Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur Betting Tips

This tie is undoubtedly the biggest fixture in Tuesday night’s League Cup line-up as these two Premier League giants go head-to-head. Unfortunately, given the big clubs’ attitude towards this competition nowadays, do not be surprised to see severely weakened teams on display at Anfield.

2015/16 League Cup runners-up Liverpool secured a 2-1 victory against West Bromwich Albion at the weekend, but really should have won by a clearer margin. Although Liverpool’s attacking play is coming to fruition in terms of wins in the league, you feel that, with the number of chances they create, they could be scoring even more goals.

Manager Jurgen Klopp has made Anfield a fortress for Liverpool and they have not lost a competitive game at home since a 1-0 loss to Manchester United back in January. However, this will be a different test for the Reds as they have not faced a top level side in the League Cup for 18 months or so when they drew against Chelsea.

Klopp will no doubt weaken his team against Spurs on Tuesday and it will be interesting to see if they have what it takes to do well against a very good Tottenham team.

The question surrounding Liverpool will always be their defence. They simply concede far too many goals (mainly due to unforgivable individual mistakes) and this could cost them dear in a title challenge – just as it did for Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool side back in the 2013/14 season.

The goalkeeping situation is another one that needs to be sorted quickly by Klopp. He bought German Loris Karius in the summer but he seems to be dropping a couple of clangers. Last season’s number one – error prone Belgian Simon Mignolet – is likely to be guarding the net against Spurs. Expect fireworks.

Set pieces are another weakness in the Liverpool team and I highly doubt an inexperienced team will fare any better than the usual first choice XI in this department.

People say that Spurs do not have the squad depth to compete on four fronts (League, Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup) and they should concentrate on just the Premier League and Champions League, however, I totally disagree.

Tottenham do have a good squad depth and there is no reason why they cannot challenge for at least three trophies this season. Perhaps the only mark against them is their intense playing style – again I would disagree. It is their footballing philosophy – you cannot pick and choose when it works to suit your needs and use it to make excuses about ‘tiredness’ in certain competitions that you are not bothered about.

There is no doubt that manager Mauricio Pochettino will weaken his squad against Liverpool, but I would still back those players to beat Liverpool’s weakened team.

For starters the depth at Spurs is generally better whilst their defensive setup is much better than Liverpool’s – vital in matches involving weakened XI’s. Additionally, Tottenham have a much more trustworthy backup goalkeeper in Michel Vorm than Liverpool do in Simon Mignolet.

The bookies have gone heavily in favour of the home side here, but I am not sure why. Spurs have greater depth and are more reliable and I expect that to see them through at Anfield on Tuesday. The Tottenham win at 4/1 is too high a price to resist given the circumstances.

I would also look at ‘Vincent Janssen to Score Anytime’. Since his move from AZ Alkmaar, the Dutchman has failed to score in the Premier League for his new team, but has done everything but – he holds the ball up and well links the play, as well as getting himself into good positions. It’s surely just a matter of time before things click for the centre-forward. Having not started against Bournemouth, you’d have to say he’s a guaranteed starter in this match and it would be no surprise to see him find the net.

Janssen already has a goal in the League Cup this season (in the 5-0 thrashing of Gillingham) and I imagine Pochettino will give him a run out against Liverpool in order to help him boost his goal tally.

Going up against a Liverpool defence that will be even weaker than usually, I would certainly back the 22-year-old to score at 31/10.

See more tips here.