Paul Merson has insisted that the way Liverpool tend to push bodies up the pitch suits the way Tottenham play under Antonio Conte.
Tottenham travel to Anfield tomorrow needing a positive result, with Conte’s men sitting two points behind Arsenal in the race for fourth place.
Liverpool are going for a spectacular quadruple and need all three points against the Lilywhites to keep pace with Manchester City in the race for the Premier League title.
Spurs have already pulled off some impressive upsets this season, including a 3-2 win against City at the Etihad in February, and they will be hoping to get a similar result on Saturday night.
Conte admitted in his pre-match press conference that his side sometimes prefer playing against teams who tend to attack them but he stopped short of revealing their game plan against Jurgen Klopp’s men (Football.London).
Merson believes that Tottenham will pose a tough challenge for the Reds but backed the home side to edge their opponents out.
The former Arsenal midfielder told Sportskeeda: “I think the way Liverpool play suits Tottenham as Antonio Conte wants teams to come at them.
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“That said, they struggle stylistically against teams that sit back, so this is a really tricky test for Liverpool. Spurs have done the double over Manchester City in the Premier League this season.
“They could produce another telling moment in the title race by upsetting the Reds at Anfield, but I think Liverpool will just edge this one.
“It wouldn’t shock me to see Spurs get a positive result because of the way they play and their position in the Premier League top four race.
“However, my money is on Liverpool as things stand. Jurgen Klopp’s side were atrocious in the first-half against Villarreal and if that happens against Spurs, they are out of the Premier League title race.
“Speaking of Liverpool’s attacking unit, the addition of Luis Diaz has sort of transformed them. He is ahead of Diogo Jota at the moment.
“Although they are two very different footballers, their flexibility allows the Reds to lineup in many different ways based on the opposition.
“With Sadio Mane also in the mix, you only know that Mohamed Salah is going to play as a right winger as the rest of them could pretty much play anywhere!”
Prediction: Liverpool 2-1 Tottenham.
Spurs Web Opinion
I am confident that we will give a decent account of ourselves at Anfield and pose a threat to Liverpool. I also expect Conte to abandon playing out from the back and go a little more direct to beat Liverpool’s press.
However, I am certainly not confident of getting a result, given the form Liverpool are in. They are capable of blowing teams away in a good 10-15 minute spell, much like they did against Villarreal on Tuesday.
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