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West Brom vs Liverpool
| Saturday, April 21st |
Premier League | The Hawthorns
12:30 PM GMT/7:30 AM EST
While Liverpool have the option to use tomorrow’s Premier League fixture as a warm-up in preparation for the first leg of their Champion’s League semi-final match on Tuesday, West Brom find themselves on the brink of relegation. The Baggies have to win tomorrow, or they will be the first of the bottom three to officially be relegated but, after their surprise win against Manchester United last weekend another upset seems rather unlikely.
Mohamed Salah has scored 30 Premier League goals while the Baggies have scored 27 goals for the entire season. West Brom are nine points away from safety and thusly a draw will only do should Swansea avoid defeat against Manchester City on Sunday.
Although West Brom have scored in each of their last seven home PL matches, which is their longest run since a sequence of eight in January 2016, they have only won one of these. The reverse fixture at Anfield ended in a draw in December and the Reds are unbeaten in their last nine PL fixtures against West Brom, however, the Baggies managed to oust the Reds from the FA Cup in January at Anfield.
Projected Liverpool Line-up: 4-3-3:
Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Milner, Wijnaldum, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Salah, Firmino, Mané
Jonny Evans is available for selection after battling with a knee injury and Hal Robson-Kanu is back after suffering a concussion earlier this month. Nacer Chadli may be available tomorrow dependant on his fitness after his thigh injury but James Morrison and Gareth Barry are not, with an Achilles and knee injury respectively while Daniel Sturridge is of course, unable to face his parent club.
While Joe Gomez and Dejan Lovren returned to training this week, Nathaniel Clyne will miss the trip to the Hawthorns as a precaution with a minor muscle issue. Adam Lallana (hamstring), Emre Can (back) and Joel Matip (thigh) are out for the remainder of the season.
What the Managers Had to Say
Jürgen Klopp: There are always personal targets, but the main target for Mo is to finish in the Champions League spots and, in an ideal world, to go to the final – and if you are then there, to win the final. We don’t have to think too much about that; it’s not that we start now bringing him into situations where he can score. We have to play normal football and in the end, if Mo is at his best, he will be a goal threat at least. If he is in the right positions, he will score or not. That’s how it always was.
Darren Moore (caretaker manager): We can’t change what has happened before. We are just looking to the future now and the remaining games. I was delighted for Jay (Rodriguez) to score the winner at Old Trafford in what had been a difficult week. The biggest thing that fills me with joy is how everyone at the club has pulled together and supported me in this role. It’s been great.”
The Officials
Referee: Stuart Attwell Assistants: Simon Long, Daniel Cook Fourth official: Jonathan Moss
Kickoff is set for 12:30PM GMT/7:30AM EST tomorrow, and television listings for the match can be found on LiveSoccerTV. In the meantime, we’ll be keeping you updated with all the build-up to the game, including team news as it’s released, our live matchday thread, and post-match recaps from The Liverpool Offside staff. If you want to join the discussion, sign up for an SB Nation account to have your say on the action as it happens