Liverpool v Watford: Premier League betting preview, free tip & TV details

Football tips, best bets and predictions for Liverpool v Watford in the Premier League.

Where to watch

Live on BT Sport 1, 12.30pm Saturday

Best bet

Liverpool & under 3.5 goals
1pt 11-8 Betway, BoyleSports

Team news

Liverpool
Dejan Lovren (muscle strain) is a doubt and Adam Lallana is back in training. Joel Matip, Fabinho and Nathaniel Clyne are sidelined.

Watford
Craig Dawson (head) and Daryl Janmaat (ankle) are back in contention but Tom Cleverley, Jose Holebas, Sebastian Prodl and Danny Welbeck remain injured.

Match preview

Liverpool's grip on top spot in the Premier League looks stronger than ever after last weekend's results and it is unlikely to be loosened by basement boys Watford, whose new manager Nigel Pearson has a daunting first assignment.

It has been another positive week for the Reds, who sailed through to the Champions League last 16 as Group E winners after winning 2-0 away to Salzburg on Tuesday.

They have the Club World Cup to look forward to next week but their immediate focus will be on beating Watford and ensuring none of the chasing pack are given any encouragement.

Jurgen Klopp may consider making a few changes but recent weeks have shown that he can rotate his team and still pick up victories.

Watford's new boss could not have been handed a more difficult first assignment.

The Hornets have not won at Anfield since August 1999, when Tommy Mooney's goal sealed a 1-0 victory, and over the last three seasons they have taken some severe punishment at Anfield, losing 6-1, 5-0 and 5-0.

But two points adrift at the bottom and six points away from safety, they cannot afford to write off any fixture.

Fragile confidence has been an issue for Watford for much of the season but they took some small steps forward under interim manager Hayden Mullins.

Watford were far from disgraced in a 2-0 loss at Leicester in his first match and there was further improvement last Saturday as Watford dominated large portions of a 0-0 draw at home to Crystal Palace.

Key changes made by Mullins included a switch from a 3-5-2 to a 4-2-3-1 formation and a recall for captain Troy Deeney.

Despite failing to score in the two matches, Watford looked more of a threat going forward and it was noticeable that big-money summer signing Ismaila Sarr, largely anonymous earlier this season, was much improved.

Staying up is going to be tough but Pearson, who watched the Palace game, will have seen plenty to work with.

There is scope for an improvement in results in the second half of the season but any revival will probably have to wait until after the trip to Merseyside.

Watford might not be averse to a low-scoring defeat and a narrow victory would be perfectly acceptable to Klopp, who will be solely focused on claiming the points.

Liverpool filled their boots in last Wednesday's Merseyside derby, winning 5-2, but they have scored fewer than three goals in eight of their last 11 league matches.

Home supporters will be anticipating an avalanche of goals but Watford will be doing their best to impress their new manager and can at least return to Hertfordshire with some pride intact.