Liverpool head to Wembley to keep their perfect start

by Jimmy Whitehead

After an international break the Premier League gets back into action this weekend. To kick off the weekend, league leaders Liverpool travel down to London for a key clash with fifth placed Tottenham Hotspur. Although it’s still early in the season, this match could be a pivotal moment for the two heavyweight teams. With Spurs falling slightly behind the lead pack of last at Watford, this could be the chance for the North London team to catch up with the leaders.

Liverpool have won all four games they have played this season only conceding one goal in the process. The goal that was conceded raised a few questions as goalkeeper Allison Becker, a record signing for the position, made a preventable mistake. It could be just a one-off, but one thing is for sure all eyes will be on the Brazilian after his predecessor Karius cost the club goals in the Champions League Final.

Tottenham are looking to bounce back after a shock loss to the surprise package of the season so far, Watford. Other than the loss Spurs have had a good start to this year’s campaign winning the other games they’ve played.

Striker Harry Kane carried his World Cup goal scoring form into the start of the season with two goals already in the process breaking his press-hyped August drout. The England striker likes to play against Liverpool as he has been involved in seven goals in the last seven league games when playing the Reds.

Team news

Heung-Min Son has returned from a successful Asian games tournament and could feature straight away for Tottenham as playmaker but Dele Alli is out with a hamstring injury. Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris is out for several weeks with a thigh injury and Michel Vorm will replace the French World Cup winner. Moussa Sissoko is still a doubt and will be a gameday decision with Mousa Dembele most likely to replace the French international.

For Liverpool there are no new injuries for the team. Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Dejan Lovren are still on the side lines. Vigil van Dijk leads the young defence along with Joe Gomez who replaces the injured Lovren. The Croatian could be back later in the month but will not play until October. Georginio Wijnaldum and Naby Keita have replaced Lallana and Oxlade-Chamberlain in the midfield.

Open Game

By recent results in the Premier League it looks like this game will be a high scoring one. Nineteen goals between the two teams in the opening four games proves that both teams have attacking mindsets. The likelihood of a penalty is great as this fixture has produced more penalties than any other fixture in the Premier League.

Fatigue can be a big factor within the game as well. With the international break only finishing on Tuesday and the number of foreign players on each team, the miles travelled could take their toll. This can make the game more open than usual which generally leads to more goals.

Since Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp took over the team in October 2015 he hasn’t won against Tottenham in London. It looks like the Reds manager could be waiting at least another year as both teams are in good form going into this match. The fixture last year saw a convincing 4-1 win to Spurs and the open styles of both teams could see this result again.

Klopp’s men have a young defence and although they have been solid over the first four games, they haven’t played an attacking team such as Tottenham.

Not that Liverpool’s attack is a slouch though. The front three of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino have produced all but two of the Reds goals this season. The difference may be the experience of the Spurs defence. If the front three of Liverpool can break through, which they have the talent to do then they can give the North London team a run for their money.