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Key events
So what does it mean? Well, Fulham will look to block up the middle with Berge and Lukic, and I’m sure Robinson and Sessegnon will look to gang up on Jones, an emergency right-back.
Liverpool, meanwhile, will hope to exploit the space Robinson leaves – though Salah has been becalmed recently – and for their midfield three to pop the ball about, using their superior touch and nip to keep possession while they work angles.
As below, Slot makes one change: Gakpo for Diaz.
Marco Silva makes five changes following midweek defeat at Arsenal. Jorge Cuenca, Adama Traore, Emile Smith Rowe and Raul Jimenez are all on the bench, with Issa Diop out of the squad entirely; Calvin Bassey, Ryan Sessegnon, Andreas Pereira, Alex Iwobi and Rodrigo Muniz come in.
Ah, one sec, here’s Arne Slot. His tracky bums are very tight; the least said about Jamie Carragher’s brown suede brogues the better.
Slot says he’s got two very good left-wingers to choose from, and this time he went for Gakpo not Diaz. At right-back, meanwhile, Curtis Jones played well against Everton, he thinks, and he can only see how he does against very different opponents by picking him. But Conor Bradley is on the bench, and will also get minutes.
Otherwise, he’s happy with the midweek performance and the reaction to the Tarkowski tackle – you might’ve heard about it – relative to the game at Goodison, not just from his players but from himself.
Liverpool know Fulham like to attack down the wings, but the way Antonee Robinson attacks should leave room for Mohamed Salah to attack
I’m going to write these down, then we’ll reflect on what we might see.
Teams!
Fulham (4-2-3-1): Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Lukic; Iwobi, Pereira, Sessegnon’ Muniz. Subs: Benda, Tete, Cuenca, Reed, Cairney, Smith Rowe, Traore, Willian, Jimenez.
Liverpool (4-3-3): Kelleher; Jones, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister’; Salah, Jota, Gakpo. Subs: Jaros, Endo, Diaz, Nunez, Chiesa, Elliott, Tsimikas, Quansah, Bradley.
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Ashton-under-Lyne)
Preamble
Sixteen years ago, almost to the day, Liverpool visited Craven Cottage and, when Yossi Benayoun scored the winning goal in injury-time to send his team two points clear at the top of the table, the away end could contain itself no longer. “And now you’re gonna believe us, and now you’re gonna believe us,” resounded the chant, “we’re gonna win the league!” Bereft of the title since 1990, relief was palpable.
The problem was, Manchester United had two games in hand. The first, the following day, climaxed with Martin Tyler’s “Machedaaaaaaa” moment, and the second at Wigan, six straight wins later, effectively settled things. Anfield would have to wait a further 11 years to see the Premier League trophy – and even that was disrupted by the pandemic.
This season, there will be no such mishaps. Liverpool have been, by some distance, the best side in the country – a low bar, yes, but also one they’ve sailed over – and all that remains now is for them to indulge in six weeks of parties, starting today. Only they who have suffered can know true joy.
Fulham, though, won’t want to be their patsies – especially after the resounding disappointment of last weekend, a 3-0 home tousing, to Palace, in the last eight of the Cup. With all the noise made elsewhere, it’s easy to overlook the excellence of Marco Silva’s work, but taking a side up from the Championship and immediately establishing them in the middle of the Premier League – without wild spending – is a task proving beyond almost every manager attempting it, and one for which he deserves much praise. The neutrals among us might forgive his side if they mentally check out, but we can be certain that he will not.
Kick-off: 2pm BST
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