Liverpool return to Premier League action in the early kick-off on Saturday afternoon with a trip to St James' Park to face Newcastle United.
The Reds can temporarily leapfrog title rivals Manchester City in the table with a win before Pep Guardiola's side take on Leeds United later in the day. Just a single point currently separates the league leaders at the summit.
Liverpool go into Saturday's game in fine form having beaten Villarreal 2-0 in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie on Wednesday night. Newcastle, though, will be a different test and pundits have predicted a difficult game for Jurgen Klopp's side.
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Michael Owen, BetVictor (Newcastle 1-2 Liverpool)
Ex-Red Michael Owen has warned that Newcastle are in fine form heading into the game, but feels Liverpool's momentum should see them through on this occasion.
"Make no mistake, this is far from a straightforward game for Liverpool," he said. "Newcastle have won four in a row in all competitions, conceding just one in that time. They cruised to the win at Norwich last week, this side is full of confidence.
"Liverpool probably could have had more goals against Villareal, but it was a comfortable 2-0 win nonetheless. The last two wins have been against sides who have defended deep and tried to frustrate them, Everton and Villareal, it’s a good sign that they still found a way to win.
"Liverpool have so much momentum right now. This won’t be easy, Newcastle are in great form themselves. I’m going for 2-1 Liverpool."
Paul Merson, Sportskeeda (Newcastle 1-3 Liverpool)
Former Arsenal star Paul Merson agrees that Liverpool will take all three points from this game and insists this is a 'must win' for the Merseyside club.
He said: "You've got a team that's won four on the trot playing against a phenomenal Liverpool side this weekend. This game will tell Newcastle how far they've come and how far they've got to go.
"I'd be shocked if Jurgen Klopp rotated his team this weekend. Villarreal were well out of their depth on Wednesday night and aren't going to score three goals next week. Liverpool can even afford to lose that game, but they cannot drop points here.
"Liverpool must win this game because a draw is no good. City and Liverpool are miles ahead of every other Premier League team at the moment. Newcastle have done great - don't get me wrong - but they'll face a different kind of opponent in Liverpool."
Mark Lawrenson, BBC Sport (Newcastle 0-2 Liverpool)
Another ex-Red Mark Lawrenson has also backed Liverpool to see off Newcastle and insists his former club are at a 'different level' to the teams the hosts have beaten in recent weeks.
He said: "Villarreal did not really pose Liverpool too many problems in their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday, but I'd expect Newcastle to be much more of a threat going forward. They won't be gung-ho or anything like that, but the way they have kicked on in the past few weeks means they go into this game without being under any pressure whatsoever.
"After winning four games in a row, Newcastle will be full of confidence but, if that means they are even slightly more open than usual this weekend, that will suit Jurgen Klopp's side. I'm sure Howe's plan will still be to make sure they are difficult to beat, but I don't think the home fans will settle for seeing them put 11 men behind the ball for 90 minutes and just play for a point.
"The problem there is that Liverpool are at a different level to any of the sides Newcastle have just beaten - the Canaries, Crystal Palace, Leicester and Wolves. Also, the way the Reds are playing makes me think they will get the result they need, no matter who is in their team. They are just in that zone."
