Three major storylines for Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur

Liverpool will face Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, May 5th, in the Reds' third-last match before the conclusion of the 2023-2024 campaign. What are some of the storylines heading into the fixture against Spurs?

1. Liverpool Could Put Final Nail in the Coffin for Tottenham’s UCL Hopes

Ange Postecoglou's side is already hanging on by a thread to qualify for a Champions League spot but a loss to Liverpool would mathematically eliminate Spurs' from UCL qualification should Aston Villa beat Brighton on Sunday. Tottenham have one game in hand on fourth-place Aston Villa but are seven points behind them. With no English teams remaining in European competition, the English Premier League looks set to miss an additional Champions League spot, which would have been assigned to the fifth-place finisher.

With the game at Anfield, the Reds are likely to carry the momentum, but Klopp's side should be wary that they will face a desperate Spurs side. Especially after a North London derby defeat, a hammering from Newcastle and a defeat against rivals Chelsea, Spurs will not want to lose four on the bounce.

2. Revenge Game for Earlier Reverse Fixture

The elephant in the room is that the reverse fixture for this match was likely Liverpool's most controversial Premier League match of the season. At Tottenham Hotspur stadium on September 30th, a goal from Luis Diaz was incorrectly ruled out for offside when the on-field referee restarted the game before the Video Assistant Referee could communicate that the on-field decision that the goal was offside was incorrect.

Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota were both sent off in the match, Jones for a straight red card and Jota for picking up two yellow cards in a matter of minutes in the second half. A frustrating game ended with an unfortunate Joel Matip own goal, leaving a very sour taste in the mouths of Liverpool supporters.

The Reds have a chance to seek some revenge on Sunday and take a win back against Spurs. Unfortunately, Diogo Jota is set to miss the match due to injury, but Curtis Jones will be available for selection.

3. First Match Since Klopp-Salah Rift

Jurgen Klopp and Mo Salah's argument on the touchline of London Stadium in Liverpool's previous fixture is still a bit of a mystery on what happened. Klopp did mention that it had been resolved, but Salah told a reporter that "there's going to be fire today if I speak," channelling his inner Jose Mourinho.

Disagreements between managers and players happen, so let's not jump the gun and say it's anything more significant than a simple disagreement, but does it mean anything for Liverpool's match against Spurs? Mo Salah has already been benched for two of Liverpool's last three Premier League matches after scoring just once in six consecutive games.

Will Salah take the recent benchings as motivation to end the season on a high? The Egyptian forward is more than capable of doing so and will look to break the 20-goal plateau this season in the Premier League, currently sitting on 17.