Sunderland are yet to lose at the Stadium of Light this season with seven wins from their 12 home matches. Regis Le Bris’ side have managed to make their home ground a real fortress, and have netted 21 goals across these matches (1.75 per game).

What is particularly notable about this metric is how many of Sunderland’s goals have come at the Stadium of Light this season. 21 of their 27 total goals in the Premier League have come in front of their home fans (77%). Only Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal have picked up more points at home in the Premier League this season than Sunderland.

Liverpool have conceded 21 goals across their 12 away matches in the Premier League this term (1.75 per game) and have only managed to win four of their games on the road. They conceded to Sunderland in the most recent head to head clash, and have only kept one clean sheet in the Premier League across their last five matches.

Liverpool should be the main driving force behind this angle with Arne Slot’s side seeing 9.67 corners per game across their 12 away matches in the Premier League this term. Liverpool themselves are averaging 5.33 corners per game on the road, which is a healthy average when looking to back corners in this clash.

There were 10 match corners in the initial league meeting between the sides, Liverpool were responsible for seven of these corners. This suggests that Liverpool could end up covering this line mostly on their own, though I’d expect Sunderland to improve on their tally of three corners at Anfield given that set pieces are such a weapon for his side.

Sunderland aren’t seeing too many corners at home this season (7.58 per game), but I’d expect that to rise here given the context surrounding this fixture. Liverpool need all three points to stay in the race for a Champions League spot, so I expect the Reds to play with urgency - which could spiral into desperation in the latter stages.

Cody Gakpo has committed 25 fouls across his 19 starts in the Premier League this season, working out to an average of 1.35 per 90. Only Hugo Ekitike (27) has committed more fouls than the Dutchman in the Premier League this term, and he has a particularly interesting battle here against Trai Hume.

Gakpo has committed a foul in three of his last five Premier League appearances, including his most recent assignment against Manchester City. Gakpo doesn’t usually get the benefit of the doubt from the referee due to his large frame and intensity with which Liverpool press from the front. This is evident as even though Liverpool don’t have the greatest fouls record in the division, the majority of them are concentrated in the opposition's half.

Trai Hume has won 24 fouls across his 23 starts in the Premier League this term (1.05 per 90), so he should be an ideal opponent for Gakpo to haul down at least once in this contest, in line with his record across the season as a whole.

I’m a really big fan of Noah Sadiki who Sunderland really missed when he was away at AFCON. The Black Cats are still expected to be without Xhaka for this clash, so Sadiki’s presence is even more important than it would have been if Xhaka was available for selection.

What is instantly noticeable about Sadiki is how much ground he covers, it’s sometimes like having two players in the middle of the park for Sunderland rolled into one. Sadiki has committed 18 fouls across his 20 Premier League starts this season (0.92 per 90), and has committed a foul in three of his last five matches across all competitions.

Sadiki had three foul involvements when the sides clashed at Anfield a few months ago, being fouled twice and committing one foul himself. He’ll be in for a tough evening here with his main opponent likely to be Ryan Gravenberch, who is very clever when it comes to getting himself out of tight spaces - he is averaging 1.29 fouls won per 90 in the Premier League this term, and was fouled once in the initial head to head clash between the sides.

Robin Roefs has been one of the key performers at Sunderland this season and was forced into making four saves in Sunderland’s 1-1 draw at Anfield earlier in the season, effectively earning the point for his side with that display.

Roefs has been performing at this level consistently throughout the campaign, as displayed by his save numbers in the Premier League this season. He’s been forced into making 78 saves across his 25 starts in the Premier League (3.12 per 90), with a ridiculous save percentage of 72.8% maintained across these appearances.

Only Emi Martinez of Aston Villa can boast a better save percentage than the Sunderland goalkeeper this term, while only Martin Dubravka (99) has been forced into making more saves than Roefs in the Premier League this season. Liverpool should be motivated to test Roefs here, as they did in the initial meeting between the sides, which ended with the points shared.

It may feel odd to back a centre back for a shot on target, especially when they are facing a side with the quality of Liverpool, but Dan Ballard is a serious threat in the opposition box and has already pitched in with two goals for Sunderland so far this campaign.

Ballard’s shooting numbers are really solid for a centre back; he’s had 21 shots across his 17 starts in the Premier League this term (1.19 per 90) and has seen nine of these attempts find the target (0.51 per 90). He didn’t manage to have a shot in the initial meeting between the sides, but his centre back partner in Alderete had three shots - and hit the post.

Any attempt that Ballard does manage to get away here is likely to be from a set piece and also likely to be with his head. 15 of Ballard’s 21 shots in the Premier League this season have been headers, working out to 71% of his total shots. Sunderland won three corners at Anfield and are expected to have a similar tally in this clash. Ballard is likely to be the main target of these situations, which gives him a great chance of getting an effort away.

Trai Hume has been quite versatile for Sunderland this season, playing as a right back, winger, and even centre back at times for Regis Le Bris’ side. He’s expected to line up in his usual role as a right back for this clash, pitting him up against Cody Gakpo.

Hume can lose his temper quickly when things don’t go his way, and he also likes to get into individual battles with his direct opponent. He’s committed 20 fouls across his 23 starts in the Premier League this season (0.88 per 90), leading to seven yellow cards for the 23-year-old.

No Sunderland player has received more cautions in the Premier League this season than Hume. There’s also reason to believe that his foul rate may increase here, given that he’s up against a player in Cody Gakpo who has won 30 fouls across his 19 starts in the Premier League this season (1.61 per 90).