Football
EPL Liverpool vs Leicester City Preview: Tips, Odds, and Prediction
With excitement building and anticipation growing ahead of kickoff, Premier League betting fans are already diving into the odds and assessing both teams, hoping to find the best value. For a detailed, in-depth look at the match, be sure to check out our full preview.
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David McGoldrick and Deandre Yedlin//Getty Images
Arne Slot’s Liverpool FC welcomes Leicester City and Ruud van Nistelrooy to the iconic Anfield Stadium on the day after Christmas.
Liverpool are the league leaders, four points clear with a game in hand, with just one single loss this season so far.
For the visiting Foxes, it’s a completely different story. The 2015-16 Premier League champions are 17th, just two points from the drop zone, and arrive at this toughest game of the season having lost 3-0 at home to relegation rivals, Wolves, in their last match. A heavy defeat like that, to a team lower than them, does not bode well when facing the top of the table.
Over the past 130 years, Liverpool have beaten Leicester City 56 times and lost 41. 25 games ended in a draw. Their recent rivalry has been as one-sided as it can possibly get, with Liverpool winning 11 out of their 14 matches with Leicester, who only managed two wins back.
Relegation teams often have a different kind of fight in them than other teams that are in safer positions, but no much about their season so far suggests they could be one of only two teams to beat the Merseyside giants so far.
Pre-Game Odds and Win Probability: Liverpool Clear Favourites
Home: 1/12 (TBA) – TBA%
Draw: 11/1 (TBA) – TBA%
Away: 22/1 (TBA) – TBA%
*Odds courtesy of Betway, subject to change*
Head-to-Head Record
Last Five Meetings
27/09/23: Liverpool 3-1 Leicester City
15/05/23: Leicester City 0-3 Liverpool
30/12/22: Liverpool 2-1 Leicester City
10/02/22: Liverpool 2-0 Leicester City
28/12/21: Leicester City 1-0 Liverpool
Liverpool: Current Form – WWDWDW
The league leaders are running rampant so far this season, already four points clear at the top with a game advantage over the rest, except for rivals Everton after their derby match was postponed due to high winds.
Only one team have been able to inflict a defeat over The Reds, which was Nottingham Forest back in September.
They have already beaten Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United this season, and even Real Madrid and A.C. Milan in the Champions League.
They have the joint second-best goalscoring record with Chelsea – 37 – only the prolific Spurs have scored more this season. But Spurs have conceded a lot of goals, so its Liverpool who boast the best goal difference on 21, which is three above their biggest threats – Chelsea and Arsenal.
Key Players To Watch
- Mo Salah – Mo Salah has scored 18 goals in all competitions so far this season and, with 15 in the Premier League, he is the leading goalscorer above Man City’s Haaland, who has 13.
- Luis Diaz – Diaz has scored seven in the league season and 11 in all competitions. The Colombian left-winger is a real handful for opposition with his speed and skill.
- Virgil van Dijk – Club captain van Dijk is widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of his generation, known for his strength, leadership, presence and aerial ability. The 33-year-old has played over 200games for Liverpool.
Liverpool Team News
Five Liverpool players are within one more booking of a suspension – Cody Gapko, Dominik Szoboszlai, Darwin Nunez, Ryan Gravenberch and Ibrahima Konate.
Liverpool are interested in midfielder Nico Gonzalez, currently on loan to Juventus from Fiorentina.
Leicester City: Current Form – LLDWLL
Leicester latest loss to relegation rivals Wolves didn’t plunge them into the drop zone, but it did place them only two points from the dreaded area and pile on the pressure.
The Foxes will arrive at Anfield having not kept a clean sheet in their last 11 matches, whilst letting in 11 goals in their three last losses.
Their last win at Anfield was 24 years ago in 2000, so this Boxing Day is going to be a very tough fixture for Ruud’s men.
Key Players To Watch
- Jamie Vardy – Top striker Vardy has scored 180 goals in 420 games for The Foxes to place him as the club’s third all-time top scorer. In 2019-20 season he became the oldest player to ever win the Premier League Golden Boot. The team rely heavily on their talisman and will likely look to him agai in this fixture, knowing he has scored 10 times against Liverpool.
- Stephy Mavididi – The left-winger is a key free-kick and penalty taker for The Foxes. 26-years-old from Derby, Mavididi was a youth player at Arsenal in 2015, but joined Leicester in July 2023 and helped them gain promotion back to the top flight.
- Wilfred Ndidi – Nigerian defensive midfielder has four assists already this season. The 28-year-old has played over 200 games for since joining for £17 million in December 2016.
Leicester City Team News
First-choice goalkeeper Mads Hermansen could be sidelined with a groin injury again.
Ricardo Pereira and Wilfred Ndidi are both out with thigh injuries.
Predicted Line-Ups
Liverpool: 4-2-3-1
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Diaz.
Leicester City: 3-4-2-1
Ward; Okoli, Coady, Faes; Justin, Winks, Soumare, Kristiansen; Buonanotte, El Khannouss; Vardy.
Suggested Bets
If you love betting on football, here are some bets you can place at some of the popular sportsbooks.
Mo Salah to Score First: The league’s top goalscorer is the most likely to strike first. (6/1 with Betway) (4 with 1Win)
Correct Score: The odds for Liverpool to win 3-0 looks attractive. (7/1 with Betway) (7.59 with Pinnacle)
Total Goals Over 5.5: Liverpool scored six in their last match against a tougher team than Leicester City. (12/5 with Betway) (8.9 with 1Win)
Value Bets
Match Winner and Both Teams to Score: Liverpool’s high goalscoring record makes it likely they will score and win, but eight recent goals against could see the visitors get at least one back. (7/5 with Betway) (2.4 with Pinnacle)
Mo Salah to Score 2 or More Goals: This season’s top goalscorer, Mohamed Salah, with 15 in the league, scored twice in his last match. (12/5 with Betway)
Jamie Vardy to Score: Vardy is the most likely man to score for The Foxes, especially since scoring 10 times against Liverpool in his career before. (5 with 1Win)
Prediction: Liverpool to Win
Liverpool have scored an average of 2.31 goals per game in the EPL so far this season, which is the same as Leicester’s goals against.
Having conceded 37 goals already, Leicester could be in for a thumping here, especially after The Reds banged in six in their last game, against a team higher up than The Foxes.
Liverpool have scored at least twice in all their last nine matches, and having the best striker in the league will almost certainly guarantee that number or more, unless something very surprising happens. However, Liverpool have conceded eight goals in their last 270 minutes of EPL games, so Leicester City could find motivation in that stat, especially with a manager that knows the club inside out.
Their home advantage, momentum, ability to score to goals, and just their sheer quality should see Liverpool win this Boxing Day battle 3-0 or over.
Tim has over 27 years experience within the sports industry, working for football clubs Arsenal FC and Millwall FC, and boxing news websites British Boxing News, Boxing Social and Global Boxing News. His boxing articles have been published in Boxing News Magazine, national newspapers, plus many other major news outlets.
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