Liverpool V Arsenal
Wednesday 30 October 2019 – 19:30 Kick-Off
EFL Cup
Pick: Liverpool to WIN
Odds: 17/20
Bookmaker: Betfair
EFL Cup Betting – 22Bet
Preview: The Fourth Round of the EFL Cup has brought Premier League rivals Arsenal and Liverpool together, with two of the biggest and most successful clubs in England renewing their rivalry inside Anfield. What sort of performance – and, perhaps more crucially, starting line-ups – can we expect from both teams?
Liverpool V Arsenal Live Stats & Betting Odds
Liverpool Preview – Klopp’s squad keen to impress?
No club has won this competition more times (8) than Liverpool. Meanwhile, only Man City are shorter odds to lift the trophy this season. Unfortunately, though, this is now a club who believe there are bigger fish to be fried. A busy schedule in the weeks and months ahead, which includes a hectic festive period attempting to combine domestic duties with Club World Cup obligations that occur halfway across the world in Qatar, means we can expect their big hitters to be handed the night off.
Reds manager Jurgen Klopp would steer the club into the final of this tournament in his first season in charge. Since then the German has used this competition more as a means of enabling fringe players to clock up vital minutes. It could, therefore, be a similar side to the one which hosted – and subsequently lost to – Chelsea at Anfield last season. Joe Gomez, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are likely to be among those starting and putting forth their cases for future inclusion.
It explains why Liverpool are such attractive odds to win this contest inside 90 minutes, because under almost all other circumstances the current Premier League pacesetters would be overwhelmingly strong favourites. Nevertheless, the Reds boast a perfect record at Anfield in all competitions this season – that they won all five whilst conceding would highlight Liverpool Win & Both Teams to Score as a bet worthy of consideration at 21/10 (Betway).
Arsenal Preview – Toxic atmosphere building in North London?
Similar to their opponents, this competition finds itself near the very bottom of Arsenal’s list of priorities. The club has only ever lifted the trophy on two occasions, with the latest of those occuring back in 1993. So you wouldn’t want to rush into placing a bet on them in the outright betting, with bookmakers clearly in agreement – there are eight clubs with shorter odds to lift the trophy than their quote of 20/1. Last season seen them exit in the quarter-finals.
To compound matters, there is an all round negative vibe circulating around the club at present. Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace, drawing despite taking an early 2-0 lead, led to tensions not merely coming to the fore but boiling over, as club captain Granit Xhaka’s on-field outburst sent riled up supporters into meltdown. The Swiss midfielder seems certain to sit this one out, but he won’t be alone. David Luiz, Matteo Guendouzi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang seem primed for rotation with more important fixtures on the horizon in mind.
A mixture of youngsters and squad outcasts featured in the previous round, in a resounding 5-0 victory at home to Nottingham Forest. Whether a similar group are good enough to go to Anfield and produce an assured performance remains to be seen but were they to win, it would be Arsenal’s first away to Liverpool since 2012. The Gunners have lost on their most recent four visits, and by a damning aggregate score of 15-3.
Liverpool V Arsenal Key Facts:
- Liverpool boast a perfect record in all competitions as the home side in 2019/20 – winning on all five occasions, including at the weekend over Tottenham (2-1).
- Arsenal have endured a mixed time of things on their travels so far this season, winning only twice in six outings (W2 D2 L2).
- The previous four meetings at Anfield, all in the league, were won by Liverpool – all by at least two clear goals.
Betting Summary
A glamorous tie in name only? Mass rotation could effectively turn this into a battle between the B-Teams of these two clubs. There is undeniably a feel good factor at Anfield at present, though, which is the polar opposite to what Arsenal are currently experiencing. Therefore unless Unai Emery throws a curveball here and names a surprisingly strong team, it could be worth siding with what I believe will be players representing Liverpool who are keen to showcase their credentials ahead of more high-profile fixtures.
Regardless of who starts, supporters of Liverpool are on such a high right now that we can expect an energetic atmosphere inside Anfield. That could be what inspires a big performance from one or two currently on the periphery of a side at the peak of its powers. Games between the two are usually full of goals, though, particularly at Anfield. Liverpool & Over 3.5 Goals appeals at 21/10 with PaddyPower.
