Leeds United will be looking to record their first victory of the 2021-22 Premier League season when they welcome Liverpool to Elland Road on Sunday afternoon for a mouthwatering encounter.
The Whites are currently 15th in the table with two points from their three matches, while Liverpool have made a strong start, collecting seven points from their opening three fixtures to occupy fifth position.
Match preview
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Leeds were so impressive on their return to the top flight last term, picking up 59 points from 38 matches to claim ninth, just two points behind eighth-place Arsenal and three points behind seventh-place Tottenham Hotspur, and they also ended the campaign in excellent form.
The Whites made a disappointing start to their 2021-22 season, though, as they suffered a 5-1 defeat at Manchester United on August 14; Marcelo Bielsa's side are unbeaten in all competitions since then but are still waiting for their first league victory of the campaign.
Indeed, they have shared the points with Everton and Burnley in their last two Premier League fixtures, which came either side of a 3-0 home success over Crewe Alexandra in the EFL Cup.
Leeds held Liverpool to a 1-1 draw when the two teams locked horns at Elland Road last term, while Bielsa's side were on the wrong end of a seven-goal thriller at Anfield on September 12, and it would not be a surprise if there were goals this weekend considering how both teams will approach the match.
The Whites will be slightly wary of the dreaded second-season syndrome, and Bielsa will be determined to put a league victory on the board as soon as possible, but a revitalised Liverpool are set to provide difficult opposition for the former League One outfit on Sunday afternoon.
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Liverpool's start to the new season has been impressive, as they opened their campaign with a comfortable 3-0 success over Norwich City on August 14 before running out 2-0 winners over Burnley at Anfield one week later.
The Reds actually fell behind to Chelsea in their last match before the international break, with Kai Havertz making the breakthrough, but Mohamed Salah levelled from the penalty spot after Reece James, who was sent off, handled the ball, and the two teams ultimately played out a 1-1 draw.
As mentioned, a return of seven points from three matches has left Jurgen Klopp's side fifth in the table on goal difference, although it is likely that their position in the division will have changed by the time that they take to the field for kickoff on Sunday afternoon.
Liverpool are entering a busy period of the season, as they will open their Champions League group-stage campaign at home to AC Milan next week, before facing Crystal Palace in the Premier League and Norwich City in the EFL Cup in quick succession.
The Reds will also play twice more before the end of the month, travelling to Brentford in the league on September 25 before visiting Porto in the Champions League three days later, and it will be fascinating to see what sort of results the team pick up over the next couple of weeks.
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Team News
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Leeds boss Bielsa revealed during Friday's pre-match press conference that Stuart Dallas, Junior Firpo and Mateusz Klich are all available for selection this weekend, but Robin Koch remains on the treatment table.
Daniel James is also available, having arrived from Manchester United ahead of the transfer deadline, while the Whites will be able to call upon key attacker Raphinha.
A FIFA-imposed suspension looked to be ruling Brazil international out of the contest, but a decision was made on Friday night to overturn the ban, meaning that he is available here.
As for Liverpool, Alisson Becker and Fabinho have also been cleared to play due to their FIFA suspensions being overturned, but Roberto Firmino will miss out through injury.
Virgil van Dijk is available after suffering a fitness scare on international duty, while Harvey Elliott has also been cleared to play, but James Milner and Takumi Minamino remain on the sidelines.
Elliott could retain his spot in the middle of the park alongside Jordan Henderson, while Thiago Alcantara had been in line to feature if Fabinho was not available at Elland Road.
Further forward, there are not expected to be any surprises, with Firmino's absence meaning that Diogo Jota will start alongside Salah and Sadio Mane as part of a front three.
Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Meslier; Ayling, Llorente, Cooper, Firpo; Phillips; Harrison, Dallas, Klich, Raphinha; Bamford
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Elliott; Mane, Jota, Salah
We say: Leeds United 2-2 Liverpool
This has all of the makings of an excellent game of football, and we are predicting goals at Elland Road. Liverpool will fancy their chances of picking up all three points, but Leeds will have a vocal home support behind them, and we are finding it difficult to separate the two teams here.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Liverpool win with a probability of 54.93%. A win for Leeds United had a probability of 23.47% and a draw had a probability of 21.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Liverpool win was 1-2 with a probability of 9.71%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (7.82%) and 0-2 (7.81%). The likeliest Leeds United win was 2-1 (6.03%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (9.71%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with a 5.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Liverpool would win this match.
