Managers:
Liverpool FC: Brendan Rodgers
West Ham United: Slaven Bilic
Current League Form
Liverpool FC: WWD
West Ham United: WLLGreetings Football fans and welcome back to Anfield and to week four of this seasons Premier League. Today our Reds take on the Hammers from East London, West Ham United. There have been quite a few changes to both sides since their last meeting, one that ended 2-0 in the favour of Liverpool, with goals from Sterling and Sturridge. West Ham have parted ways with Fat Sam, I mean Big Sam Allardyce and have replaced him with Slaven Bilic. The Hammers have also improved in their midfield with the acquisition of Payet, who has had an immediate impact in their side. However, it seems the improvement of the midfield was done at the cost of width and speed on the pitch. Look for their fullbacks (Cresswell in particular) to try and make runs along the wings but for their up-field players to be lacking in play out wide. Liverpool have also changed, we have been bolstered in every department, and we have started to look dangerous as Arsenal found out last weekend. It will be only a matter of time before Couthino and Firmino link up with Benteke and produce some quality goals. Lovren looks a new player and Gomez has been brilliant. Liverpool are West Ham's bogy team, as it has been over a half century since they last beat us at home, a trend and long may continue. Rodgers looks to be continuing his plan at Arsenal, controlling space, as Lucas and Can and Milner will be making up our midfield three with the aforementioned Couthino, Firmino, and Benteke spearheading our attack. Henderson is still out with an Injury so Milner is acting captain. Sturridge, Allen, Flanno, and Lallana too are out with knocks/recovering from injury/operations. West Ham are without Adrian, who is serving the last of his three match ban for the straight Red he received in week two of the season. Andy Carroll is still unfit, surprise surprise, and Valencia picked up a knock this week, while Nolan left the club by mutual consent this week.
West Ham have also had discipline problems on the pitch this season, having been shown five red cards in their nine competitive games this season, compared to three in 43 games in 2014-15.
I am betting on comfortable play by the men in
Red and for a continuation of our trend of clean sheets.
Make it so.
Get to the Kop.
Sing your hearts out.
Lift the players like you do your scarves and flags.
COME ON YOU RED MEN! Manager Quotes - Rodgers: "West Ham at home will be our toughest game of the four [so far]. They had an excellent result away at Arsenal. If you want to be fighting at the top end of the table your home form is vital. The hunger has returned back into the team - that freshness and ability to play with no fear. There are new players here with new ambition."
Bilic: "They are a tough team and have seven points, they have not scored so many goals but have not conceded many. The results are different. If you see the players they have bought, they still want to be attacking and score goals. They have quality in every department of the pitch and are really dangerous up front. Now they have physical size with [Christian] Benteke and the quality with [Philippe] Coutinho and [Roberto] Firmino. Seven points from three games is what they expected and I am expecting a tough game. But we are positive as well and they have their weaknesses which we need to exploit."
Lineups - Forthcoming
Liverpool FC: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Lovren, Gomez, Lucas, Can, Milner, Firmino, Coutinho, Benteke
Subs: Bogdan, Ings, Origi, Sakho, Rossiter, Moreno, Ibe
West Ham United: Randolph, Tomkins, Reid, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Obiang, Kouyate, Lanzini, Noble (c), Payet, S
Subs: Spiegel, Jarvis, Oxford, Lee, Cullen, Samuelsen, Knoyle
Match Officials -
Referee: Kevin Friend
Assistants: S Child, C Hatzidakis
Fourth Official: P Tierney
Interesting Match Facts:
It is more than nine years since a West Ham player scored in a Premier League match at Anfield: Bobby Zamora in a 2-1 defeat in August 2006. The Hammers' only Premier League goal at Anfield since then was a Martin Skrtel own goal in the 4-1 loss in December 2013.
Liverpool have won nine and lost two of their last 14 Barclays Premier League matches at Anfield, with only one team (Sunderland) keeping a clean sheet in that run.
West Ham have won none of their last 42 league visits to Anfield, losing 31.
In top-flight history, the Hammers' 42-match winless away streak at Liverpool is lower than only Stoke City’s 52-match winless run at Liverpool (which is also current).
West Ham had won none of their 12 previous BPL away outings before beating Arsenal on the opening day of this season.
Slaven Bilic was the Beşiktaş manager when they knocked Liverpool out of last season's Europa League 5-4 on penalties in the round of 32 after a 1-1 aggregate draw.
