MatchThe opposition lowdown: Sunderland

Season so far

Regis Le Bris' team entered the midweek round of fixtures sitting ninth in the standings.

The Black Cats, back in the top flight after promotion, have gathered 36 points from their 25 matches this season - nine wins and nine draws coming alongside seven defeats.

They were beaten 3-0 by Arsenal away from home last time out in the Premier League.

Key players

The hosts have shared their goals around the team so far this season.

Brian Brobbey leads the way for his impact in the final third with five goals and one assist in the league.

Wilson Isidor has netted on four occasions, while Chemsdine Talbi and Enzo Le Fee have netted three apiece, with defender Dan Ballard having scored twice.

Granit Xhaka, who will miss the match through injury, has five assists from midfield. Next-best Le Fee and Nordi Mukiele have delivered four each.

Team news

Bertrand Traore and Xhaka are sidelined for the home team, but Le Bris reported no concerns about Noah Sadiki after he was substituted against Arsenal on Saturday.

New signing Nilson Angulo is nearing a start, with the Sunderland boss saying of the winger recruited from Anderlecht: "Nilson is ready to play. He has trained with us and played a lot of football this year at a good level."

Previous meeting

Liverpool and Sunderland played out a 1-1 draw at Anfield in the reverse fixture in December.

Talbi was on target for the visitors, before a deflected Florian Wirtz effort resulted in an own goal from Mukiele to see the points shared.

What they said

Le Bris, Sunderland head coach

"We know the level of the opponent is high. It's important for us to be brave and ambitious and use the energy from the crowd to generate and sustain momentum.

"So far we have been really good at home, but the next challenge is always the toughest. Liverpool are really good and will be very strong.

"We know that we have built strong foundations, but it is always a reset. Bouncing back from the last game will be a tough challenge, but we will be ready."

Pre-match stats

• Sunderland are unbeaten in all 12 of their Premier League home games this season (won seven, drawn five). It's the longest run by a promoted side from the start of a top-flight season since 1977-78, when Nottingham Forest remained unbeaten in all 21 en route to winning the title.
• They are winless in their last 11 Premier League fixtures against Liverpool (drawn five, lost six) since a 1-0 home win in March 2012.
• The Black Cats have lost just one of their last four Premier League matches against reigning champions (won two, drawn one) and, following their draw at Anfield, could remain unbeaten against the defending top-flight champions in a season for the first time since 1983-84, which was also against Liverpool (won one, drew one).