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Liverpool are looking to pick up a third Premier League win in a row when they clash with Crystal Palace on Saturday.
After Chelsea dropped points in midweek, a win over the Eagles would put Arne Slot’s side in a great position to secure Champions League football next term.
Liverpool are expected to beat Crystal Palace, who will likely have one eye on the Europa Conference League semi-final. That could mean a return to the XI for Rio Ngumoha.
With Arne Slot expected to stay, will Liverpool challenge for the Premier League next season?
Or will it be another difficult campaign? 😬
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Carl Recine Liverpool’s predicted XI vs Crystal Palace includes Rio Ngumoha and Alexander Isak
Starting between the sticks, Slot provided a Liverpool goalkeeper injury update in his pre-match press conference on Friday.
When doing so, he seemed to hint that there is a chance we could see Alisson make his return to the field.
He said: “No Giorgi [Mamardashvili] will definitely not be available tomorrow and not for the upcoming weeks.
“Alli [Alisson] is close to returning to play. Let’s see if tomorrow comes too early.
However, the Brazilian has become injury-prone in the last couple of years, and rushing him back against Palace may not be the best call, given there are much bigger games against Chelsea and Manchester United coming up.
In turn, it may be the case that Freddie Woodman is handed just his second-ever start for the club.
Curtis Jones was chosen to play at right-back against Everton, but with Palace expected to be tough to break down, the attack-minded Jeremie Frimpong may be better suited to this game.
The rest of the backline is expected to remain the same, barring Milos Kerkez coming in for Andy Robertson.
In midfield, it was clear against the Toffees that Liverpool have much more energy when Dominik Szoboszlai is playing through the middle, so he should keep his place alongside Ryan Gravenberch against Palace.
Florian Wirtz would then be the best option as the 10, while Ngumoha needs to start if Liverpool are to effectively get at the team with the third-best defence in the Premier League.
That means dropping Cody Gakpo, who has been off his game this season following a move from PSV in 2023, which cost around £35m.
Mohamed Salah could match Cristiano Ronaldo if he scores at the weekend, and he should keep his place after finding form once more in recent games.
What changes would you make to this XI to face Crystal Palace? 🔄
Liverpool predicted XI vs Crystal Palace – GRV Media
Finally, while Alexander Isak shouldn’t be used for 90 minutes just yet, he should start in order to keep building up fitness following a lengthy layoff.
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