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Liverpool have experienced more success against the best sides with Luis Diaz starting as a number nine, and he has done enough to have earned his place against Arsenal, Reds expert David Lynch has argued.
The Merseysiders were beaten by Chelsea last Sunday in the Premier League, but having already been declared champions, the game was ultimately of little importance.
A clash against Arsenal awaits the Reds this Sunday at Anfield, and boss Arne Slot will be keen to prove why his side managed to beat the Gunners to the top-flight crown, though the Dutchman will have a selection dilemma up front.
Lynch expressed his belief that Diaz should be the starting nine due to how well the team have played with him up front against elite sides, telling Sports Mole: “I wonder whether he’s going to go for Diaz on the basis that Saliba would prefer to have a number nine up against him whereas if you give him something to do with Diaz dragging people out, that’s something else for him to think about.
“Liverpool have played their best football this season with Diaz in that number nine position. The first time Slot tried it was for the Leverkusen game and he won that 4-0 at Anfield, and the best period of the season followed that with wins over Real Madrid and Man City. We saw a lot of Diaz in that number nine position, so I think Slot’s favouring that at the moment.
“There are imperfections when he plays there and Liverpool will 100% look for a number nine in this summer window but there are bigger question marks over Jota. The injuries have really hurt him and he looks miles off. He’s not getting in the positions to finish things off, and Nunez is so erratic. Diaz is the best starting centre-forward that Liverpool have got.”
Strikers Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota have only scored a combined 11 goals in the Premier League this term, whereas Diaz has found the back of the net 12 times in the top flight in 2024-25.
Could Salah expose Lewis-Skelly?
Arsenal expert Charles Watts also weighed in on some of the key battles ahead of Sunday’s clash, insisting left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly will be able to handle Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah.
The Reds winger has scored 28 Premier League goals and provided 18 assists, leading the way in both categories, and was named the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the year on Friday.
Despite the Egyptian’s outstanding form this season, Watts backed Lewis-Skelly to come out on top when he told Sports Mole: “He’ll be fine. He’s coming up against Mohamed Salah who can obviously get the better of anyone, but I don’t think Lewis-Skelly will be phased. I know he won’t be phased by it because he just he’s not phased by anything – that kid takes everything on board and and just goes with it.
“Interestingly the game back at the Emirates earlier in the season [saw] Salah get away from Lewis Skelly in that game to set up the equalizer late on it was when it was Jakub Kiwior and Lewis-Skelly over on that side. They had never played together, it was when Lewis-Skelly just got into the team and Salah took full advantage of that little bit of space [that Nunez] created.
“That was really early on in his arsenal career but since that point onwards it’s one of the few times where you’ve really seen him exposed and make a mistake that’s been punished. He’s just got better and better and better since that day, so I don’t think he’ll be phased by Salah. He’ll love it, he’ll relish it.”
Salah managed to score his side’s second goal against Arsenal when the champions drew 2-2 at the Emirates in the Premier League on October 27, 2024, and the winger has netted 10 times for Liverpool in the top flight against the Gunners.
Should Liverpool worry about Bradley?
In the buildup to the match at Anfield, Liverpool boss Arne Slot has confirmed that Conor Bradley will start as the team’s right-back ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who announced his intention to leave the club earlier this week.
Bradley struggled from a defensive perspective when he started against Leicester City on April 20 and was eventually substituted in the second half.
Speaking to Sports Mole, Watts spoke of how the Reds could be exposed on the right side of the pitch if the likes of Martin Odegaard regain some semblance of form, saying: “[The right] is Arsenal’s strongest weapon of attack – it’s been that for the last couple of seasons. It’ll be interesting who plays at full-back [for Arsenal].
“It wouldn’t surprise me if Timber gets the weekend off and Ben White comes in on the right hand side and then you will see the White, Odegaard, Saka triangle which has served Arsenal so well over the last couple of years. Ben White’s a million miles away from his best form at the moment because he’s only just coming back from so long out with the knee surgery he’s had, and Odegaard’s struggling as well.
“It’s not going to have the same effect that it could do if all three of them were bang on form but that is the way that they will go, and again with Saka, he’s not quite looked on it consistently since he’s come back from the injury which is to be expected after four months out, so it’s a work in progress for Arsenal down that right side.”
Arsenal are unbeaten in five top-flight fixtures against Liverpool – winning twice – though the Gunners have not achieved victory at Anfield in the league since September 2012, and Sunday’s clash is sure to be an entertaining affair.
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion between Liverpool expert David Lynch and Arsenal journalist Charles Watts ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash.
