Cardiff City v Liverpool: Live matchday blog
Liverpool returned back to the top of the Premier League table as second-half goals from Georginio Wijnaldum and James Milner (penalty) gave the Reds a 2-0 victory at Cardiff City.
Here is how the table looks after the latest round of fixtures...
The tale of the tape, as told by Opta stats...
Full Time
Cardiff City 0-2 Liverpool
Liverpool get the job done and go back to the top of the Premier League table with victory at the Cardiff City Stadium.
After a goalless first half, Georginio Wijnaldum drilled the Reds into the lead with a fine finish from Trent Alexander-Arnold's corner on 56 minutes.
James Milner wrapped up the scoring from the penalty spot with nine minutes remaining after Mohamed Salah had been impeded by Sean Morrison inside the area.
Three minutes of added time to be played...
Chance!
Salah prods goalwards - off his knee, we think - from Firmino's pass, but the ball is kept out by a fine save from Etheridge.
Substitution
Alexander-Arnold comes off and Gomez comes on for our final change.
Substitution
Murphy is on for Hoilett for the hosts.
Goal
GOAL! JAMES MILNER!
He makes no mistake from the spot. Get in!
Penalty to Liverpool
Morrison hauls Salah down inside the box and the Reds have a spot kick.
Substitution
Now Cardiff are forced into a change as Ralls pulls up after a sprint with Mane. Bacuna is his replacement.
Substitution
Milner is on for Fabinho.
Fabinho is off the pitch after a clash of heads. He won't be able to continue...
Substitution
And here's the Reds' first change - Keita makes way for Fabinho.
Substitution
Cardiff make the game's first change and Zohore is on for Niasse.
Chance
Cardiff should be level, but Morrison has somehow - thankfully - misjudged a header from a corner with the goal at his mercy.
Stat
Alexander-Arnold's assist was his 10th of the season in all competitions for Liverpool, eight of which have come in the Premier League.
Chance!
Another good opening for Liverpool goes begging as Henderson side-foots Mane's pull-back over from 10 yards after the Reds had won the ball back just outside the Cardiff box.
Hoilett has a chance to shoot on the edge of the box, but it's too close to Alisson.
Goal
GOAL! GEORGINIO WIJNALDUM!
There's the breakthrough!
A corner routine that looks like it'd been worked on at Melwood pays off as Alexander-Arnold drills a low ball into the area from the right and Wijnaldum hammers a shot beyond Etheridge from 12 yards out.
Get in!
Liverpool starting to build sustained pressure now
Alexander-Arnold finds himself on the left having been on that side to take a corner. He collects the ball and takes aim. He's not too far away, either.
Mane tries one from a tight angle inside the area and skims the roof of the net. Unlucky.
Morrison loops a header onto the roof of Alisson's net from Mendez-Laing's cross.
Kick-Off
Back under way...
Cardiff re-start the game.
The story of the first half, as told by Opta stats...
Half Time
Cardiff City 0-0 Liverpool
It's goalless at the half-way stage at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Liverpool have had all of the ball and several good chances, but they've failed to take them. The Bluebirds have also had a couple of openings that have caused concern for the Reds.
Work to do in the second period for the visitors.
Half Time
Cardiff City 0-0 Liverpool
It's goalless at the half-way stage at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Liverpool have had all of the ball and several good chances, but they've failed to take them. The Bluebirds have also had a couple of openings that have caused concern for the Reds.
Work to do in the second period for the visitors.
Alisson needs to paw Niasse's hook goalwards from a ball back into the box over the bar form close range.
Firmino nods down Alexander-Arnold's corner at the back post, but he can't generate any power behind it and it's an easy claim for Etheridge.
Salah leads a counter from Henderson's pass, but he's crowded out by a combination of three Cardiff players before he can get a shot away.
Chance!
Salah superbly spins Manga on the edge of the box, but his shot is saved by the sprawling Etheridge.
Stat
Every one of Liverpool's 10 outfield players has completed at least 10 passes. Bruno Ecuele Manga has the most for Cardiff with six.
Alexander-Arnold skims a low ball towards the near post from the right, where Mane arrives but can only hoist it over the bar.
Mendez-Laing causes problems again down the right as he speeds forward on the break. Van Dijk needs to clear his attempted centre.
Chance!
Ah, Roberto Firmino knows he should have done better.
Liverpool open up Cardiff for the first time as Salah and Mane combine before the latter slides a ball through for the Brazilian, who finds himself clean through but scoops over the bar.
Firmino has an attempt blocked inside the box by Manga.
Chance
The game's first opportunity falls to Cardiff as Liverpool give the ball away cheaply inside their own half. Mendez-Laing runs at Alexander-Arnold and stands up a cross towards the back post, where Hoilett chests it down and shoots. Robertson makes a vital block at the near post.
The resulting corner sees Alisson required to fist the ball away inside the six-yard box.
Mane finds space for a strike in a central position 20 yards out, but this time he's way off target.
Not a great deal to report upon in the early stages, here. Liverpool have had 83.5 per cent possession of the ball, but have yet to threaten Etheridge's goal.
Niasse powers his way to the touchline but overruns the ball and the danger passes.
Alexander-Arnold tries to send Firmino into a shooting position on the corner of the box, but he's flagged offside.
Kick-Off
And we're off...
Jordan Henderson kicks us off at the Cardiff City Stadium and we're under way...
Here come the teams...
Klopp on his changed midfield
Henderson and Keita come into midfield alongside Wijnaldum this afternoon and the boss told Sky Sports that we'll have to wait until kick-off to see whether the captain is in a deeper or more advanced role against Cardiff.
"We have different options still and one of them we decided to take. It's all good. He will play in a position he likes," said Klopp when asked about Henderson and the changes.
In formation
Here's how our friends at Opta expect the sides to line-up...
The Reds are here...
Here's a few snaps of Liverpool arriving earlier this afternoon.
Access all areas
Here's a little peek inside the away-team dressing room at the Cardiff City Stadium...
TEAM NEWS
Three changes for Liverpool at Cardiff today as Roberto Firmino, Jordan Henderson and Naby Keita come in for Divock Origi, James Milner and Fabinho.
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson, Wijnaldum, Henderson, Keita, Mane, Salah, Firmino.
Subs: Mignolet, Fabinho, Milner, Gomez, Sturridge, Shaqiri, Origi.
Trent on the spot
Alexander-Arnold takes care of the pre-match media duties at the Cardiff City Stadium this afternoon.
Carra's rallying call
Reds legend Jamie Carragher has been previewing today's encounter in his role as a pundit for Sky Sports and he believes Liverpool must approach it as their biggest game of the season so far.
"Liverpool have to win today to ensure that Manchester City have to go to Old Trafford on Wednesday needing three points," he said.
"You do not want to allow City to go there needing a draw. Liverpool need to apply that pressure. Don't worry about any other games in the future, this is the one. This is the biggest game of Liverpool's season."
‘Liverpool are among the world’s best’
So says Cardiff boss Neil Warnock in his notes in the matchday programme…
“It’s fantastic to be involved in a fixture like this: against one of the very best teams in the world at the moment and in front of a full house,” Warnock writes.
“Realistically, Liverpool have got a great chance of winning the Premier League and Champions League next month, but we’ve got to approach today’s game in the right manner and put in a performance so as to give them a really good game.”
Weather
Which reminds us...
...it's time for your official Liverpoolfc.com Weather Update live and direct from Cardiff.
Well, as evidanced in our photograph below, it's a truly magnificent day in the Welsh capital with clear blue skies.
Our trusty, well travelled, thermometer is showing 22 degrees, and sources tell us that's likely to creep up a notch come kick-off.
So, no need for the big coats or hats, scarfs and gloves today. A light, spring jacket is optional.
Cardiff in the sunshine
The Cardiff City Stadium is looking good on this magnificent Sunday...
Opposition form
Cardiff come into this game on the back of a crucial 2-0 win at Brighton and Hove Albion on Tuesday night in their quest to avoid relegation.
The 18th-placed side had lost their preceding three fixtures, however, against Burnley, Manchester City and Chelsea.
Joe Gomez update
How close is the defender to a start for Liverpool? The boss explains...
PFA nominations
In a week's time, the 2019 PFA Awards will crown a Players' Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year during a ceremony in London.
And Liverpool have contenders for both accolades: Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk for the former, and Trent Alexander-Arnold the latter.
Ox's guide to the new LFC kit
They won't be wearing it for games just yet, but the Liverpool players got their hands on the new 2019-20 home kit ahead of its official unveiling on Thursday morning - and who better to take you on a behind-the-scenes tour of the modelling shoot than Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain...
Alisson's aim
We caught up with Alisson Becker ahead of this match to discuss a range of topics - and here's what the goalkeeper had to say specifically about Liverpool putting the win in Porto behind them to focus fully on Cardiff.
"Immediately after the game we were obviously really happy to have got through to the semi-finals, it's a great achievement in the career of each individual player.
"But we have two simultaneous objectives: to win the Premier League and the Champions League, and our next challenge is Cardiff.
"I'm sure it'll be a great challenge for us, we're playing away and that's always difficult in the Premier League. We'll have to give 100 per cent on the pitch to get the desired victory."
What are the odds?
BetVictor offers the following match prices today.
Cardiff - 17/1
Draw - 7/1
Liverpool - 2/9
Click here for more information.
Missing Men: Cardiff 2014
The latest edition of our Missing Men quiz takes you back five years - to Liverpool's last trip to Cardiff City Stadium.
There were nine goals that day and we've given you the Reds' three scorers. But can you remember the rest of the team?
Click the graphic to reveal the answers...
Stat attack
Here are some key facts and figures ahead of kick-off in Cardiff...
- Roberto Firmino is two goals short of 50 for Liverpool in the Premier League
- In the reverse match at Anfield, Xherdan Shaqiri scored his first Reds goal and Virgil van Dijk captained the team for the first time
- There has never been a 0-0 draw in the 33 games played between these sides in all competitions
- In seven of their last 10 fixtures, Liverpool have scored at least once in the final 10 minutes
The last meeting
Liverpool eased to a 4-1 win over Cardiff when the teams met in the reverse fixture at Anfield this season - and you can enjoy the best of that performance in our highlights package below.
Snapped
Our photographers were at Melwood on Friday as well, to provide a gallery of the Reds' training session - which was conducted in brilliant sunshine. Take a look through the images below.
The manager's view
Catch up with everything Klopp had to say about facing Cardiff and the title race with our full video of his pre-match press conference at Melwood on Friday...
Tale of the tape
Take a look through all the numbers behind the two sides' Premier League seasons so far with our interactive Opta tool below...
Team news
There was a rare treat for Jürgen Klopp ahead of the trip to Wales - the manager had no fresh injury concerns to contend with.
Dejan Lovren is expected to be available again, too, after recovering from the illness that ruled him out of the midweek win against FC Porto.
For Cardiff, Harry Arter (calf) is likely to miss out and Aron Gunnarsson is a doubt due to a back issue.
Callum Paterson and Sol Bamba are long-term absentees for Warnock's men.
A week ago
Liverpool's last Premier League outing was exactly a week ago amid a charged atmosphere inside Anfield.
Brilliant goals from Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah secured a 2-0 win against Chelsea - and you can relive the emotions of that afternoon again below...
How it stands
Manchester City threw the gauntlet back down to Liverpool with a narrow 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday to regain pole position in the Premier League.
City now lead the table by a point, but the Reds can leapfrog the reigning champions once again with victory in Cardiff.
Welcome to Wales
Liverpool are back on Premier League duty this afternoon with a clash against Neil Warnock's Cardiff City - and, as with pretty much every game at the moment, it's a big one.
We'll be with the Reds throughout the day to bring you build-up, live updates and post-match reaction from Cardiff City Stadium, so stay right here to follow it all unfold.
