Premier League contenders Liverpool entertain Crystal Palace on Sunday, seeking to eradicate shock Europa League defeat.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has promised a strong reaction from his team, stunned by their 3-0 Europa League quarterfinal home loss to Atalanta, when they host Crystal Palace in Sunday’s Premier League clash at Anfield.
Gianluca Scamacca struck either side of halftime before Mario Pasalic capped an impressive win for the Italians in Thursday’s first leg as Liverpool slumped to their joint-heaviest home defeat in European competition.
Liverpool will seek to overturn the deficit in the second leg in Italy next week and keep their hopes of a European title alive, but there is also much at stake in their meeting with Palace.
The Merseyside club are involved in a tight title race in the Premier League and sit in second place, level on 71 points with Arsenal and one ahead of Manchester City, entering match week 33, with seven games left in the season.
Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp’s team unpleasantly surprised last Thursday, when in front of the home crowd suffered a crushing defeat to Atalanta in the quarter-final stage of the Europa League. Of course, we all know how Liverpool can come back into the game, but it is worth admitting that the 0:3 result minimises the Reds’ chances of playing in the semi-finals. The Merseysiders are second in the English league, behind Arsenal only on extra time, while Manchester City are one point ahead. Liverpool played an away game at Old Trafford last weekend, where they only drew 2-2 with Manchester United.
Crystal Palace
The Glazers have a difficult stretch of the calendar, as they have an away match against Liverpool following Manchester City. In the home game against the Citizens, Crystal Palace managed to score first in the 4th minute, but Oliver Glasner’s side failed to hold off the City attack and lost 2:4. As a result, Crystal Palace are currently in 14th place in the APL standings with 30 points. Oliver Glasner’s team is separated from the relegation zone by only five points and this handicap has reduced due to the recent results of the team. Thus, Crystal Palace are unable to win in five matches in a row (three defeats and two draws).
Interesting facts about the match and history of head-to-head meetings
- In the first round Liverpool defeated the Glassmen away with a score of 2:1
- Both teams scored in three of the last five matches
- After five consecutive victories on their home field, Liverpool lost in the match against Crystal Palace in August 2022
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Prediction
Nobody expected Liverpool’s fiasco in the home game with Atalanta. Perhaps, after such a failure only a big win will help to restore faith in their own strength. Our bet is “Liverpool win with a handicap (-1.5)” with odds of 1.61.
Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 13 Premier League games against Crystal Palace, winning 11 and drawing 2.The Reds have also been dominant at home, going unbeaten in their last 28 Premier League matches at Anfield, winning 22 and drawing 6. In contrast, Crystal Palace have struggled of late, going winless in their last 5 matches, including back-to-back defeats against Manchester City and Bournemouth. The Eagles also have a poor record at Anfield, going winless in their last 6 Premier League visits to Liverpool’s home ground. While Crystal Palace will be boosted by the return of Michael Olise and Jairo Riedewald from injury, Liverpool are expected to have a stronger squad available, with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Stefan Bajcetic, and Diogo Jota potentially returning.2Given Liverpool’s dominant home record, their superior head-to-head history against Crystal Palace, and the Reds’ need to bounce back from their Europa League disappointment, the prediction is a comfortable home win for Liverpool.