3 key battles as Liverpool host West Brom at Anfield

Jordan Henderson vs Nacer Chadli

Liverpool’s skipper has been in fine form so far this season. You don’t get many ‘all-rounder’ midfielders these days, with a player tending to specialise in either attack or defence, but Henderson is very effective at both.

He protects the back four well, breaking up play and moving the ball quickly to the more creative players within the team. But he’s no slouch going forward either. He has a wonderful passing range and is very accomplished in front of goal also, as his absolute worldie against Chelsea a few weeks back proved.

He will have his work cut out Saturday though as he will likely to be tasked with keeping the in-form Nacer Chadli quiet.

Chadli looks set to be one of the signings of the season. The Belgian international already has four goals and two assists from five league appearances and looks to be that missing piece of the jigsaw that Tony Pulis has so desperately craved.

Slotting into that no.10 role, he has linked up well with Baggies striker Salomon Rondon and is providing that much needed spark to a very rigid and regimented Albion team.

If he’s kept quiet though, it’s difficult to see where the Baggies creativity will come from, and keeping him quiet will be exactly what Henderson will be looking to do. A great test for both players.