Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas has delivered his prediction for Liverpool’s Champions League ‘cracker’ with Napoli on Wednesday night.
The Reds welcome the Italians to Anfield for the second season in a row, with both teams seemingly on course for qualification from the group stage. On this particular occasion, Nicholas believes they will cancel each other out in a 1-1 draw.
“This is another cracker,” he wrote on the Sky Sports website. “These two will go through, but Napoli do not lose many games. They are still unpredictable in terms of their defence. They are powerful but, no matter who the manager is, Napoli do like to get at you and take a risk or two.
“Liverpool are getting over the line at the moment, but it is taking its toll. Do you risk Mohamed Salah again or do you play him against Brighton on Saturday? I have a feeling Liverpool may tinker the team and if you said to both clubs that they would get a point, be content, and qualify at the end of it, they would be more than happy. Liverpool changes may affect the team.”
OPINION
This is a tough one to call. Both these teams are in the driving seat for qualification on nine and eight points respectively, but it’s not a done deal just yet. Nicholas is right that a draw would be the ideal result for both teams, but it’s not going to be as simple as all that. Liverpool try to win every single game they play, particularly at home, and it’s unlikely that that’s going to change on Wednesday. However, Jurgen Klopp may well make some changes to his team. As Nicholas says, the big selection decision the German faces is whether to start Salah or not. The Egyptian was on the substitute’s bench for Saturday’s victory over Crystal Palace. He’s had some ankle problems of late, and with this being a game that they could probably afford to draw – or even lose – he may well leave the former Roma man on the bench once again. Either way it will be a strong Liverpool team, while Lorenzo Insigne hasn’t travelled with Napoli, so perhaps a narrow home win is on the cards.
