Jose Mourinho would desperately love to end Liverpool's unbeaten run, but Paul Higham says Spurs will struggle as he previews Saturday's big game.
1pt Liverpool to beat Spurs to nil at 9/4
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Can anyone beat Liverpool this season? That seems to be the only question left in a title race most people believe is already over, but can you just imagine if Jose Mourinho could be the one to do the unthinkable?
Liverpool have been so good that even with just under half of the season still to play they are only 8/1 to finish the Premier League season unbeaten. Of all the managers to inflict a first defeat, Mourinho would love to be the one to do it.
He’s been there and done it before of course, ever since he shushed the travelling Liverpool fans when winning the 2005 League Cup in Cardiff – the two seem to collide in huge footballing battles.
From that ‘ghost goal’ saga in the 2005 Champions League semi-final to Steven Gerrard’s title slip-up, Mourinho and Liverpool seem to go hand-in-hand in terms of big games.
Mourinho was striding down the Anfield touchline beating his Chelsea-badged chest after they ended Liverpool’s title dreams in 2014 – but four years later a woeful defeat saw him lose his Manchester United job. It is never straightforward when these two meet.
He has struggled against Jurgen Klopp traditionally, winning just twice in ten games against the German.
And this time Mourinho is right up against it as he tries to be that spanner in the works once again, with injuries not helping his slim chances of victory given the widening gulf between the two sides – which sits at a remarkable 28 points at kick-off.
Harry Kane is out, and midfielders are thin on the ground as Spurs go through a tough time in the treatment room. But, as our columnist Alex Keble rightly points out, Kane’s absence in particular may just play into Mourinho’s strengths as he now has a legitimate reason to ‘park the bus’.
Mourinho’s Spurs have been most un-Mourinholike so far with goals flying in at both ends, defensive leopards don’t change their spots though, and the Portuguese will be itching to plug those defensive leaks as soon as he can.
Tottenham fans won’t tolerate his old school sit-back football style but in this one-off occasion he can bring out the old double decker and try and frustrate Liverpool in the hope of pinching something on the break.
The main problem is, though, that Mourinho’s Spurs just don’t seem capable of keeping clean sheets having managed just two all season, so having a team that has scored in 29 straight games coming to town is hardly ideal.
Spurs have only won one of their last 14 league games against the Reds and Klopp’s outfit just don’t look like losing, whatever team he selects, and after making changes against Everton the likes of Salah, Firmino, Mane, Van Dijk and Henderson have all had a week’s rest to recover from a hectic and successful Christmas.
Liverpool have also rediscovered their defensive nous over the last four games, keeping five straight league clean sheets and eight out of ten in all competitions. They really are an outstanding team and a nightmare to play against with their combination of tireless running and outstanding ability.
You can almost bank on a Liverpool victory, but it’s the manner of the win that we need to focus on, and principally whether Tottenham can trouble Alisson Becker or not on the break – which seems their only real route to goal.
If you have seen Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk play together recently you will have seen a blossoming partnership that could rival anything we’ve seen in years, and without Kane’s clinical eye for goal the best guess is that Spurs won’t be able to breach that solid rearguard.
Prediction: Tottenham 0-2 Liverpool (Sky Bet odds: 17/2)
Best bet: Liverpool to beat Spurs to nil at 9/4
Price Boost: Virgil van Dijk to score a header at 16/1
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Odds correct as of 2230 GMT on 09/01/19