Liverpool vs Ipswich

Saturday afternoon brings home challenge for Liverpool as they aim to convert against the relegation prone Ipswich.

The Champions League qualification done, Arne Slot's team returns to domestic duties despite Manchester City's humiliating six-goal defeat of Ipswich Town.

At Anfield Stadium during Tuesday evening's matchup Liverpool held off Lille by surviving a difficult moment to guarantee a first-place finish in the 36-team league segment and secure their flawless European record.

Slot secured his seventh European victory as Liverpool manager after Mohammed Salah scored a beautiful curling effort and Harvey Elliott's desperate deflected shot overcame Jonathan David's equalizer despite giving Lille his seventh professional European win.

The Reds built their Premier League domination to six points above second place during the previous weekend even though Darwin Nunez saved two crucial late goals against a stubborn Brentford side.

With two late goals against Brentford Nunez gave Liverpool their first league win of 2023 while making Slot's home debut undefeated in 17 matches.

Since Nottingham Forest killed the Reds unexpectedly at mid-September the team has scored twice in all competitions over their last 14 home games resulting in what appears to be an inevitable victory when Ipswich visit.

Ipswich Town’s Premier League campaign has been a rollercoaster, with the highs of a three-game unbeaten streak quickly giving way to the lows of consecutive home defeats. Now sitting in the relegation zone, they trail Wolverhampton Wanderers—occupying 17th place—on goal difference alone.

Despite their struggles, Ipswich have shown resilience on the road, earning an impressive 56% of their points away from home this season—a feat surpassed only by Crystal Palace (59%) among all Premier League teams. However, their defensive frailties remain a concern, with no clean sheets in eight consecutive away games.

Anfield, the site of their last win over Liverpool in December 2000—a narrow 1-0 triumph—holds faint memories of glory for Ipswich. But recent encounters paint a different picture, as Liverpool cruised to a 2-0 victory at Portman Road earlier this season, extending their winning streak against the East Anglian side to four matches.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot confirmed that Curtis Jones will be unavailable for the upcoming match after sustaining a slight injury during their win over Lille, where he was forced off at halftime. While Ryan Gravenberch's early substitution in the same game was precautionary, Liverpool will also be without Diogo Jota (muscle injury) and Joe Gomez (hamstring) this weekend. Alexis Mac Allister is likely to step back into midfield to fill the void.

Meanwhile, Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna might abandon the five-at-the-back setup that struggled against Manchester City and revert to his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation to better handle another dangerous opponent. Brighton loanee Julio Enciso could benefit from the tactical shift, though his recent arrival means he is not expected to start.