PREMIER League pacesetters Liverpool will be presented with the opportunity to further strengthen their lead at the summit when they welcome rock-bottom Watford to Anfield on Saturday lunchtime.
The Reds have been well-nigh flawless in their opening 16 top-flight fixtures – only Manchester United have managed to halt Jurgen Klopp's juggernaut thus far.
The reigning European champions have recently gone through a spell where they were winning with steel rather than style, however, Klopp's star-studded side are beginning to look like their old selves again after blowing away arch-rivals Everton, Bournemouth and Salzburg respectively.
Such imperious form does not bode well for a Watford outfit who travel to Merseyside marooned at the bottom of the Premier League table on an afternoon where they will be led for the first time by their third manager of the season.
Nigel Pearson is the latest figure to hop into the Hornets hot-seat and the new Vicarage Road boss watched from the stands last weekend as Watford played out a dour 0-0 draw at home to Crystal Palace.
Pearson's first assignment is a formidable one as Watford head to fortress Anfield – a venue where Liverpool have triumphed in their last 15 Premier League matches.
The Betting Odds
It's top versus bottom and that is reflected in the bookmakers odds for this mismatch with Watford a soaring 16/1 (Ladbrokes) to land a shock victory, while a share of the spoils is also deemed improbable at 6/1 (Ladbrokes) with the same firm.
Liverpool have won all eight of their Premier League games at Anfield this season and the home side are big favourites at 1/5 (UniBet) to make it nine home league wins on the spin.
The Betting Angles
I landed a full-house of winners in Liverpool's last league game at Anfield and I'm going to revisit one of those markets on Merseyside again on Saturday afternoon.
Liverpool have led at half time in seven of their eight league games in their own backyard before going on to claim all three points and I fancy the Reds to make that eight out of nine against a confidence-stricken Watford side.
The likes of Arsenal, Leicester and Man City have all found themselves trailing at half time at Anfield and that all adds to the appeal of backing Liverpool at 4/6 (Coral) in the half time/full time market when locking horns with the hapless Hornets.
In considering who may get on the scoresheet for Liverpool, a case could be made for anyone of Klopp's famed front-three, and if pushed, I would plump for Mohamed Salah.
The Egyptian king scored an exquisite goal against Salzburg on Tuesday night to take his overall goal tally for the season to 11 – eight of which have been scored at Anfield – and the 9/10 (UniBet) on offer for Salah to strike on home turf yet again appeals.
Furthermore, Liverpool have been awarded three penalties in their eight Premier League games at home this season- two of which Salah has taken and scored – and another spot kick for the hosts wouldn't come as a surprise given that Watford are the second highest ill-disciplined team in the division.
Anything other than a Liverpool win on Saturday afternoon would represent one of the biggest Premier League shocks of the season so far and as such punters will have to dig deep when trying to source value from another Anfield home win.
Having done just that, I'm going to utilize Bet 365's Bet Builder by combing a Liverpool win, over one goal in the match for Liverpool, over four Liverpool corners and at least one Watford booking, which can be backed at 4/5 (Bet 365)
The Reds have been rampant at home this season where they have scored two or more goals in all of their league outings to date – a stretch of games where Liverpool have taken five or more corners on six occasions – and that combined with at least one Hornets caution looks feasible on an afternoon where it will most likely be backs to the wall for Watford.
This English Premier League match between Liverpool and Watford will be played on Dec 14, 2019 and kick off at 12:30. Check below for our tipsters best Liverpool vs Watford prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
