Having humiliated Manchester United 7-0 last weekend, Liverpool hopes that thrashing will prove to be a turning point in their season when they visit cellar-dwellers Bournemouth on Saturday.

In Italy, Napoli will be aiming to bounce back from a shock defeat to Lazio last weekend, when they host the dangerous but out of-form Atalanta in an eagerly anticipated clash.

Event # 1 – EPL – Bournemouth vs Liverpool – 7:30 am

Bournemouth suffered a body blow last weekend when beaten 3-2 by Arsenal after taking a surprise 2-0 lead in the game. Indeed, following that gut-punching, last-minute loss, Bournemouth now find themselves on a 11-match winless run with nine of those games ending in losses. The Cherries, Bournemouth will have fresh memories of their last encounter with Liverpool, as back in August, Liverpool hammered them 9-0 bringing an end to Scott Parker’s tenure as coach.

Liverpool will be all the rage to follow up their incredible win over Manchester United and prove to their legion of fans that they have rediscovered their mojo. Indeed, while Bournemouth were being denied a last-minute draw against Arsenal, Liverpool were being rampant in that annihilation of rivals Man United at home.

The Reds, Liverpool, will look at the manner in which they dispatched an in-form Man United team to continue their push for the final Champions League spot. It was a stunning showing by the Reds, having only led 1-0 at half-time, but they blew United away after the break, scoring an amazing six times to give their fans a day they will never forget.

KEYS STATS

• Bournemouth – have lost three Premier League games this season in which they have had a two-goal lead (v Spurs in October, Leeds in November, Arsenal this month), the most by a side in a single campaign in the competition. Overall, they have lost 17 points from winning positions in 2022-23, behind only Leicester (19) in the Premier League this term.

• Liverpool – won the reverse fixture against Bournemouth 9-0 at Anfield in August – the most goals they’ve ever scored against an opponent in a single top-flight season is 11, doing so on five occasions and most recently against Ipswich Town in 2001-02.

•Both sides – Bournemouth have won just one of their 11 Premier League meetings with Liverpool (D1 L9), losing the last seven in a row by an aggregate score of 28-1.

The betting tip. Liverpool win.

Event # 2 Serie A – Napoli vs Atalanta – 12:00 pm

After dropping points for the first time in the post-World Cup period in an unexpected 1-0 to Lazio, Serie A League leaders Napoli will be aiming to return to winning ways and resume normal service at home, which they had turned into a fortress against visiting teams. While still boasting a 15-point advantage atop the standing, Napoli will be fully aware that their first Serie A title in over 30 years is still firmly in their sights and cannot afford another slip-up at home against a side searching for form, having won just one of their previous five league matches.

Atalanta will be aiming to get back on track after their recent dip in form, having embarked on a three-match winless run. This fixture has been an exciting one in years gone by, in fact, nine of the last 11 match-ups between both teams since 2018 have seen both teams finding the back of the net and two or more gaols being scored, including each of their last five over the last two years.

Encouragingly for Atalanta, at this venue, they have a very decent record in recent times, winning three and losing just once in their last six trips to Napoli. However, having struggled for form in recent times with just four points and three goals scored in their last five matches, it might prove too much for Atalanta to get back on track against this runaway league leaders, who had won nine straight games at home prior to the surprise 1-0 home lost to Lazio last weekend.

KEY STATS

• Napoli – have won only one of their last four home games against Atalanta in Serie A (D1 L2) and following their 2-3 defeat in December 2021, they could lose back-to-back home games against them for the second time in the competition, after 1997.

• Atalanta – have found the net in each of their last nine league matches against Napoli: their longest scoring run against them in the competition and their joint-longest ongoing such run against an opponent in the competition (also 9 vs Juventus).

• Both sides – only one of the last 15 matches between Napoli and Atalanta in Serie A has been drawn (2-2 on 30 October, 2019), eight wins for Napoli and six for Atalanta.

The betting tip. Napoli win.