Mohamed Salah was voted Player of the Match in Liverpool's 6-1 victory over Sparta Prague on Thursday night.The forward put in an impressive display at Anfield, scoring once and recording three assists as the Reds earned a spot in the Europa League quarter-finals.
In our poll in Match Centre afterwards, Salah finished top of the vote ahead of teammates Darwin Nunez and Cody GakpAfter an overwhelming first-leg victory, Liverpool look to seal the deal on their Europa League Round of 16 matchup with Sparta Prague at Anfield on Thursday.
The Reds hold a seemingly insurmountable 5-1 aggregate lead after their romp in the Czech Republic last week, rendering these 90 minutes a mere formality. That should afford Jurgen Klopp the valuable opportunity to rest his remaining starters amidst a massive injury crisis.
Liverpool are fighting on multiple fronts with a paper-thin squad, as the likes of Diogo Jota, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alisson, Ibrahima Konate, Curtis Jones, and others all sidelined with fitness concerns of varying degrees of severWith a host of massive games coming up in the next few weeks, including the FA Cup quarterfinal against Manchester United this coming weekend, Liverpool will have one eye on the future fixtures list as they navigate these low-leverage 90 minutes.It's difficult to predict who will take the field for Liverpool, which makes predicting the match extremely difficult in a number of ways.
At the end of the day, Liverpool will have a better squad on paper, and the injury crisis limits how much rotation Jurgen Klopp can make, so the Reds should have the stronger side at their home fortresWith Liverpool in an overwhelmingly strong position on the aggregate scoreline, those who take the field for Liverpool will look to take the air out of the ball throughout the match, without much motivation to push forward and open up the game.
The Reds should manage to keep a lid on the game with Sparta Prague unlikely to have much motivation themselves to turn the match around.
There's value in the under 2.5 goal total at +180, but in the event Liverpool decide not to mute their high-intensity style, this selection seems more practicaWith the understanding that Liverpool will prioritise keeping Sparta Prague out of the net by smothering possession, a three-score band worth over a 2/1 return is a solid selection.
With so many more important domestic games on the horizon, plus the next round of the Europa League to come, the Reds will not wish to expend too much energy in a match which means very little thanks to their hard work in the first leg.
398.863 SRY