Liverpool vs Shrewsbury prediction: How will FA Cup third round fixture play out today?
Shrewsbury Town will look to pull off a famous FA Cup shock when they visit a depleted Liverpool side in the third round of the competition this afternoon.
A severe Covid-19 outbreak in the Liverpool squad this week, which forced the postponement of the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal, has left the Premier League side without several first-team players ahead of today’s match.
Manager Jurgen Klopp and assistant manager Pep Lijnders are also set to miss out, with Peter Krawietz expected to take charge of a team that is likely to include several reinforcements from the club’s under-23s and under-18s.
Shrewsbury, who are 14th in League One and defeated Carlisle United in the last round, forced Liverpool to a fourth-round replay following a 2-2 draw at the New Meadow in January 2020.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match today.
When is Liverpool vs Shrewsbury?
The match will kick off at 2pm GMT on Sunday 9 January.
How can I watch it?
The match is not available to watch live in the UK as it was not selected for broadcast coverage. Highlights will be available to watch on BBC One from 10:30pm, or on the FA Cup’s YouTube channel. Here is a list of matches on TV this weekend.
What is the team news?
Liverpool are without Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita due to their involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations. Alisson, Roberto Firmino and Joel Matip all recorded positive Covid-19 tests before last Sunday’s trip to Chelsea, and there have been more suspected positive tests in the first-team squad since then. These are unlikely to be revealed until shortly before kick off on Sunday. Elsewhere, Thiago, Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi were injury doubts prior to the postponed Arsenal match.
Youngsters Tyler Morton, Owen Beck, Conor Bradley, Kaide Gordon, Billy Koumetio have all seen minutes in cup competitions this season and could be used at Anfield if needed.
Shrewsbury’s top scorer Daniel Udoh is an injury doubt, but manager Steve Cotterill has no other reported injury concerns.
Predicted line-ups
Liverpool: Kelleher; Bradley, Konate, Gomez, Beck; Morton, Milner, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Williams, Jota, Origi
Shrewsbury: Marosi; Pennington, Ebanks-Landell, Nurse; Bennett, Vela, Davis, Leahy, Ogbeta; Bowman, Udoh
Odds
Liverpool: 1/4
Draw: 6/1
Shrewsbury: 8/1
Prediction
Even with a depleted squad, Liverpool have to be favourites to progress at Anfield. Liverpool 2-1 Shrewsbury
