTHAMPTON: PREDICTED LINEUP

Liverpool are in action tomorrow when they take on Southampton at Anfield for a 3pm GMT kickoff. The Reds are coming off the back of a penalty shootout victory over Derby County and will be looking to sign off for the World Cup with three points. Here’s the predicted lineup.

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Most of the first team have enjoyed a full week off having either been left out of the squad completely or only being limited to a half hour cameo in the midweek League Cup tie. Only Elliott, Firmino and Darwin (who all came off the bench) will be in serious contention for a start tomorrow.

On the injury front, it’s the same squad available to Jürgen Klopp as he had in the win at Spurs. The only exception being the return of James Milner from concussion. Joel Matip has been out since the defeat at Arsenal and could also be included in the squad having returned to training.

The 4-4-2 seems to have been binned since the woeful loss to Leeds. In the three matches since, the manager has reverted to the 4-3-3 and his side has looked better for it. Victories over Napoli and Spurs certainly add credence to the argument to stick with the setup going forward.

In that case, we will see a back five comprising of Alisson Becker, with the Brazilian aiming for a fifth league clean sheet of the season. We should also see all of Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, Van Dijk and Robertson return in defence.

In midfield, Fabinho and Thiago are almost automatic picks. The Brazilian has endured a challenging season but seems to have turned his form around in recent weeks. He will want to put in another impressive shift before departing for the World Cup.

To the right of him is likely to be Harvey Elliott. The 19 year old has made more appearances than any Liverpool player this season and is slowly carving for himself a guaranteed place in the side. He netted the winning penalty on Wednesday night as his influence continues to grow.

The skipper is an alternative but with Southampton sure to keep bodies behind the ball, Jürgen would surely opt for the creative guile of young Harvey. The skipper will still have a key part to play off the bench as the game wears on.

Upfront, the front three picks itself. Since Diaz and Jota picked up long term injuries, the gaffer has had only the trio of Darwin, Firmino and Salah as serious forward options. Jones and Carvalho have filled in here and there but it is a position the club should look to strengthen in January.

Darwin will start on the left wing but will be charged to drift infield a lot more than say a Luis Diaz would. He played this role to perfection at Spurs last week. A repeat here would be most welcome before he links up with the Uruguay national team.

Salah has built up a promising partnership with the 23 year old and we can expect the two of them to offer the most threat. Firmino meanwhile will attempt to connect everything together in order to get the best out of the duo.

Predicted team:

Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, Van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Thiago, Elliott, Salah, Firmino, Darwin.

Subs: Kelleher, Ramsay, Gomez, Tsimikas, Milner, Henderson, Jones, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Carvalho.