Meetings between Big Six clubs always carry extra weight, but Liverpool vs. Tottenham in particular has consistently delivered fireworks whenever these sides have met in recent memory.
Both of their games last season — a 6–3 goal fest in London and a 5–1 win for the Reds that officially crowned them Premier League champions — were electric, and another highly charged encounter should be expected on Saturday.
In fact, you’d have to go all the way back to a 1–0 Liverpool win in January 2020 to find the last league meeting in which one side failed to score; whatever it is about this fixture, goals tend to follow.
With the Reds pushing to climb back into the top four and Thomas Frank searching for answers as Spurs have won just once in their last five league matches, what should fans be watching for ahead of this crucial clash?
1. Can Liverpool's defense finally post a clean sheet against Spurs?
As mentioned earlier, Liverpool have not kept Tottenham scoreless in a Premier League meeting for nearly six years — and Saturday would feel like the perfect time to end that drought.
The Reds are currently on a two-game run of clean sheets, holding both Inter Milan and Brighton scoreless in their last two matches.
Spurs have clearly posed problems for Liverpool’s defense in recent years, but given Inter’s immense quality up front and the fact that Brighton sit higher in the table than Saturday’s opponent, hoping for another clean sheet does not feel like a huge ask.
Tottenham boast no shortage of attacking talent in the likes of Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons, but they are coming off a frustrating 3–0 shutout loss to Nottingham Forest their last time out — a match that may have offered Liverpool valuable insight into how to disrupt Spurs’ forwards.
Fortunately for the Reds, while Virgil van Dijk has continued to be a dominant force — recently becoming the first defender in Europe’s five major leagues to reach 100 headed clearances — Ibrahima Konaté has also turned in two excellent performances against Inter and Brighton after being one of the most inconsistent players in the team.
If Ibou can carry that rediscovered form into London, it would be a timely boost against a side that always seems to find the back of the net against Liverpool.
Additionally, whether Arne Slot opts for the veteran presence of Andrew Robertson or the steadily improving Milos Kerkez at left back, it would be encouraging to see Joe Gomez continue making positive contributions down Liverpool’s right side.
Beyond offering a reliable defensive option, Gomez has been a pleasant surprise going forward, already registering two assists this season.
Liverpool have recently struggled to keep Tottenham off the board, but with an uptick in positive trends across the back four and the impressive form Gomez has shown lately, there’s reason to believe the defense can get the job done.
2. How will Liverpool cope with recent injuries and departures?
With Cody Gakpo sidelined for several weeks due to injury, Mohamed Salah away on AFCON duty, and the real possibility that Dominik Szoboszlai could miss Saturday’s fixture with a knock, how might Arne Slot best address these gaps in the lineup?
Starting with the wings, while it’s been said many times before, this finally feels like the opportunity to deploy Federico Chiesa on the right and give him a chance to make an impact with increased minutes compared to the limited time he’s seen so far this season.
While Salah is undoubtedly the higher-quality player, the Egyptian tallied five goal contributions in the two league fixtures against Spurs last season, Tottenham have shown vulnerability defending Liverpool’s attacks from the right, meaning Chiesa could have plenty of opportunities to make an impact himself.
On the left, while it’s tempting to give youngster Rio Ngumoha some minutes, it makes sense to slot Florian Wirtz into this role given the high-profile stakes of the match.
Considering Spurs have kept just two clean sheets in their last seven games, their defense looks fragile, potentially giving our No. 7 a chance to record his first league goal or assist.
Lastly, while Szoboszlai missing the match might have spelled disaster weeks ago, Curtis Jones has elevated his game to a level not many expected recently, giving Slot an excellent option to control the middle of the park if Szobo can’t suit up.
That said, if Szoboszlai is indeed unfit to play, I’ll still be looking for Alexis Mac Allister to recapture the consistently dazzling form he showed last season.
With Szobo out, Spurs may target our No. 10, exploiting his struggles with effectiveness and physicality so far this campaign.
Missing these three could certainly be a blow, but I’m confident Slot will be able to piece together the lineup effectively for Saturday’s match.
3. Will Hugo Ekitiké continue his scorching run of form?
I’d be stunned not to see Hugo Ekitike in Arne Slot’s starting XI on Saturday, as the Frenchman is coming off back-to-back games in which he scored a brace.
With the nod against Tottenham, Ekitike has the chance to do something Liverpool hasn’t seen in over a decade.
Another brace would be a tall order, but if he pulls it off, he would become the first Liverpool player to score 2+ goals in three consecutive matches since Luis Suárez’s remarkable December 2013, when the Uruguayan netted 10 goals across four games.
Hugo came just short of becoming the first player to score in each of his first three league games in a Liverpool shirt earlier this season. While joining an exclusive club with Suárez seems mathematically unlikely, you can be sure he’ll be hungry to etch his name into club history.
Even a single goal from him would provide a huge boost, and Liverpool’s record with Ekitike starting versus when he doesn’t underscores just how important he's been to the team.
So far this campaign, the Reds have won 70% of their games (7/10) when he starts, averaging two goals per match, compared to just 16.7% (1/6) wins and an average of one goal when he doesn’t — highlighting his significant impact on both Liverpool’s attack and overall results.
Few could have predicted just how essential the former Frankfurt striker would become for Liverpool in his very first season, especially with already established Premier League star Alexander Isak still finding his footing on Merseyside.
But there's simply no denying just how brilliant Hugo has been so far, and with another ruthless performance on Saturday, he has every right to consider himself one of the best strikers in England at the moment.