Anfield Assessment

There’s another massive clash in the early title race on Sunday as we get a chance to assess how Liverpool measure up to reigning champions Manchester City.

This is a fixture where you could pick a side to win and easily find a stat to vindicate your selection. But it’s probably too close to call based on what we have seen so far, so the value comes in backing a stalemate. We’ll stretch out our price a little further by backing a draw and under 2.5 goals at 4/1 with Bet365.

The case for Liverpool could be made around that fantastic Anfield record against City (W12 D5) until last season - when the visitors romped to a 4-1 victory. But that was in an empty stadium, so does that even count?

Pep would say yes, and point to their all venue recent run against the Reds, which included plenty of fan-inclusive matches (W3 D3 L1). But flip it again, and you’ll see that Liverpool are unbeaten at home in the league when Van Dijk has played (W44 D6).

And this last point is key. Klopp has his main man transforming the defence again, while the Citizens have been formidable at the back, conceding just once all season in the top flight, and that on the opening day.

So it should be tight, and in early October, in a tight table, neither team would be too unhappy with sharing the spoils.