da mrbet： Liverpool will look to clinch their fifth successive victory in the Premier League this evening as they welcome Fulham to Anfield amid the pursuit of a late surge towards Champions League contention, having fallen by the wayside earlier this term.
da betsson： The club's woes have resulted in a plummet from prominence and a forced acknowledgement of the unthinkable reality of missing out on Champions League football next season after challenging for a historic quadruple last term, top-four surely the barest of minimums for such a talented and proven squad.
With fourth-placed Manchester United seven points ahead of the Reds and with a game in hand, attempts to issue a late sprint could well be deemed forlorn, but should the Red Devils and Newcastle United cede territory in the coming weeks, Klopp will be waiting to pounce like a cheetah biding its time in a lengthy hunt.
Four wins on the trot certainly quilt the seasonal misfortune with a late layer of optimism, but the recent 4-3 victory over Tottenham Hotspur, enthralling though it was, illuminated the issues that have plagued the Anfield contingency this season.
Diogo Jota incredibly found a winner in the dying embers after Spurs climbed back from three goals down, but the chaotic nature of Liverpool's season was on stark display during those tumultuous 94 minutes, and stalwart Andy Robertson was among the culprits for Spurs' rousing attempted fightback.
Should Klopp start Tsimikas against Fulham?
Recording a poor Sofascore rating of 6.4, Robertson flattered to deceive despite his outfit's remarkable win, making two calamitous errors and being branded with a chastening 5/10 match rating by Goal's Neil Jones, who criticised his inexplicable lack of awareness.
After such a "horrific" day at the office – as per writer Dave Hendrick – Klopp might be wise to offer a rare league start to Kostas Tsimikas, who has impressed with his creativity when called upon since signing from Greek giants Olympiakos for roughly £11m in 2020.
One of the better back-ups down the defensive left-back in English football, the 26-year-old has made 57 appearances for his club and won the FA Cup and Carabao Cup – while he hasn't found the back of the net himself, Tsimikas has registered 12 assists at a rate of 0.21 per outing.
Fulham have been impressive this season after clinching promotion from the second tier and perch in tenth place after 33 outings, five points above shambolic Chelsea with a game in hand.
And while recent form has left the Cottagers with just two victories from nine Premier League fixtures, the danger they imposed upon Manchester City during the recent 2-1 defeat illustrates the threat that could break Liverpool's resolve.
Completing eight of his ten long balls and succeeding with half of his six crosses, Tsimikas, who has made six assists this season despite his limited game time and succeeds with an average of 68% of his long balls, could wreak havoc on the opposition defence, also hailed as "fantastic” by Ian Doyle.
The £50k-per-week man could also play a big part in nullifying former Liverpool winger Harry Wilson, who has scored two goals and served one assist across his past three starting appearances in the English top-flight.
With the 26-cap Greek marauder ranking among the top 1% of full-backs for rate of assists, the top 2% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for attempted passes and the top 9% for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref, Wilson will likely have his work cut out to stop the ace from finding fruit down the left flank, thus negating his ability to stamp his authority on the game from an offensive standpoint.
With maintaining recent momentum simply paramount to the outfit's slim chances of retaining their position in the Champions League, a slip-up against Fulham is simply inconceivable, and freshening up the starting 11 with Tsimikas' inclusion could just be key to unlocking a sturdy defence and taking another stride towards pulling off a monumental late push for top-four.