LEICESTER host Liverpool at The King Power Stadium on Boxing Day evening. We asked Tom Love (@TomLove_18) to source the best bets from the Premier League encounter.
Leicester v Liverpool | Thursday 26th December 2019, 20:00 | Amazon Prime
Second hosts first for the late game on Boxing Day. Leicester probably need to win this to have any chance of staying in a title race with Liverpool and a win for the Reds will stretch the gap to 13 points with a game in-hand.
That’s an interesting dynamic. Liverpool have been winning by all manner of ways but chiefly by the odd goal. Their performances have been sufficient to garner the best points total at this time of the season of any team in Premier League history yet it doesn’t seem like they’ve been at their scintillating best that often.
The Reds have got the balance just right and Jurgen Klopp deserves a great deal of credit for that. Even with key players out from time to time they have ample options to come in and cover. I do think that Fabinho could be a crucial loss though, especially so in games against strong opponents like this one.
The rangy Brazilian is superb positionally and cleans up in that holding midfield role better than most. Interestingly, the other player of a similar ilk will be playing for Leicester here in Wilfred N’didi.
N’didi has been one of my top five players in the league this season and his role is just as vital as Fabinho’s. It’s easy to forget that the Nigerian international has just turned 23, his awareness and comfort in and out of possession belies his years. N’didi ranks as one of the best in terms of tackles and assists (4.4 and 2.9 per game respectively) and gives the likes of James Maddison and Youri Tielemans freedom to be expressive in more advanced areas.
Liverpool came home from Qatar as world champions after beating Flamengo in extra time at the weekend. They’re straight back into the thick of things here and after a gruelling fixture list one may approach 11/10 quotes on them with caution. With the additional travel and the fact they played 120 minutes in the final of the Club World Cup then it will be some achievement if they followed it up with a win at the second place team in the league.
It’s always hard to get against the Reds given their impeccable 2019 record but I am inclined to get against them here at the prices and the smidgen over 4/5 offering from Bet365 on the Foxes with a +0.5 start on the Asian Handicap does appeal.
On Expected Points (xP), Brendan Rodgers side only rank five fewer than Liverpool and given the fact they’ve scored two or more in 14 of their last 16 games in all competitions they’ll certainly fancy their chances of getting a result at the King Power.
If Liverpool are gettable then it is on the road, their Anfield record is phenomenal and in all fairness their points tally away is also excellent this season. However, of their five of their eight away league wins have been by a single goal margin and one other was a draw at Old Trafford.
In the grand scheme of things a point would be a good result for the visitors here and Klopp will probably take that in order to keep Leicester at arms length in the table.
Another bet that just looks a touch too big for me is in Betfairs OddsOnThat feature. We can get 17/2 onBoth Teams To Score, Each Teams 4+ Corners, Each Teams 2+ Cards, that looks tasty.
True enough, these two aren’t the dirtiest teams in the league but given the fact card happy Michael Oliver has the whistle throw in the magnitude of the game and dangerous attackers on both sides and I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a few cautions.
Leicester have scored in 16/18 games this season whereas Liverpool have notched in all 17 of theirs so the potential for goals at both ends is high. I think the 17/2 is worth a small dabble as a fun bet as it will hopefully at least give you a run for your money.
Best Bets
Leicester v Liverpool – Leicester +0.5 Asian Handicap (41/50 Bet365)
Leicester v Liverpool – Both Teams To Score, Each Teams 4+ Corners, Each Teams 2+ Cards (17/2 (Betfair)
