90min

Crystal Palace vs Liverpool Preview: How to Watch on TV, Live Stream, Kick Off Time & Team News

By James Merrills

Firmino's signature smile was on show after scoring the winner in Liverpool's last game.
Firmino's signature smile was on show after scoring the winner in Liverpool's last game. / Pool/Getty Images
facebooktwitterreddit

Premier League leaders Liverpool travel to face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday lunchtime as they look to maintain their place at the top of the table.

Jurgen Klopp's side left it late to beat Tottenham in an enthralling encounter on Wednesday, leapfrogging their opponents courtesy of Roberto Firmino's dramatic winner.

Crystal Palace go into the weekend unbeaten in three fixtures, a run which has seen them thrash West Brom and draw with Tottenham and West Ham. The Eagles have often been a bogey team for Liverpool and were the last side to beat the Reds at Anfield in the league back in 2017.

Here's 90min's preview of the game.

Where to Watch

When Is Kick Off? Saturday 19 December
What Time Is Kick Off? 12:30 (GMT)
Where Is It Played? Selhurst Park
TV Channel? BT Sport 1 (UK), fuboTV (US)
Referee? Jonathan Moss

Firmino scored the winner in a 2-1 victory in this fixture last season.
Firmino scored the winner in a 2-1 victory in this fixture last season. / Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

Team News

Palace striker and former Liverpool man Christian Benteke will miss Saturday's game due to the red card he picked up against West Ham. Martin Kelly and Mamadou Sakho will likely also miss out due to injury.

Hodgson could recall Gary Cahill, Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp but Connor Wickham, Nathan Ferguson and Wayne Hennessey remain unavailable.

The red mist descended on Benteke at the weekend and he received his marching orders.
The red mist descended on Benteke at the weekend and he received his marching orders. / Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Liverpool are still without Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez, who are expected to miss most of the season. New addition Diogo Jota has been ruled out for up to eight weeks, while fellow summer signing Kostas Tsimikas remains on the sidelines. Xherdan Shaqiri and James Milner are unavailable.

Trent Alexander-Arnold has returned to fitness and Joel Matip has recovered from the back problem that kept him out of the Tottenham game. Naby Keita could return at the weekend as could Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who has not featured this season after picking up an injury in pre-season.

Thiago is finally back in training but is not expected to feature until after Christmas.

Predicted Lineups

Crystal Palace: Guaita; Clyne, Kouyate, Cahill, Van Aanholt; Townsend, McArthur, Milivojevic, Schlupp; Zaha, Ayew.

Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Fabinho, Robertson; Henderson, Wijnaldum, Jones; Salah, Firmino, Mane.

Recent Form

Palace achieved their highest ever Premier League away win when they thrashed West Brom 5-1 at the Hawthorns. That performance came before 1-1 draws with London rivals Tottenham and West Ham.

Palace's away win at West Brom was at odds with their usual low-scoring games.
Palace's away win at West Brom was at odds with their usual low-scoring games. / Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

Liverpool are unbeaten in their last nine Premier League games, though that figure includes four draws against opponents they normally beat. The impressive victory over Tottenham was needed after the lacklustre 1-1 draw with Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Crystal Palace

West Ham 1-1 Crystal Palace (16/12)
Crystal Palace 1-1 Tottenham (13/12)
West Brom 1-5 Crystal Palace (6/12)
Crystal Palace 0-2 Newcastle (27/11)
Burnley 1-0 Crystal Palace (23/11)

Liverpool

Liverpool 2-1 Tottenham (16/12)
Fulham 1-1 Liverpool (13/12)
Midtjylland 1-1 Liverpool (9/12)
Liverpool 4-0 Wolves (6/12)
Liverpool 1-0 Ajax (1/12)

Prediction

Fabinho and Matip could resume their centre-back partnership at the weekend.
Fabinho and Matip could resume their centre-back partnership at the weekend. / Pool/Getty Images

Liverpool will be buoyed by the Tottenham win and their ability to once again find a goal in the dying stages. The loss of the in-form Benteke will be a big blow for Palace, who have enjoyed his uptick in form in recent games.

Fabinho has been outstanding at centre back recently and could be the deciding factor in keeping out Wilfried Zaha at the weekend.

Prediction: Crystal Palace 1-2 Liverpool