SM
Man City vs. Wolves: 1 hr 22 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Talking points ahead of Liverpool's Champions League clash with Napoli

:Headline: Talking points ahead of Liverpool's Champions League clash with Napoli: ID:337553: from db_amp
Jurgen Klopp's side travel to Italy for the game on Wednesday.

Liverpool face Napoli in Italy as they look to build on their opening Champions League win over Group C favourites Paris St Germain.

Here, Press Association Sport looks at some of the main talking points ahead of the clash.

Is Salah stuttering?

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah has not found the net as much as fans have come to expect so far this season (John Walton/PA)

The Egypt international is having to live up to the expectations set by last season's 44-goal form but it is too early to make a judgement on him this campaign. He is a long way from being in the goalscoring crisis some would suggest as his current tally of three is only one down on the same time 12 months ago. He did not really hit top gear until November and while he may not be playing with the same confidence – which could be due to a World Cup
hangover – he is still getting in similar positions and doing the same things which brought him such success in maiden season.

Sturridge can be the new super sub

Liverpool's Daniel Sturridge scored against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup (Martin Rickett/PA)

The England striker may not be happy with is role but he appears to have accepted, indeed embraced it, so far. Four goals, three in his last three, have come from just 187 minutes of action. He has scored on his only two starts but those opportunities were due to an eye injury to Jurgen Klopp's main man Roberto Firmino and when the Brazil international was rested for the Carabao Cup. Realistically there is no conceivable way he will replace the
all-action forward who is key to the manager's game plan. However, having experienced an eye-opening four months on loan at West Brom last season Sturridge has probably realised he can achieve more providing firepower off the bench for Liverpool than he can anywhere else. He remains the best finisher at the club.

Midfield merry-go-round

Jordan Henderson, centre, is Liverpool's midfield pivot (Martin Rickett/PA)

James Milner's brilliant form and Georginio Wijnaldum's improvement and versatility in being able to switch from a number six to a number nine has left Klopp effectively rotating Jordan Henderson and £53million summer arrival Naby Keita. The latter started brightly but has tailed off slightly while Liverpool have looked better with Henderson dictating passes as the midfield pivot. The Champions League may suit better Keita after his experience of a more continental approach to football with RB Leipzig but the options available to him means Klopp has difficult decisions to make. And that is not even considering £43million summer signing Fabinho, who is still trying to get up to speed with Klopp's tactics.

Can Liverpool crack the Stadio San Paolo?

Can Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp engineer a win in Napoli? (Dave Thompson/PA)

Napoli have won eight of 12 Champions League matches at home, although they have lost two of their last three. In their last 26 European fixtures at the San Paolo they have won 16 and lost just four and are unbeaten in all competitions at home since March. Liverpool have scored 50 in their last 16 Champions League matches, finding the net at least twice in 10 off their last 12. They have lost just two of their last 14 European matches but their record
in Italy has seen them win just three of 11 visits, and only one in the last decade (Udinese, 2014). Liverpool have been to the San Paolo only once before, in 2010, and with a team considerably weaker than the current one drew 0-0.

amp_article__337553 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2018-10-02 15:43:57:
html db last update - 2021-02-21 18:01:06 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Share this article now:
Read more about Liverpool Napoli Football
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal36265588286083
2Manchester CityMan City34247382325079
3Liverpool35229477364175
4Aston Villa35207873522167
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs341861067541360
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd34166125251154
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle341651374551953
8Chelsea34149116559651
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham351310125665-949
10Bournemouth36139145263-1148
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves35137154855-746
12Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton341111125257-544
13Fulham35127165155-443
14Crystal Palace351010154557-1240
15Everton36129153849-1137
16Brentford3598185260-835
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3579194262-2026
18Luton TownLuton3668224978-2926
19Burnley3559213870-3224
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd3537253497-6316
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .