Mohamed Salah was back in the goals as Liverpool thrashed Manchester United on Tuesday night, netting a brace in the Reds’ 4-0 win as he scored his 30th goal of the season.
With Luis Diaz and Sadio Mane also on the scoresheet, the win moved Jurgen Klopp’s side two points ahead of Man City at the top of the Premier League, having played a game more, with Pep Guardiola’s men in action at home to Brighton on Wednesday night. Coming just days after Liverpool’ s 3-2 win over the reigning champions at Wembley to reach the FA Cup final, it means their hunt for the quadruple remains on with six league games remaining.
Klopp surprisingly made just two changes to the side that beat City, with Joel Matip and Jordan Henderson starting in place of Ibrahima Konate and Naby Keita, having rotated his side significantly at Wembley and in the Reds’ previous meeting against Benfica in the Champions League quarter-finals.
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Back in action at home to Everton on Sunday, Liverpool have plenty of time to recover ahead of the Merseyside derby. However, with the first leg of their Champions League semi-final clash with Villarreal looming days later, the Reds boss might be tempted to make changes again.
And no stranger to naming a surprise starting XI against the Blues, we take a look at the changes Klopp could opt for when welcoming Frank Lampard’s side to Anfield this weekend.
Konate recalled
The obvious change in defence would be if Konate was recalled to start in place of Matip. With three goals from his last three appearances and facing a side with the joint-second worst defensive record facing set-pieces in the Premier League this season, conceding 13 goals, the Frenchman would surely fancy his chances of extending his scoring run.
Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold are expected to keep their places, but Kostas Tsimikas could start at left-back if Klopp wished to rest Andy Robertson’s legs.
Henderson holding
Thiago Alcantara and Fabinho have both been superb in Liverpool’s last two matches, and would surely control in midfield if selected to start in Sunday’s Merseyside derby. But at the same time, Klopp might want to rest one of the duo ahead of facing Villarreal.
Benched against Manchester United, Keita could return to the starting XI in place of either the Spaniard or the Brazilian, with captain Henderson filling the other void.
Meanwhile, Curtis Jones is also an option should the Reds boss wish to rotate further, with James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Harvey Elliott also waiting in the wings.
A change of striker
Boasting one of the quickest attacks in Europe as Salah, Mane and Diaz continue to flourish as a trio, Liverpool’s front-line are well-placed to inflict a torrid time on Everton on Sunday. However, boasting an assist off the bench against United, Diogo Jota could be in line for a recall.
With the Egyptian back in the goals, it would be a surprise if he were benched while the Senegalese and Colombian are both in impressive form. If the Portuguese was recalled, it would perhaps be at the expense of the latter with the Reds’ new-found striker switching back to his natural left-wing role.
Divock Origi is also an option if Klopp wants to thrown in a curveball, given how much he loves scoring against the Blues, while it remains to be seen if Roberto Firmino will be fit after missing the United game with a foot injury.
Possible Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Keita, Henderson, Thiago; Salah, Jota, Mane.
