Liverpool returns to Premier League action this Saturday afternoon as they welcome Bournemouth to Anfield, fresh off the back of an impressive comeback win in the Champions League.
The Reds triumphed 3-1 over AC Milan on Tuesday, while Bournemouth have had a week to recover from their narrow 1-0 defeat at home to Chelsea.
Liverpool vs Bournemouth Match Preview
New Liverpool boss Arne Slot celebrated his birthday in style at the San Siro. Despite going behind early to a Christian Pulisic strike, Liverpool responded in typical fashion. Headers from Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate put the visitors in front before Dominik Szoboszlai added a third to cap off a memorable night for Slot in Europe.
While it wasn’t quite the scale of the Istanbul 2005 miracle, the Reds’ comeback win was a perfect response to last weekend’s disappointing 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest. A spectacular Callum Hudson-Odoi goal handed Slot his first defeat in the Premier League, but Liverpool still sits fourth in the table, just one point behind Arsenal and Newcastle, and two points shy of leaders Manchester City.
Slot’s men also boast the joint-best defensive record in the division, conceding just one goal and facing the fewest shots in the league thus far. Their resolute backline will aim to keep another clean sheet when Bournemouth arrive at Anfield.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, will still be ruing their late collapse against Chelsea last weekend. Andoni Iraola’s side came agonizingly close to maintaining their unbeaten start to the season, only for a last-gasp goal from substitute Christopher Nkunku to snatch the points for Chelsea.
Had they held on, Bournemouth would have gone four matches unbeaten to start a Premier League campaign for the first time in their history. Despite that setback, they sit 11th in the table and have the chance to pull off a remarkable double over Merseyside clubs, having already beaten Everton earlier this season. A win at Anfield would see them emulate 2012 Arsenal and 2021 Manchester City as the only sides to claim back-to-back away wins over Liverpool and Everton.
Team News
For Liverpool, Italian winger Federico Chiesa debuted off the bench in the win against Milan and could be in line for his first start of the season. The only absentee for the Reds is Harvey Elliott, who remains sidelined with a foot fracture. Andrew Robertson is expected to return to the starting lineup, replacing Kostas Tsimikas, while Luis Diaz could start ahead of Cody Gakpo, despite the Dutchman’s assist in midweek.
Bournemouth will be boosted by the return of on-loan Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, who was ineligible to face his parent club last week. Tyler Adams (back) and Dango Ouattara (ankle) remain sidelined through injury. Evanilson could retain his place up front despite missing a penalty against Chelsea but faces competition from the fit-again Enes Unal.
Key Stats
Liverpool have won nine of their last 10 Premier League meetings with Bournemouth, except a 1-0 away defeat in March 2023.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth have lost nine of their 10 away games against Liverpool in all competitions, with a 2-2 draw in the Premier League in April 2017 the only time they’ve taken a point off them at Anfield.
Of course, Bournemouth fans will still have nightmares about their visit to Anfield back in August 2022, when Liverpool secured the joint-biggest Premier League win in history (9-0).
The last meeting between the sides came back in January, with Darwin Núñez and Diogo Jota scoring twice each as Liverpool cruised to a 4-0 win.
