Crystal Palace host Liverpool at Selhurst Park in Saturday’s late kick-off.
This weekend sees Liverpool travelling to London as they take on Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in Saturday’s late kick-off.
The stadium has bad memories for the Reds after their infamous title collapse at the ground back in May 2014.
That 3-3 draw effectively ended their title challenge alongside Manchester City that year and it is yet to be forgotten.
This game sees them face another aspect of their past as they come up against Christian Benteke for the first time since he departed in the summer transfer window.
The Belgian was allowed to leave Anfield after falling down the pecking order under Jurgen Klopp, who preferred several other options ahead of him.
It seems appropriate, then, to see how he compares with Liverpool’s current first-choice striker Roberto Firmino this season.
As it turns out, Firmino has been the better man, coming out on top in six of the eight areas analysed.
So far this season has registered more shots on target per game and enjoyed a slightly better shooting accuracy.
Benteke, though, has posted more shots per game than his former teammate, 3.43 compared to 2.75. They are level on goals, with three apiece.
The Brazilian has been far more creative, registering more assists and more key passes per game, 3.13 compared to 1.14.
His passing has also been better as he has posted more than double Benteke’s number of accurate passes per game and enjoyed a better 14% better passing accuracy.
A comfortable win for Firmino then and Liverpool will be hoping for more of the same as they look for their third straight win at Selhurst Park in all competitions.
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