CF Monterrey Vs Liverpool
Wednesday 18th December 2019 – 17:30 Kick-Off
FIFA Club World Cup
Pick: Liverpool & Over 2.5 Goals
Odds: 4/6
Bookmaker: PaddyPower
FIFA Club World Cup Betting at 22Bet
(All betting odds displayed were correct at the time of writing: 15th December 2019 at 21:40)
Preview: The star attraction at this FIFA Club World Cup are European champions Liverpool, with the current pacesetters in the English Premier League dropped into the semi-final stage of this tournament. Mexican club CF Monterrey are their opponents, with the current CONCACAF Champions League winners keen to cause a monumental upset.
CF Monterrey Preview – North American champions to build on Al Sadd triumph?
Champions of last season’s CONCACAF Champions League, which is essentially for the best teams in North America, Mexican club Monterrey were made to work in their Second Round encounter with the host nation, shading a five-goal thriller 3-2 with Al Sadd. La Albiazules (The White and Blues) twice held two goal advantages, only to see them halved on each occasion, as goals from Leonel Vangioni, Rogello Funes Mori and Carlos Rodriguez eventually guided them to victory.
The Mexican Liga MX is still technically ongoing despite the regular season concluding several weeks ago. Monterrey endured an average campaign in 2018-19, finishing fifth of eighteen teams before succumbing in the semi-finals of the Championship Stage. This current term, however, was even worse, barely scraping into the play-offs after an eight-place finish (W8 D3 L7, GF27 GA23) which seen them accumulate ten points fewer than the team at the top of the standings.
However, this team excelled during the subsequent play-offs, overcoming Santos Laguna (who topped the regular season) and Necaxa to set up a final with Club America that is scheduled to take place straight after this tournament. Clearly there is some moment behind them at this precise moment, which could make them potentially dangerous here. On a more trivial note, former Tottenham flop Vincent Janssen recently completed a move to the club, however, the forward was absent from the squad that faced Al Sadd.
Liverpool Preview – Klopp’s Reds determined to depart Qatar as winners?
Reds boss Jurgen Klopp signalled his intent when naming the strongest possible squad as his travelling party for this tournament, leaving behind a shadow team for the club’s impending EFL Cup Quarter-Final with Aston Villa. Liverpool have, in no uncertain terms, flown halfway across the world to collect more silverware, to complement the captures of last season’s Champions League and UEFA Super Cup. At 4/11 in the outright betting, bookmakers are clearly of the opinion that the European champions are likely to fulfill that objective.
The Reds needn’t worry too much about whatever transpires back home, either, with the team departing England with a commanding ten point lead atop the Premier League following the 2-0 victory over Watford at Anfield on Saturday. It was another below par performance in fairness, something that is almost becoming synonymous with this team who did at least keep a third clean sheet in as many matches – for some context, only four of their sixteen victories in the league this season accompanied a clean sheet.
Winning is a habit, though, and this Liverpool team have been doing plenty of that in the past 18 months or so. Rarely does it even matter whether the performance is satisfactory or not, the wins usually follow such is their phenomenal consistency. This will be an entirely new problem for them to solve however, coming up against unfamiliar opposition all whilst having to acclimatise to an altogether new climate in such a short space of time. Beginning with them facing the current North American champions.
CF Monterrey Vs Liverpool – Key Facts:
- Mexican side Monterrey qualified for this tournament due to their success in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League, the North American equivalent of the Champions League.
- Tournament favourites Liverpool are the reigning UEFA Champions League winners, and top the current Premier League standings (W16 D1).
- Unsurprisingly, this will be a maiden meeting between the clubs. Monterrey are, however, competing in their second match of this tournament after beating Al Sadd 3-2 in a prior round.
Betting Summary
As expected, Liverpool (2/7 BetFred) are favourites to progress onto the final. The Reds are short odds to win inside 90 minutes, perhaps even too short considering the short turnaround between them landing in the country and having to play a competitive game (approximately three days). The conditions were a concern for Jurgen Klopp in his recent interviews regarding the trip although his backroom team will have no doubt prepared the players accordingly.
Monterrey (10/1 WilliamHill) have settled in longer and already have a competitive outing under their belts, beating Al Sadd in the previous round 3-2. The volume of goals suggests these are not the type of opponents who intend on sitting deep and defending for large swathes of this match, which could lead to a very exciting match-up with a Liverpool team who, as we all know, can be ruthless at exploiting any vacant space.
The European champions are down to the bare bones in the centre-back department and haven’t keep many clean sheets this season – though have shut their previous three opponents out. Liverpool & Both Teams to Score is an option at 8/5 with Coral. Alternatively, backing a high-scoring triumph for the English side could be the more straightforward route to a winner.
