A question for the lone Sunday afternoon game is: Which Liverpool will step on the pitch this time? Namely, as it seems so far, the Reds are performing well only against the top English Premier League teams, while underachieving heavily against the teams ranked 14th or worse. In their most recent fixtures against the Top 6 teams, the Reds have collected 11 points (3 W and 2 D) while collecting only 4 points against teams ranking 14th or worse (Leicester, Hull City, Swansea City, Sunderland and Middlesbrough). On the other side, the visiting Burnley team is struggling to collect a win on the road, recording 2 draws and 11 losses.
LIVERPOOL VS BURNLEY
3-Way: 1: -370 Home; X: +600 Draw; 2: +1525 Away
Spread: Liverpool -1.5 -135; Burnley +1.5 +134
Total 3.0: Over -104; Under +102
The Reds manager Jurgen Klopp has no doubt that his teams upcoming game is a must win and that his players will be highly motivated after defeating Arsenal with 3:1 at home over the past weekend. It was a superb win for the Reds, who bounced back after suffering a 3:1 loss to Leicester FC a week before. However, considering that the Reds are out of all other competitions (Euro Cups, FA Cup, EFL Cup) and the fact that they have only one game left against the Top 6 teams (Manchester City away in Round 29), the matchup against Burnley will be the perfect time to start collecting wins and improve their ranking. In their previous meeting with Burnley (back in August 20th, 2016), Liverpool completely dominated the pitch, holding the ball possession for 80% of the time and firing a total of 26 shots (as compared to only 3 Burnley shots), but still lost with 2:0. In fact, it was the Reds only loss to Burnley over their last 5 meetings, while also winning the other 4 matchups. The latest injury reports coming from the Reds locker room indicate that Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge are both questionable for the game against Burnley, while Dejan Lovren is getting back to training this week and could dress up (after missing the last 4 games), if he gets the green light from the medical staff.
Burnley, on the other side, had only one goal set entering the 2016/2017 season, to stay outside the relegation zone and keep their English Premier League status. Well, with 31 points to their name (9W, 4D and 14L) the Clarets currently hold the 12th spot and are on a good path to achieving their goal for this season. Interesting about the Clarets is the fact that they are yet to win all three points on the road, where they have recorded only 2 draws and suffered 11 losses. Their success and high rankings lie in the fact that they have a superb home record where they have won 9 games along with 2 draws and 3 losses (total of 29 points). In their most recent game, Burnley came up short of winning points at the Liberty Stadium against Swansea City. The Clarets held a 2:1 lead all the way until the 69th minute of the match, when the Swans defender Martin Olsson scored to tie the game. With the game clock windning down, the Clarets thought they would come up with at least 1 point but the Swans best player this season, Fernando Llorente, connected with a lovely cross and scored the winning goal with a header from close range. The Clarets are now winless in 4 straight English Premier League matches, suffering 2 losses and pulling 2 draws. The Burnley injury report states that Steven Defour (hamstring) and Tom Heaton (illness) are recovering well and that they should be ready to play on Sunday, while Deam Marney is out indefinitely with a torn ACL.
Anytime the Reds play at the Anfield they are considered as the favorite, no matter who is on the other side of the pitch. However, knowing that the Reds are prone to underachieving against teams outside the Top 6, we have to be extremely cautious of picking the best play to put our money on. However, with only one game left against the Top 6 teams, Liverpool will have an imperative to start winning games at home and stop giving away points to teams from the bottom half of the standings. Acknowledging the Clarets current ranking, I think that they are a heavy underdog in this game and that the Reds could go on and win with at least 2 goals difference, which is why I am picking the AH on Liverpool to win with 2+ goals!!!
My Pick: Liverpool AH -1.5 (-135)
