Just a few weeks after their thrilling six-goal encounter at Elland Road and the Mohamed Salah storyline that followed, Liverpool and Leeds United meet again, this time at Anfield, for a New Year’s Day Premier League showdown.
Liverpool come into the match on the back of four straight wins, their latest a 2-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Leeds are unbeaten in five games after grinding out a 1-1 draw with Sunderland. On paper, this fixture looks like a mismatch, with the reigning champions facing a side widely tipped to struggle badly, but recent weeks have shown that even teams near the bottom can pose problems, as Arsenal discovered at Molineux.
Arne Slot’s Liverpool side eventually did enough to overcome Wolves, helped by quick goals from Ryan Gravenberch and Florian Wirtz. Wirtz’s strike was particularly notable, as it was his first Premier League goal after 21 attempts, capping an impressive all-round performance that reflected Liverpool’s renewed confidence. The Reds have now won four matches in a row across all competitions, including three consecutive league games, lifting them back into the Premier League’s top four.
That position could still change depending on results elsewhere, but optimism is returning to Anfield, even with Mohamed Salah absent and watching events unfold from afar. History is also firmly on Liverpool’s side, as they have not lost a Premier League game on January 1 since 2005, winning five and drawing one of their New Year’s Day fixtures since then.
Leeds, meanwhile, have far less experience of playing on New Year’s Day at this level. Their last Premier League match on January 1 came back in 2003, a 2-0 win over Birmingham City, and while they did beat the same opponents in the Championship on New Year’s Day last year, that remains their only victory from their last six league games played on this date. Their record away to reigning champions is also poor, with just one win from their last 16 such matches, the standout being a shock victory over Arsenal in 2003.
Still, Daniel Farke’s side arrive with confidence, having gone five games unbeaten and built a comfortable gap over the relegation zone, even if most of that success has come at home. The draw at Sunderland was respectable but also stretched their winless away run to six matches, and they are yet to keep a clean sheet on the road this season.
Their dramatic 3-3 draw with Liverpool in December felt like a point gained, and having already beaten the Reds at Anfield in 2022, Leeds now have a rare opportunity to claim back-to-back league wins at the famous stadium for the first time in their history.
INJURIES & SUSPENSIONS
After serving his suspension, Liverpool can welcome back Dominik Szoboszlai, who is expected to come straight back into the starting lineup at the expense of Federico Chiesa, substituted after just over an hour in his rare start against Wolves. Joe Gomez remains sidelined with a muscle problem, while Wataru Endo is still recovering from an ankle injury, and Alexander Isak and Giovanni Leoni are also unavailable. Mohamed Salah is, of course, absent as he continues his Africa Cup of Nations duties.
Cody Gakpo will be hoping to make an impact at the start of a new calendar year once again, having scored in Liverpool’s opening fixture in each of the last two years, something no player at the club has achieved since Ian Rush in the 1980s. Even so, the Dutch forward is likely to begin the match on the bench and feature later on.
Leeds have their own injury concerns, with Daniel Farke losing Joe Rodon to what looked like a serious ankle problem at Sunderland. While the full extent of the injury is still unclear, a return in time for Thursday’s match appears highly unlikely. Rodon joins Sean Longstaff, who is struggling with a calf issue, and Daniel James, who has a thigh injury, on the sidelines.
Rodon’s absence could prompt a switch back to a back four, with Ao Tanaka a strong candidate to come in after replacing him during the first half at the Stadium of Light and later scoring Leeds’ equaliser against Liverpool in December.
There is better news further forward, though, as Dominic Calvert-Lewin continues his remarkable scoring run. He has now scored in six consecutive Premier League games, becoming the first Leeds player to do so and surpassing the longest scoring streak ever managed by Harry Kane in the competition.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Alisson; Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Jones; Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Wirtz; Ekitike
Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Perri; Bogle, Struijk, Bijol, Gudmundsson; Stach, Ampadu, Tanaka; Aaronson, Calvert-Lewin, Okafor
EXPERT PREDICTION
Liverpool 2-1 Leeds
