Jurgen Klopp
Jurgen Klopp has a race for top four in his hands Getty Images

Liverpool travel to Stoke City in the Premier League on Saturday, 8 April as the Reds look to bounce back following another home draw against Bournemouth in mid-week.

Where to Watch

Kick-off is set for 3pm BST. Highlights of the game will be available on BBC MOTD from 10:30pm BST.

Overview

Stoke will be boosted with the return of Jon Walters, who missed the mid-week fixture with concussion. Marc Muniesa and Mame Diouf should also be fit for the game, having suffered midweek knocks while Xherdan Shaqiri featured in training and can also be involved after missing the last two fixtures.

The Potters have struggled in recent times, losing their last three games in the league, which is their worst run since going through a four-match losing streak last year. They have picked up at least 50 points in all their campaigns under Mark Hughes, but need 14 from their last seven games to keep that record alive.

Meanwhile, Liverpool will be without forward Sadio Mane. The Senegalese international was ruled out for the season after picking up a knee injury against Everton. Adam Lallana is out for a month with a thigh strain he picked up during international duty with England. Jordan Henderson is the third major absentee in the Liverpool ranks, having been ruled out with a foot problem. Philippe Coutinho is also doubtful after missing training with a bout of illness.

Mane's absence has opened the doors for Divock Origi, while Daniel Sturridge is also in contention after playing a part against Bournemouth. Origi scored the second goal for the Reds against the Cherries last weekend, making it two in two games.

What Managers Say

Jurgen Klopp: "Phil is still ill. He was not at Melwood yesterday and will not be here today. I had a little conversation with the doc. He (Phil) feels much better but it doesn't look too good. We have to see if we bring him in tomorrow, Stoke is not too far away. We will give him all the time he needs but it will be really close. Adam Lallana is better, much better but of course he isn't an option for the weekend as he isn't even in training yet. He feels on a good way. The problem is that he has injured a muscle he uses when shooting. He feels nothing at the moment but will need a few more days for sure before we can have him back on the training pitch. It's similar to Hendo. He is also in a good way, but we don't know exactly when he can be a part of training again. Daniel is part of training, yesterday and today we will see. But there have been no major issues." (via Liverpool Echo)

Mark Hughes: "With the quality of opposition we have been up against in the last couple of weeks, you can argue this run of fixtures has been the most difficult we've had this season. And that continues, obviously, with this game against Liverpool. Apart from Leicester, where I was disappointed with our performance, we've had decent-enough performances. That continued against Burnley (on Tuesday) because I felt we were the better team on the night." (Stoke Sentinel)

Betting Odds (betfair)

  • Stoke City win: 3
  • Draw: 11/4
  • Liverpool win: 3

Team News

Stoke City

Possible XI: Grant, Johnson, Shawcross, Martins Indi, Pieters, Cameron, Adam, Allen, Afellay, Arnautovic, Crouch

Liverpool

Possible XI: Mignolet, Clyne, Lovren, Matip, Moreno, Leiva, Can, Wijnaldum, Milner, Firmino, Origi

Stoke City FC Liverpool FC Premier League