Divock Origi grabs a hat-trick whilst Daniel Sturridge scores twice within an hour as Liverpool thrash Southampton at St Mary’s. Sadio Mane returns to form by netting the hosts’ early opener, courtesy of a Ryan Bertrand assist. Elsewhere, Santi Cazorla could be set for an extended period on the sidelines, whilst West Ham’s Diafra Sakho has been ruled out with a thigh injury sustained against the Baggies last Sunday.
Klopp’s Men Hit Saints for Six
Liverpool stormed into the semi-final of the League Cup by virtue of a 6-1 win over Southampton. Divock Origi claimed the match ball with his maiden hat-trick for the club, while Daniel Sturridge netted a brace before his substitution at the 59-minute mark. Jordon Ibe rounded off the Reds’ scorers. On the assist front, Alberto Moreno (two), Ibe, Joe Allen, Emre Can and Brad Smith supplied the ammunition.
Philippe Coutinho missed out altogether as he looks to shake off a hamstring knock before the weekend, though Jordan Henderson entered the fray in the 74th minute as he builds up his match sharpness. James Milner and Christian Benteke remained on the bench as Jurgen Klopp made six changes from the side that started against Swansea on Sunday, with the Reds manager rolling out a midfield diamond formation, which saw Sturridge and Origi lead the line up top.
Post-match, Klopp explained his raft of changes, saying ”freshness was the key to selection” before revealing that he will continue to rotate in order to manage Sturridge’s minutes in an attempt to keep him out of the treatment room:
“This isn’t the first time we’ve talked about this [Sturridge’s fitness]. We try to do what we can to keep him fit. Sometimes it can be bad luck, even for a long period, but he felt good during the game and at the end of it. He doesn’t have to play in all the games, but if we can decide when is the right moment to fight, and when is the right moment for recovery, everything should be OK.”
The Scout Says: Liverpool’s resounding triumph at St Mary’s Stadium underlines their excellent road form under Klopp. Since the German boss took the reins, the Merseysiders have drawn at Tottenham and recorded convincing victories against Saints, Chelsea and Manchester City. It’s on home turf that the Reds have struggled this term – carding just eight goals in seven matches – but their win over Swansea last weekend was a step in the right direction. Klopp’s raft of changes and post-match comments indicate we may have to get used to rotation in the final third as he attempts to keep his squad content over a busy festive period, with the likes of Benteke, Roberto Firmino and – if fit – Coutinho back in the mix for the trip to St James’ this weekend. With less chopping and changing anticipated in defence, Moreno’s brace of assists puts a spotlight on his attacking threat ahead of Liverpool’s kind schedule (new, WBA, wat, LEI, sun). Priced at 4.9, the former Sevilla defender serves as the cheapest route into the Reds’ rearguard and is ranked joint-second among his counterparts for key passes (seven) in the last four Gameweeks.
Hosts Humbled at St Mary’s
Sadio Mane’s electric opener after 39 seconds – which was assisted by Ryan Bertrand – proved to be no more than a consolation strike as Saints shipped six goals at home for the first time in 20 years. Ronald Koeman made five alterations to the side that lost to City last weekend. In defence, Cedric Soares returned at right-back to replace Maya Yoshida, whilst Steven Caulker came in for the injured Jose Fonte. Elsewhere, Dusan Tadic, Graziano Pelle and Jordy Clasie replaced Shane Long, James Ward-Prowse and Oriol Romeu.
After the match, Koeman conceded his decision to roll out a 3-5-2 formation midway through the second period disastrously backfired:
“The second half is my responsibility. I took the risk to play with three at the back to change the system and try to come back in the game. They punished us from incredible high quality in the space, which they had more of in the second half.”
The Scout Says: Ally this heavy loss with Southampton’s back-to-back defeats in the league, and it’s clear they’ve come off the boil in recent weeks. Although Mane delivered an assist against Man City last time out, he and Pelle have combined for just two goals in the south-coast club’s previous six fixtures – marking a significant downturn in their production. Mane has looked the more likely to post attacking returns in the last four Gameweeks, chalking up four more attempts (nine compared to five) and shots on target (five to one) than Pelle. Alerting us to his differential potential, Dusan Tadic charts top among his team-mates for attempts (10) over that stretch and mustered as many shots inside the box (seven) as Mane. All three will be looking to return to form ahead of a home clash against an Aston Villa outfit that conceded 15 goals in their last five road ties.
Cazorla Concern for Gunners
According to reports in The Guardian, Santi Cazorla suffered knee ligament damage during Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Norwich City and will be consigned to the treatment room for at least three months.
The Scout Says: It’s fair to say that Arsene Wenger’s press conference will be eagerly anticipated as we await news on the likes of Cazorla, Laurent Koscielny and Alexis Sanchez. Assuming the veracity of the report, Arsenal could be without their first-choice central midfield pairing for the foreseeable future, given that Francis Coquelin has also been ruled out for around three months with a similar injury. Cazorla’s absence should pave the way for Aaron Ramsey to drop back into his favoured deep-lying midfield role, despite Wenger’s earlier assertion that the Welshman’s attacking qualities are wasted there. Should Ramsey switch to the double-pivot, the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain or Joel Campbell could be set for a run of starts on the right flank. Ultimately, the potential magnitude of the Gunners’ injury crisis throws up serious concerns about their prospects at both ends of the pitch. If they can plug those gaps to good effect, though, their upcoming schedule (SUN, avl, MCI, sou, BOU, NEW) still looks conducive to Fantasy returns.
Sakho Sidelined for Hammers
West Ham’s head of medical and sports science, Stijn Vandenbroucke, provided an update on the injury Diafra Sakho sustained against West Bromwich Albion, confirming that the Senegal striker is set for a period on the sidelines:
“Diafra unfortunately suffered a significant injury to his left thigh during Sunday’s Barclays Premier League draw with West Bromwich Albion. He underwent a scan on Wednesday and will see a specialist on Thursday, when we hope to learn more and put a more certain timeframe on his absence.”
The Scout Says: We’ll know more by the end of the week, but Sakho’s initial prognosis looks ominous. In the event that the Senegalese frontman is ruled out for a lengthy period, Andy Carroll looks set to reclaim the lone-striker berth. Mauro Zarate is in with a shout, but Slaven Bilic has preferred to deploy the Argentinian marksman as a winger this campaign. The latter is certainly a better prospect from a Fantasy perspective: despite clocking 86 minutes less than Carroll across the last four Gameweeks, Zarate trumped the ex-Newcastle United recruit for attempts (nine compared to five), key passes (three to two) and shots on target (five to one). Regardless, Manuel Lanzini (5.4) – who boasts three goals in six outings – remains the only member of the Hammers’ attacking contingent that’s piquing our interest in the absence of Dimitri Payet.
