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Saturday, 10 December 2011
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Queens Park Rangers, 15:00
Author: Thomas Rooney 07/12/2011
Liverpool host Queens Park Rangers at Anfield this weekend, once again needing three points to close the gap between themselves and the top four in the Premier League.
There is no doubt that it has been a very frustrating season for Kenny Dalglish’s men so far. They have shown real quality at times – the 2-1 win at Chelsea for example – but more often than this, they have dropped points against teams they really should be beating.
The home draws with Norwich City and Swansea City have been mentioned many times and most recently it was a 1-0 defeat at Fulham that left Liverpool fans wondering whether too much has changed in terms of their ambitions for this season compared to last.
Looking at the league table, they currently sit 7th, five points adrift of the top four. The current occupants of the Champions League places – Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham and Chelsea – are all looking relatively good too, so can Liverpool close the gap?
The strange thing with Liverpool at the moment is that, without looking at their results, you would say they are playing excellent football, have a better squad than the last couple of seasons and are generally moving forward under Dalglish.
Now, all of these points may be true to an extent, but this is a results business and the fact is that they have only won two of their last seven Premier League games.
They have been the drawn specialists at Anfield this year too with five of their seven home matches ending all square. They need this to change if they are to push the top four and they need it to start against QPR this weekend.
As for Neil Warnock’s men, well they will enjoy this fixture. Not only are they underdogs with little pressure on them, but visiting places like Anfield is why they won promotion.
Then, encouraged by the results of Norwich and Swansea against Liverpool this season, they have genuine hope that they can get something. All in all, it is one everyone associated with the Loftus Road club will be excited about.
Looking at their own form, it has only been consistent by its inconsistency. The last three games have resulted in a victory, defeat and a loss. Overall, this sums up how things have gone for them this year.
Fresh from promotion last year, QPR are 12th in the Premier League at the moment, in a cluster of teams on 16 points and it seems fair to say that you don’t know what to expect from them each week.
Against Liverpool this weekend, they could show the spirit displayed in the victory over Chelsea or they could self-destruct like they did during the 6-0 defeat at Fulham earlier this season.
In truth, it could be a balance between the two. They may have their moments against Liverpool, but it is the home side that will come away with a relatively comfortable victory.
Football betting tip: Liverpool on the Asian Handicap -1.5 @ 2.000 with Bet365 - (£200 extra on your deposit)
Correct score prediction: Liverpool 2:1 Queens Park Rangers @ 9.6 with Betfair
Watch our Football Video Podcast on the Liverpool v Queens Park Rangers match by Thomas Rooney and Pete South including their predictions.
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