Plymouth vs Liverpool FA Cup betting preview

Imago Federico Chiesa should be looking to seize a rare start opportunity and perform — *Imago* Federico Chiesa should be looking to seize a rare start opportunity and perform

Plymouth state of play

After a slow start, life under new manager Miron Muslic has started to take shape, with a surprise 2-1 win at home against West Brom where a late Ryan Hardie goal made the difference.

This followed up a 2-2 draw against promotion-chasing Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, as things begin to look up for the Championship’s bottom side.

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A 1-0 win at Brentford was one of the biggest upsets of the third round, with Argyle without a win away from home until that game.

Home Park has been the foundation of much of their recent success, and they will be hoping to keep it a fortress ahead of the visit of the Premier League table-toppers.

Liverpool state of play

Liverpool passed their most recent Premier League test with flying colours, surviving some scary moments to beat Bournemouth 2-0, thanks to a brace from Mohamed Salah.

Perhaps a close indicator for Sunday’s game, a much-changed Liverpool side, tasted defeat away at PSV Eindhoven in late January, although it is fair to say that the Dutch giants are a stronger outfit than Argyle.

A dominant 4-0 win against Tottenham in the Carabao Cup on Thursday helped push Arne Slot into his first final with the Reds, overcoming a 1-0 defeat from the first leg.

They have managed to comfortably overcome the first banana skin of their FA Cup campaign, beating Accrington Stanley 4-0 in the third round, and thoughts of a historic quadruple are starting to dominate thoughts as the Reds show no sign of slowing down.

Key talking point: Can Plymouth do the unthinkable at Home Park?

With form starting to improve for Plymouth, a game without the pressure of points and in front of the boisterous support of the Argyle faithful could give a second-string Liverpool side a scare.

It may sound cliched, but form can go out of the window in a game like this if Slot’s side struggle to get a hold of the game in the early exchanges.

That being said, Muslic’s side have struggled defensively even when picking up points, and a 5-0 loss at home to a strong but hardly free-flowing Burnley team may give the Reds a blueprint on how to go about business on Sunday.

Expect Argyle to line up with a more defensive variation of their usual three-at-the-back, and it will be up to the visitors to ensure that they limit chances on the counter-attack, denying the hosts their most dangerous threat.

FIRST’s top tip for Plymouth vs Liverpool

Over 3.5 goals and over 9.5 corners – 23/10 with Betway

Plymouth have not found it easy to keep teams out in the Championship this season, with a remarkable 63 goals conceded so far, and despite the spectacular win away at Brentford, it is tough to imagine them keeping Liverpool out.

Their expected defensive set up will lead to blocked shots and opportunities from dead balls, and you would expect Liverpool to test how resolute Argyle can be.

If Slot makes the expected changes, there is a chance the hosts will be able to get at a changed defence, without the leadership of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

Extra tips

Federico Chiesa over 1.5 shots on target - 13/10 with BetMGM

The clear stand-out in Liverpool’s recent defeat against PSV, the Italian enjoyed his first full 90 minutes for the team he joined in the summer, and managed two shots on target in the game. Against lesser opposition this time around, expect the winger to pick up where he left off.

Ryan Hardie over 0.5 shots on target - 19/10 with BetMGM

Fresh off an important winning goal against West Brom, if anyone is going to test Caoimhin Kelleher, it will be the Scotsman. While he has only scored four so far in an injury-hit season, remains crucial to Argyle.

Team news

Plymouth will be boosted by the arrival of Malachi Boateng, who joined on deadline day from Scottish Premiership side Hearts, and could also potentially have veteran midfielder Joe Edwards back on the bench as he nears a return to action.

There are not many injury issues for Muslic to worry about, so the hosts will have plenty of options to choose from on Sunday.

Liverpool have had both Diogo Jota and Joe Gomez return to the squad in recent weeks, but will be without Trent Alexander-Arnold, who misses out due to a minor leg injury.

Luckily for Arne Slot’s side, the right-back is expected to return in time for the Merseyside derby on Wednesday.

Read our full FA Cup fourth round betting preview.