Liverpool Vs Brentford, The Reds Present Rock N Roll Style At Anfield

Mohamad Salah, led the Liverpool rock n roll game orchestra. (photo: twitter @LFC)

JAKARTA - Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp faces the challenge of missing Alexis Mac Allister in the Premier League match against Brentford at Anfield on Sunday 12 November.

The Argentine international got his fifth yellow card this season in a match against Luton Town last week. That, it got him suspended and was unable to play when Brentford visited.

Mac Allister will join the list of absent players from Liverpool who already include Curtis Jones (hamstring injury), Andrew Robertson (shoulder injury), Stefan Bajcetic (chip injury), and Thiago Alcantara ( hip injury). Virgil van Dijk (sick) and Ryan Gravenberch ( knee injury) also missed Liverpool's defeat in the Europa League against Toulouse on Thursday, November 9.

However, Klopp is optimistic that Van Dijk's immune system will recover on time for this weekend. The captain is set to return with Ibrahima Konate in front of Alisson Becker, who will replace Caoimhin Kelher on the bench.

Trent Alexander-Arnold will also return to his proper place in the first team. Meanwhile, Kostas Tsimikas, who made an expensive mistake in Toulouse's opener before being replaced in the first half, may be out. Klopp may give Joe Gomez more chance after a full midweek game.

With the absence of Mac Allister, Wataru Endo is predicted to start as Liverpool's defensive midfielder, while there is hope that Gravenberch will recover from his knee problem to join the Japanese player and Dominik Szoboszlai in midfield.

Ben Doak, Luis Diaz, or Cody Gakpo who did not play full on Thursday are likely to be given a break, and Klopp is likely to refresh his attacking line by reinserting Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, and Diogo Jota, whose goals at the Municipal Stadium were not enough to bring Liverpool to victory.

Last season, Liverpool beat Brentford 1-0 at Anfield in early May, but lost 1-3 at the start of the season. This weekend's match at Anfield is a tension stage between the two teams with a contrasting style of play and tactics.

In the previous meeting, Liverpool took the lead in an average shot of 18.2 per game, but recorded 6.9 shots from outside the penalty box, which is the highest in the league. On the other hand, Brentford tends to be more precise with 2.3 shots per game inside area six yards, losing only to Everton.

Apart from firing, the use of long balls also shows differences in approach. Liverpool, despite noting 584 long balls, are only fifth for long ball accuracy. Meanwhile, Brentford showed accuracy by being fourth for long ball accuracy despite being in 12th place for total long ball.

Liverpool tend to apply a "rock and roll" style with lots of shots and a fast transition game, which has proven effective by leading the number of goals through a counter-attack in the Premier League. However, Thomas Frank's Brentford is known as a wiser and pragmatic team, with careful and planned tactics.

The meeting at Anfield is expected to be a battle between Liverpool's attack intensity and Brentford's wise tactics. Both teams have their respective advantages, and the outcome of the match can be determined by the extent to which Liverpool can carry out their "rock and roll" style against more studyable and careful opponents.