Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner knows how to exploit Liverpool's weaknesses, and Wednesday's EFL Cup clash will be immensely difficult, Reds expert David Lynch has argued.
The Merseysiders' 3-2 loss against Brentford on Saturday condemned the club to their fifth defeat in six games, and the performances of several star players such as Virgil van Dijk and Florian Wirtz have concerned supporters.
Boss Arne Slot faces another difficult test on Wednesday, with Oliver Glasner's Palace set to travel to Anfield, and considering the Eagles already beat Liverpool 2-1 on September 27, the visitors are sure to be difficult opponents.
Lynch expressed concern that even a weakened Eagles side would still be able to find joy against the Reds, when he told Sports Mole: "The problem is it's just so easy to get at Liverpool. Palace are out of form, and maybe they will change things up in terms of their team selection.
"Even so, a Crystal Palace side that's completely different will still be able to exploit the weaknesses that will still be there in the Liverpool team, which could be [altered from the XI] that played Brentford.
"It's not one to be confident about because Oliver Glasner knows how to exploit Slot and this Liverpool team, and he's got players that are definitely capable of doing it."
Palace also won a penalty shootout against Liverpool in the Community Shield in August, and when including that clash, they are unbeaten in their last three encounters with the Reds.
David Lynch YouTube image
Mohamed Salah to start: What team should Arne Slot select?
With Palace to come to Anfield, some fans have argued that Arne Slot should select a stronger XI to try and play the team out of their poor form.
Mohamed Salah was not selected to start against Eintracht Frankfurt last Wednesday, but the 33-year-old was chosen to play in a front two against Brentford.
Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch was in favour of fielding a strong XI as the team are in desperate need of a win, saying: "I wouldn't mind seeing Liverpool go fairly strong and trying to get some confidence back and get a win under their belt.
"However, I think the manager will stick to his guns and make changes. These are the tough decisions you have to make sometimes - he could go with a weakened team here and mix it up in terms of his selection and gamble on the fact that Liverpool might lose this one but it ultimately doesn't matter."
Slot may be risking defeat if he selects a weakened team on Wednesday, but his side's clash against Aston Villa on Saturday in the Premier League is arguably far more important.
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool FC looks on during his side's UEFA Champions League on September 30, 2025
Have Liverpool been unlucky in the Premier League?
Liverpool conceded a controversial penalty against Brentford, with a VAR intervention penalising Van Dijk for a foul on the line of the box, though replays did not show definitively where contact was made.
The Reds were unfortunate that play was not stopped when Alexis Mac Allister suffered a head injury against Manchester United prior to Bryan Mbeumo's opening goal at Anfield on October 19, while the Merseysiders have missed numerous chances in front of goal.
When assessing Liverpool's chances of victory against Palace, Lynch argued that the hosts will hope to be on the right side of close calls, telling Sports Mole: "They've got to start winning eventually. Even if it's a knife-edge game, Liverpool should be able to win one of those close matches.
"The thing to remember in all this is that as bad as Liverpool have been in this run, they've come out on the wrong edge of fine margins so frequently. It's bizarre. The penalty calls at the weekend were a really good example of that.
"It could have gone either way with both of those incidents. They're getting bad luck as much as they're playing poorly, so perhaps they can get a bit of luck in their favour this time and sneak through."
Cody Gakpo was not awarded a penalty in the first half against Brentford, but Slot will hope to benefit from such refereeing decisions against Palace.
> Click here to listen to the full discussion on Liverpool's game against Crystal Palace
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