BBC pundit Chris Sutton has picked out the Leeds United star he believes could be crucial to their hopes of pulling off an upset against Liverpool in the Premier League.
Daniel Farke and his side have renewed optimism heading into the game against the defending Premier League champions, after their win over Chelsea.
However, the short turnaround between the two games means Farke has some tough selection decisions to make, as he looks set to stick with a 3-5-2 against Liverpool.
The fitness of centre-forward Lukas Nmecha is one of the burning issues for Farke ahead of the game, as the summer signing looks to recover from a knock picked up against Chelsea.
But Sutton has pinpointed Nmecha’s strike partner, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, as potentially holding the key to Leeds’ hopes of pulling off an upset, as he delivered his prediction for the game.
Prediction time for Leeds United v Liverpool 🔮
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Leeds United need Dominic Calvert-Lewin to pull off Liverpool upset
Speaking to BBC Sport, Sutton backed Leeds to continue their recent resurgence and pick up a point against Liverpool.
According to the former Premier League striker, the Liverpool defence will struggle to cope with the England international if he is fit to take his place in the Leeds side.
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Sutton said: “The biggest difference with Daniel Farke’s side in the past couple of games, however, has been down to Dominic Calvert-Lewin. He gives them a different dynamic in their attack.
“Calvert-Lewin came on at half-time against City and played 86 minutes against Chelsea, and his physical presence up front was a big factor in both games.
“I am not sure how Liverpool are going to have to deal with him, but my only doubt about Leeds is how much those two games have taken out of them.”
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty ImagesDominic Calvert-Lewin is looking to match his 2021 goal-scoring streak
Having been criticised for a lack of goals at the start of the season, Calvert-Lewin has now scored in consecutive games to take his goal tally to three for the season.
If the former Everton man can find the net against Liverpool, he will extend his goal-scoring run to three games for the first time since August 2021, according to the BBC.
Predicted Leeds United XI to face Liverpool 🤔
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Calvert-Lewin entered the 2021/22 season as one of the form strikers in the country, having fired himself into England contention with 16 Premier League goals for Everton the previous year.
He opened the 21/22 season with three goals in the first three games against Southampton, Leeds and Brighton, before a broken toe ruled him out until the new year.
Farke will be hoping that his recent goal-scoring exploits are a sign that he is rediscovering the kind of form he showed in the 2020/21 season.
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