Group E action in the Champions League will feature Liverpool, who has a good chance to make up group on Sevilla as they head to NK Maribor. Even a draw for NK Maribor would be a huge accomplishment for them, and a terrible result for Liverpool.
What To Know About Liverpool
Liverpool are second in Group E after a pair of draws, the second of which was a 1-1 draw at Spartak Moscow as Phillipe Coutinho scored. Coutinho has scored four goals in eight games overall since his prolonged transfer saga with Barcelona ended with him staying at Liverpool (and it isn’t over just yet as Barcelona will likely go after him again in the next transfer window). Mohamed Salah has scored eight goals in all competitions and Roberto Firmino has scored four as well, but everyone knows that Coutinho is Liverpool’s key man and if you stop home, you have a decent chance of stopping Liverpool. And then there is the defense, which is inconsistent at best. They haven’t kept a clean sheet in seven matches overall and in both Champions League games so far (they also drew 2-2 at home with Sevilla), the opposition could have had more goals. That is not going to fly if they want to be real contenders in the Champions League.
What To Know About NK Maribor
NK Maribor hails from Slovenia and actually drew 1-1 at home with Spartak Moscow in their opening Champions League match as Damjan Bohar scored with five minutes to go in regulation. However, they were both back to earth in a big way as they lost 3-0 at Sevilla in their second match. Marcos Tavares has scored six goals in all competitions for NK Maribor, while Jasmin Mesanovic is next with five goals. As with teams like NK Maribor, however, there is a concern about how their defense will deal with players of Liverpool’s quality. They play next in the Slovenian League at Rudar Velenje, but that match is on Friday, while Liverpool hosts Manchester United on Saturday, so that is a small edge. However, NK Maribor will take any edges they can get.
Outlook
Liverpool is a huge -600 favorite away from home in their first-ever meeting with NK Maribor, who is rated at +1600 and a draw comes in at +550. It’ll be interesting to see how Liverpool lines up for this match after an exhausting game such as one against Manchester United, their biggest rivals and this is arguably the biggest match in English soccer. There could be plenty of chances for NK Maribor to sneak in and steal a point, but they’ll have to deal with the likes of Coutinho, who is a world-class player and he opens up so much for Liverpool, who will also press NK Maribor into making mistakes. Liverpool should be able to win this game, even without all of their starters playing, but don’t be surprised if NK Maribor snatches a late point thanks to a defensive error that Liverpool is prone to make.
Champions League Betting Pick: Draw
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