Gakpo has had 17 shots on target across his 23 Premier League appearances this season, 15 of these have been starts taking his average to 1.17 shots on target per 90 this campaign. He’s added to this record with 7 shots on target across his 4 EFL Cup appearances this campaign, this includes Gakpo finding the target from a long distance effort in the first leg meeting in North London. Gakpo has had at least 1 shot on target in each of his last 5 Premier League games and can add to that streak here against a Tottenham side that can struggle to keep the opposition attack at bay.

Bergvall has been excellent since nailing down a starting spot in Tottenham’s midfield. The all action midfielder has committed 11 fouls across his 17 Premier League appearances this season, 5 of these have been starts taking his average to 1.65 fouls committed per 90. Liverpool usually start quickly regardless of the context, especially at Anfield where the first 15-20 minutes is often the biggest challenge for the opposition so Bergvall will have to be alert early here. With Liverpool needing a goal to get back into this tie, Tottenham could have to employ some of the dark arts to interrupt their momentum. Bergvall committed a foul and was shown a yellow card as well as contesting 11 duels in the first leg, he’ll be tasked with tracking Alexis Mac Allister who is averaging 1.43 fouls won per 90 in the Premier League this season and was fouled once in the first leg.

Gravenberch has arguably been Liverpool’s best player this campaign, Salah will likely take the individual accolades for his immense goal output this season but Gravenberch is key to how Liverpool want to play. He’s tasked with progressing the ball through central areas of the pitch to help Liverpool connect their defensive and attacking phases of play. Gravenberch was fouled once in the first leg and has won 32 fouls across his 23 Premier League appearances this season (1.45 per 90). He’ll be up against Yves Bissouma who is averaging 1.48 fouls committed per 90 across his 18 Premier League appearances this campaign. Gravenberch was also fouled 3 times in Liverpool’s 6-3 league victory over Tottenham in North London, more than any other player on the pitch. If Tottenham are to be effective in stopping Liverpool’s progression into the final third, they’ll have to target Gravenberch and potentially bring him to the ground at least once.

Alisson is having to make 2.42 saves per game across his 15 Premier League appearances this season, he was forced into making 2 saves in the first leg and could find himself as busy here with Tottenham offering a threat on the transition with Liverpool chasing a goal. Tottenham always carry an attacking threat, only Bournemouth, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool are averaging more shots on target per game in the Premier League this campaign than the 5.4 Tottenham are. Tottenham have drawn 2+ saves from the opposition keeper in 20 of their 24 Premier League matches this season (83%) and can keep up that solid record at Anfield with the majority of their opportunities expected to come on the counter attack where they have players like Heung-min Son who can test Alisson.

There aren’t many words left to describe the season Mohamed Salah is having, the 32-year-old has registered 34 goal contributions across his 23 Premier League appearances this campaign (21 goals, 13 assists). He’s recorded a goal contribution in each of his last 3 appearances across all competitions including a brace against high-flying Bournemouth last time out. Salah is also posting incredible underlying numbers, he’s averaging 2.04 shots on target per 90 and 2.30 chances created per 90 in the Premier League this season. Salah tore Tottenham apart in Liverpool’s 6-3 win over Ange Postecoglou’s side back in December, he had a hand in 4 of the goals by providing 2 assists and finding the back of the net twice himself. Tottenham will struggle to contain Salah and Liverpool’s attacking line in general.

Alexis Mac Allister has committed 42 fouls across his 22 Premier League appearances this season (2.31 per 90). He may have been signed for his ability on the ball but has found a place in this Liverpool side as a tenacious midfielder whose defensive numbers stand out. Mac Allister committed 2 fouls in the league meeting between these sides in which Liverpool ran out 6-3 winners, he’s constantly quick to engage the opposition as per instructions from Arne Slot who wants his side to employ a rapid counter-press to stop the opposition breaking quickly. This is reflected in their foul numbers as a team, Liverpool are averaging 11.5 fouls committed per 90 and have committed 10+ fouls in 6 of their last 7 games in the Premier League. Mac Allister will be up against Dejan Kulusevski who is averaging 1.43 fouls won per 90 across his 24 Premier League appearances this season and was fouled 3 times in the league meeting between these sides back in December.

Tottenham’s makeshift backline means that they are unable to rely on defensive resilience alone to take something from this game. They’ll need their attacking players to make the most of the opportunities they do get, these are likely to be in transition as Liverpool push to get back into the tie. The longer Liverpool go without a goal, the more gaps that will appear offering an opportunity for the likes of Son and Kulusevski to get shots off. Son has had 22 shots on target across his 21 Premier League appearances this season (1.25 per 90). In the absence of Dominic Solanke, Son is Tottenham’s main attacking threat, at least when it comes to shots. Tottenham are 1 of the most effective sides in the Premier League in the final third so they should be able to find their captain and long term talisman on a few occasions to offer a threat going the other way. Son has already scored against Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea this season and can add Liverpool to that list here, or at the very least find the target at least once with Tottenham’s 1-0 lead not expected to be sufficient to take them through to the final with how lethal Liverpool can be in the final third.

Tottenham showed a different side to their usual hectic and attack0minded approach in the 1-0 win over Liverpool in the first leg. Ange Postecoglou knew he had to take something to Anfield to have any chance of progressing to the final and set up his team accordingly. The biggest indication that Tottenham were more secure is the comparison between the cup tie and the league meeting between the sides. Tottenham conceded 10 fewer shots in the cup win and limited Liverpool to an xG of 1.13 compared to the 5.63 they managed in the league victory. Expect a similar performance from Spurs here, the Tottenham boss will know that going toe-to-toe with a Liverpool side that can quickly take a game away from you would be naive and result in another disappointing evening for Tottenham. This is also a good angle to take when considering Tottenham’s attacking talent which can always hurt the opposition. This is evidenced by the fact that Tottenham still managed to score 3 goals against Liverpool in their 6-3 defeat to the Reds in North London back in December. It would be very surprising to see Postecoglou’s side be bold in their approach here, knowing that a draw or even a slender loss will be enough for them to be within a chance of progressing to the final. This selection has landed in each of Tottenham’s last 11 games across all competitions which has included games against Arsenal and Newcastle.