Will the Reds take it easy this time?

It’s fun to be a Liverpool FC fan again these days. The Reds are going from victory to victory and are currently convincing all along the line. During the week, the team of coach Jürgen Klopp won the Merseyside derby 4:1 and celebrated their third Premier League victory in a row. During this winning streak, LFC have consistently scored four goals in each match.

Next Saturday, however, Wolves will be an opponent who will not want to make life easy for the third-placed team in the standings. Although Wolverhampton are also considered heavy underdogs against Liverpool according to the odds, recent impressions of the home side do not suggest that a potential win for the favourites will be particularly high.

The team from the English West Midlands has been extremely stable recently. The Wanderers are one of the strongest defensive teams in the Premier League. It can therefore be interesting to place a combined bet on the Wolverhampton vs. Liverpool clash that LFC will win but that the amount of the victory will be limited.

Wolverhampton – Statistics & current form

After a miserable start to the season with three defeats on the first three matchdays and not a single goal scored, Wolverhampton have picked themselves up noticeably in recent weeks. Even better: With only two defeats in the past eleven games, Wolves are one of the most consistent teams in the English top flight.

Eighth place in the interim rankings should nevertheless be treated with caution, as the team of Portuguese coach Bruno Lage still has to face Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea, i.e. the top three, before Christmas. It doesn’t take a prophet to predict that the orange and black will adopt a primarily defensive approach in those matches.

Defensive Yikes, Offense Yikes

The meaningful goal ratio, which shows last year’s 13th-placed team to be the league’s minimalists, is one of the reasons for this. In 14 completed games involving the Wanderers, just 24 goals have been scored so far. That corresponds to an average of just 1.7 goals per match. Only Chelsea and Manchester City have a statistically better defence (twelve goals conceded). At the same time, only promoted Norwich City have scored fewer goals than Adama Traoré and Co.

The recent trend also points in the same direction, as the Lage team has not conceded a goal three times in a row. Nevertheless, they have only managed one win, while the last two matches ended in a goalless draw. The prediction of a maximum of three goals between Wolverhampton and Liverpool is therefore quite logical. Combine this with an expected away win for the Reds and you have a very attractive odds.

In terms of personnel, the eighth-placed team can look forward to the return of Ruben Neves, who has served his ban. Nevertheless, the hospital is still full to bursting. Boly, Jonny, Bueno, Mosquera, Neto and Marcal are still unavailable due to injury or illness. The chances of a surprise coup are certainly not increased by the various absences.

Predicted Wolverhampton line-up:
Sa; Kilman, Coady, Saiss; Semedo, Neves, Moutinho, Ait Nouri; Traore, Jimenez, Hwang

Last matches played by Wolverhampton:

Premier League
12/01 2021 – Wolverhampton 0 – 0 Burnley

11/27 2021 – Norwich 0 – 0 Wolverhampton

11/20 2021 – Wolverhampton 1 – 0 West Ham

11/06 2021 – Crystal Palace 2 – 0 Wolverhampton

11/01 2021 – Wolverhampton 2 – 1 Everton

Liverpool – Statistics & current form

It’s just fun to watch Liverpool Football Club play football at the moment. Further proof of this came in the week’s Merseyside derby at Everton FC, which they won 4-1 in a very commanding manner.

The Reds had already laid the foundations for victory with two earlier goals after around 20 minutes. In all nine Premier League victories this season, betting on double the result (half-time/final score) would thus have been crowned with success. This can certainly be taken as a pointer to check the HT2/FT2 odds in Saturday’s Wolverhampton vs Liverpool clash.

Klopp and his unblemished record against Wolves
The current third in the table stumbling in the West Midlands is unlikely for several reasons at once. Firstly, the 2020 champions have not lost in Wolverhampton for eight games (five wins, three draws). Secondly, Jürgen Klopp has won every match (six in all) against the Orange and Blacks as coach.

Although the Reds’ attacking machinery is running at full speed this season, with 43 goals already to their name, we wouldn’t be surprised to see Mo Salah and his fellow strikers drop down a gear or two this weekend. Having scored four goals in each of their last three Premier League games, Klopp’s side could be content with a lesser victory given their busy December schedule and the fact that this is the last game of a second successive English week.

However, this does not necessarily mean that the aforementioned Mohamed Salah will not continue his impressive streak. In his past twelve league games, the Egyptian has always been involved in at least one goal. In total, he has scored twelve goals and set up six others. Keita, Gomez, Firmino, Elliott and Jones are absent due to injury. However, changes in the starting eleven due to rotation cannot be ruled out.

Predicted Liverpool line-up:
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Jota, Mane

Last matches played by Liverpool:

Premier League
12/01 2021 – Everton 1 – 4 Liverpool FC

11/27 2021 – Liverpool FC 4 – 0 Southampton

Champions League Grp. B
11/24 2021 – Liverpool FC 2 – 0 FC Porto

Premier League
11/20 2021 – Liverpool FC 4 – 0 Arsenal London

11/07 2021 – West Ham 3 – 2 Liverpool FC

Wolverhampton – Liverpool Direct Comparison / H2H Record

Since the highest English division goes by the name Premier League, there have been 14 duels between these clubs. Only once did Wolves come out on top. This compares to eleven LFC wins and two draws. The Reds have not lost any of their last eight league away games at Wolverhampton.

The Reds have recently won five in a row. Particularly interesting and important: In all victories, a maximum of three goals were scored. The last Wolves home game against Liverpool in which four or more goals were scored was over 40 years ago.

Wolverhampton – Liverpool Tip

Betting against Liverpool at their current peak would be grossly negligent. The Reds are in impressive form after the international break, winning three Premier League games in a row, always scoring at least four goals and also providing by far the best attack in the country.

Nevertheless, the home side’s style of play must also be taken into account ahead of the away game in the West Midlands. After all, Wolves have one of the most stable defences in the league, having conceded only twelve goals. Lage’s team has not conceded a goal three times in a row. Two goalless draws in a row, however, also underline why only Norwich City have scored fewer goals than the league leaders over the course of the season.

We therefore believe that Jürgen Klopp’s side, who have won all six of their Premier League games against the Orange and Blacks, will be looking for another win, but that it will be relatively close or without another goal spectacle.

Ahead of the Wolverhampton vs. Liverpool clash, the betting odds on the away win, including a maximum of three goals in the course of the match, compiled with the betting configurator, definitely contain a promising value.