Burnley vs. Liverpool Predictions: Jota and Weghorst feature in our best bets

An improved Burnley take on in-form Liverpool at Turf Moor on Sunday afternoon at 2pm. The Clarets are fighting for their Premier League status as the bottom of the table whereas the Reds have faint hopes that they can reel in table-toppers Man City who are nine points ahead…

Burnley may be rock-bottom of the Premier League, but Sean Dyche’s men have only been beaten eight times; the same as 4th-placed West Ham, while Watford have lost 15 times . The main problem has been an extreme shortage of wins, just one from 20 games so far, which leaves the club four points adrift of safety.

However, not only do the Clarets have a number of games in hand on their relegation rivals, but they head into the game unbeaten in three matches which includes respectable draws against top-four chasing Arsenal and Man Utd.

Yet Liverpool represents a completely different kettle of fish. The Reds are unbeaten in 2022 and have won their last five games on the spin in all competitions. Diego Jota is in red-hot form, Luis Diaz enjoyed a promising debut, and Mo Salah is back in the building and likely to start on Sunday. AFCON hero Sadio Mane could be available too. Yikes.

Odds

Diego Jota has been simply superb since signing for Liverpool. Many thought he may struggle for gametime but he’s transformed into a key cog in Klopp’s machine. The Portuguese player has 12 goals this season - second in the goalscorer charts - and five goals in his last three games in all competitions, including a brace from Thursday’s 2-0 win against Leicester.

Burnley have proved difficult to break down in recent weeks, conceding just the one goal in three games, but on Sunday they face a rip-roaring side capable of causing severe damage. Salah is back, Mane is too, Diaz looks like a real talent, and let’s not forget Firmino.

However, the man on fire is Jota who is priced at 7/5 to continue his goalscoring streak, a bet you can team-up with a John Brownhill card at 9.5/1 with William Hill.

Brownhill has six Premier League bookings so far this season, only Rúben Neves and Mohamed Salisu have featured more times in the ref’s little book. The midfielder has two yellows in his last two games and is 4/1 to make it a hat-trick on Sunday.

Wout Weghorst has made quite the impression in the two games he’s played since joining Burnley from Wolsfburg in January.

The 6ft 6in striker scored roughly a goal every other game in 144 appearances for Wolfsburg. While he’s yet to find the back of the net at Burnley, he was an absolute nuisance for poor Harry Maguire and co, carving out a beautiful assist against Man Utd, while he’s shown plenty of intent with five shots in two games so far.

He’s also amassed five fouls, three of which came in his last outing against the Red Devils, and previously picked up four yellows at Wolfsburg earlier this season. He’s physical, vocal, competitive and isn’t afraid to ruffle feathers, meaning his upcoming duel with Virgil van Dijk will be great to see.

He’s proved to be both technical and tenacious and we therefore like the look of a Weghorst shot paired with a card on Saturday at a sizeable 7/1 with Paddy Power.