Jurgen Klopp’s side will be looking to continue their title push at Molineux on Friday night
Wolves are to host table-toppers Liverpool in the first Premier League match of the weekend on Friday.
The Reds come into this game one point clear of Manchester City at the summit of the league table and know that a win against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side will keep them there for Christmas.
But Wolves are on an impressive run of their own, having recovered from a slight blip to win their last three matches, and a victory on Friday would see them leapfrog Manchester United into sixth place.
Liverpool are still unbeaten in the league as we approach the halfway point of the season.
| Game | Wolves vs Liverpool |
| Date | Friday, December 21 |
| Time | 8:00pm GMT / 3:00pm ET |
| Stream (US) | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial) .
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| NBCSN | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched live on Sky Sports Main Event/Sky Sports Premier League and streamed on Sky Go.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Sky Sports Main Event/Sky Sports Premier League | Sky Go |
| Position | Wolves players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Patricio, Ruddy, Norris |
| Defenders | Doherty, Bennett, Coady, Jonny, Hause, Boly, Vinagre, Iorfa, Ebanks-Landell |
| Midfielders | Neves, Gibbs-White, Saiss, Moutinho, Dendoncker, Giles, Watt, Pote |
| Forwards | Cavaleiro, Costa, Bonatini, Jimenez, Traore, Ashley-Seal |
Wolves have just the one injury concern heading into this match, with forward Diogo Jota unavailable due to a hamstring injury that he sustained in their win against Bournemouth last Saturday.
Adama Traore is the two replacement for the former Atletico Madrid man, who had scored two goals in his last three appearances.
Wolves starting XI: Patricio; Otto, Bennett, Coady, Boly, Doherty; Saiss, Neves, Moutinho; Jimenez, Traore.
| Position | Liverpool players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Alisson, Mignolet, Kelleher, Grabara |
| Defenders | Clyne, Lovren, Van Dijk, Moreno, Robertson |
| Midfielders | Fabinho, Henderson, Wijnaldum, Milner, Keita, Jones, Lallana, Shaqiri, Camacho, Mane |
| Forwards | Firmino, Salah, Sturridge, Solanke, Origi |
Liverpool still have a number of injury issues in defence, with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold unlikely to recover in time to feature.
James Milner missed the Reds’ win over Manchester United with a muscle complaint but returns as a fullback. Joe Gomez and Joel Matip remain out.
Liverpool starting XI: Alisson; Milner, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Shaqiri, Henderson, Wijnaldum, Mane; Firmino; Salah.
Wolves are priced at odds of winning 6/1 according to bet 365 , while a draw is available at 16/5. A win for Liverpool is priced at 11/20.
Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
This is the first of two games between these two sides in the coming weeks, with Liverpool also travelling to Molineux for their FA Cup third round tie in early January.
Wolves’ recent run has seen them beat Chelsea, Newcastle and Bournemouth this month, but manager Nuno has admitted that Friday’s clash will be a ‘big challenge’ for his side against a team who have conceded just seven league goals from 17 matches this season.
“I see it as a big challenge for us,” the Wolves boss said. “[We] always focus on what you want to do on the pitch, that’s what is important, don’t live on desire.
“We treat all the opponents with the same careful detail and time because it’s important the way you prepare for competition.
“We know how tough it is going to be, but at the same time we look forward to it because it’s going to be a very enjoyable game.”
Reds boss Klopp has hailed the work Wolves are doing as ‘an outstanding project’ and claims to have watched a lot of them in the Championship last season.
“That is an outstanding project. What they did last year in the Championship, I’m not sure that happened too often, the way they played.
“Usually in the Championship you go up with this kind of old-school British football; it’s a tough league and it makes sense to do it.
“I think the only two teams in the last few years who did it differently were Huddersfield and Wolves. It’s really unbelievable what they did.”
Wolves are one of the few sides to have taken points off Manchester City this season and Klopp says their performance against the champions was ‘really impressive’.
“I saw the City game. Of course City were better and were unlucky with the goal Wolves scored that day, it was handball,” he added.
“But the way they defended as a team, coming from a football-playing side, was really impressive.”
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