Mario Balotelli

Club football returns after a two-week international break as Liverpool face Aston Villa in a Premier League clash at Anfield on Saturday.

Where to Watch Live

Kick-off is set for 5:30pm BST. Live coverage of the match will be available on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 1 HD. Catch the highlights of the game on Match of the Day on BBC One and BBC One HD at 10:50pm BST.

Overview

Liverpool suffered a defeat at the hands of English champions Manchester City in the second league tie at the Etihad. However, Brendan Rodgers saw his side bounce back in the last fixture as the Reds registered a comfortable 3-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

The Merseyside club saw their summer signing Mario Balotelli make his Liverpool debut before the international break. The Italian international is likely to make his Anfield debut against Villa on Saturday.

With Daniel Sturridge out of action, the former Swansea City manager will rely heavily on Balotelli and youngster Raheem Sterling to lead Liverpool's attack in the Premier League clash.

Gabriel Agbonlahor
Gabriel Agbonlahor Getty

Following this fixture, Liverpool will host the first Champions League fixture after a few years at Anfield on Wednesday. The Reds face Ludogorets in the first group stage fixture of the season on Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, Villa enter this match after registering a 2-1 victory over Hull City at Villa Park. Gabriel Agbonlahor and Andreas Weimann's first-half goals were sufficient for Paul Lambert's side to seal three points.

Villa have a tough set of fixtures ahead of them as they face Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, City, Everton and Tottenham Hotspur in the next seven matches. Lambert would be hoping a victory over Liverpool would give his side a boost to face Arsenal next weekend.

What Managers Say

Brendan Rodgers: "Aston Villa have started well. I'm please for Paul, he's built a young groups of players, developed them, they've got better. This season we'll see the faith Lambert has put in his talented young players this season. They always give us a tough game."

Paul Lambert: "It's definitely the strongest squad since I've been here. We're playing really well and we've picked up some good points along the way. There's a lot of confidence here at the minute and a lot of praise and rightly so."

Betting Odds (888Sport.com)

  • Liverpool to win: 5/18
  • Draw: 19/4
  • Aston Villa to win: 21/2

Team Form

Liverpool

  • Last Five (all competitions, most recent first): W L W W L
  • Last Result: Tottenham Hotspur 0-3 Liverpool

Aston Villa

  • Last Five (all competition, most recent first): W L D W L
  • Last Result: Aston Villa 2-1 Hull City

Team News

Liverpool
Raheem Sterling Getty

Liverpool

  • Injured: Daniel Sturridge (thigh), Emre Can (ankle), Marin Skrtel (knee), Glen Johnson (thigh), Jon Flanagan (knee)
  • Doubtful: Joe Allen (knee)
  • Suspended: N/A

Probable Lineup: Mignolet; Manquillo, Lovren, Sakho, Moreno; Gerrard, Henderson; Sterling, Lallana, Coutinho; Balotelli

Aston Villa

  • Injured: Christian Benteke (Achilles); Libor Kozak (broken leg)
  • Doubtful: N/A
  • Suspended: N/A

Probable Lineup: Guzan; Hutton, Senderos, Vlaar, Cissokho; Westwood, Cleverley, Delph, N'Zogbia; Weimann, Agbonlahor