- Liverpool have won one, drawn three and lost one of their last five matches in all competitions.
- Qarabag have won three and lost two of their last five - a run of results that includes a 3-2 home win over Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Champions League.
Liverpool’s identity is clear
Anfield has not been a fortress in Liverpool’s most recent run of home games - they have drawn their only home match in their latest run - but Arne Slot’s side should return to winning ways against Qarabag on Wednesday.
The Dutchman has done wonders at Liverpool since taking charge in July 2024, bringing a much calmer, more structured and flexible build-up phase and a clearer identity to the Anfield club.
Liverpool have a clear identity: they are a possession-based 4-2-3-1 system with a focus on playing through the thirds at a good tempo and getting forward quickly. Slot has made them very hard to play against with their zone-based, but calculated, pressing traps.
Dominik Szoboszlai remains their biggest attacking threat and has scored four goals in seven Champions League appearances in 2025-2026, while Florian Wirtz has chipped in with two goals in their last five.
Qarabag can be dangerous on the counter
Qarabag are a very different proposition, although they have a similarly compact 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 hybrid that focuses on getting numbers wide, moving the ball forward at pace and sitting in a rigid, compact block in defence with selective pressing.
Qurban Qurbanov has been in charge of the Azerbaijani side since 2008 and has instilled a clear discipline and a tendency to produce big performances in European football.
Camilo Duran is the man up front that they look to for goals, having scored 4 in 7 Champions League games, but they are still 18th in the table with 10 points from 7 games.
Reds should win a goal-fest
Liverpool are heavy 1.11 favourites to beat Qarabag, but the 1.35 line on Over 2.5 goals is even more heavily skewed.
However, given how potent both teams have been in the attacking third of late, a home triumph accompanied by plenty of goals seems the most likely outcome.
Qarabag have split their two away matches with a win and a loss, so we feel they can push Liverpool close, even if they are ultimately defeated. But the Reds are fourth in the group on 15 points from 7 matches, so they are very consistent at the top end of the table and are likely to dominate possession and the tempo.
They could do so to their peril against a Qarabag side that is dangerous on the break, so expect the Reds to stay switched on to avoid the trap game.
