Southampton v Liverpool Betting Preview: Can Liverpool pull clear of Manchester United at the top?
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Odds and preview ahead of tonight’s Premier League game
We head to the South coast for the final fixture of this Premier League weekend, as table topping Liverpool head to surprise package Southampton.
Two wins from their last five fixtures has seen Jurgen Klopp side’s gap to the chasing pack close, with Manchester United joining them level on 33 points after 16 games.
But the Reds will look to heap the pressure on their title rivals at St. Mary’s Stadium tonight, looking to take advantage of Southampton’s drop in form.
Despite the 200+ mile trip to the South coast, Liverpool are odds-on 4/7 favourites to secure three points at St. Mary’s.
Southampton can be found at 9/2 for a surprise win, with the draw available at 17/5.
Liverpool have won their last six Premier League matches against the Saints, with Southampton’s last league win against the Reds coming in March 2016.
If the Saints are to pose a threat tonight, they could look to former Liverpool frontman Danny Ings to find the net. He’s 11/2 to score first, or 15/8 anytime while strike partner Che Adams is 14/5 anytime.
Liverpool’s front three have 24 league goals between them already this season, including 13 for Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian is the 11/4 favourite to score first, while former Saint Sadio Mane is 7/5 anytime to add to his tally.
The Saints have failed to win in any of their last four matches, picking up three points from a possible 12 including two 0-0 draws in their last two matches.
Despite their poor form, they’ve not slipped out of the running for the top four and they still remain just three points off fourth, though they’d need to win by nine goals to secure their spot in the top four.
They’ll take courage from the fact Liverpool have dropped points in their last two, with draws against Newcastle and the struggling West Bromwich Albion.
On the other hand, Klopp’s side could see this as the perfect opportunity to lay down a marker for the rest of the Premier League with a convincing win.
Their chances may be boosted by the absence of some key figures in the Southampton team. After returning a positive Covid test result, Alex McCarthy won’t feature in between the sticks, paving the way for Fraser Forster to make his first league appearance of the season.
They’ll be without influential defender Jannik Vestergaard too, who has made his presence felt at both ends of the pitch this season, as well as Nathan Redmond.
Liverpool aren’t without their injury issues though, as they’re missing all of their first-choice centre backs, with Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip all sidelined.
That means Fabinho is likely to drop in alongside Rhys Williams, while Thiago should be fit to return to the starting line up after returning from injury against Newcastle. The Reds will also be without Naby Keita and Diogo Jota.
Could Southampton take full advantage of a makeshift back line for Liverpool? We’ve seen bigger shocks this season, and the Saints could march closer to the top four with a huge win here.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication.
