Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Prediction: Chiesa to make his case in Carabao Cup

We're not even in November, yet Liverpool and Crystal Palace will meet for the third time this season when they face off in the Carabao Cup fourth round at Anfield on Wednesday (19:45 BST, Sky Sports Football). The Eagles triumphed on penalties in August's Community Shield at Wembley following a 2-2 draw in regulation time, and the south London side were victorious the following month, too, winning 2-1 in the Premier League at Selhurst Park thanks to a last-gasp strike from Eddie Nketiah.

Below are my Liverpool vs Crystal Palace predictions, supported by all the latest team news and match odds, ahead of this midweek meeting on Merseyside.

Team News

Alisson Becker (groin), Giovanni Leoni (knee) and Jeremie Frimpong (hamstring) are out injured for Liverpool, who could once again be without Alexander Isak (groin) and Ryan Gravenberch (ankle), too. Curtis Jones (unspecified) is also doubtful after suffering an issue in Saturday's 3-2 defeat at Brentford.

Joe Gomez, Andy Robertson, Federico Chiesa and Rio Ngumoha, all of whom started the Reds' third-round victory over Southampton (2-1) on September 23, are expected to earn promotions from the bench on Wednesday.

Third-choice goalkeeper Freddie Woodman, who joined in the summer on a free from Preston North End, could make his debut for the club, while forgotten man Calvin Ramsay, who has struggled with injuries during the last few seasons, could also line up for Arne Slot's side.

Football Odds

Cheick Doucoure, Chadi Riad (both knee) and Caleb Kporha (back) are still sidelined for Crystal Palace, whose head coach Oliver Glasner could hand starts to fringe players like Nketiah, Christantus Uche, Justin Devenny, Jaydee Canvot, Borna Sosa and Walter Benitez.

Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Odds

Liverpool have lost five of their last six games in all competitions and haven't won any of their last three head-to-heads with Palace, yet the Reds are 8/13 favourites to triumph in regulation time on Wednesday, implying a 61.9% probability of success. The visitors are 4/1, or a 20% chance, to progress to the next round without requiring a penalty shootout.

A draw, which would send the tie straight to penalties, is priced at 16/5 - and both teams to score in this fixture for the fourth time this calendar year is available at 8/13.

Anytime Goalscorer - Federico Chiesa (LIV) @ 11/5

Chiesa simply has to start on Wednesday.

Despite limited game time this season, the Italian has been superb for Liverpool, scoring twice and registering three assists.

Chiesa's second and most recent strike came against Wednesday's opponents, Palace, as a second-half substitute in the Reds' Premier League defeat at Selhurst Park last month.

Today's Football Fixtures

The 28-year-old didn't feature in his side's next two matches, but claimed an assist in his next appearance, the 2-1 league defeat to Manchester United at Anfield on October 19, and he's come off the bench in Liverpool's last two games - the 5-1 Uefa Champions League hammering of Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany last Wednesday and Saturday's loss at Brentford.

Cody Gakpo and Hugo Ekitike could both be rested against Palace, at least from the start, which could hand Chiesa an opportunity to begin on the left-hand side of Liverpool's attack, or even as a central striker.

Either way, 11/5 looks like a generous price for someone who should start in a front three, has been dangerous in attack this season, and has already scored against Palace in 2025/26.

Player to Receive a Card - Wataru Endo (LIV) @ 9/2

This also looks big to me.

Wataru Endo has only featured in one of Liverpool's last six matches, as an 86th-minute substitute in the 2-1 defeat at Chelsea, but he played the duration of the Reds' victory over Southampton in the last round of the Carabao Cup. With doubts over the fitness of fellow midfielders Gravenberch and Jones, the Japan international could start in the middle of the park alongside Alexis Mac Allister on Wednesday.

Mac Allister (18/5) is another tempting option in the Player to Receive a Card market, but it's Endo, at an even more attractive price of 9/2, who is my pick to go into the referee's notebook against Palace.

The 32-year-old, who is also an option to start at centre-back, was issued 12 yellow cards in his first season (2023/24) at Liverpool, before being utilised much less under Slot the following campaign, earning just one caution - but that was in the Carabao Cup.

This term, Endo has been booked once - in the dying embers of the 1-0 Premier League win against Arsenal at Anfield on August 21. He only committed one foul against Southampton in the third round, but against better players on Wednesday, he might be forced into conceding a couple more free-kicks.

His international teammate Daichi Kamada, averaging 1.7 fouls won per Premier League game this season, could feature in midweek, as could fellow central midfielder Will Hughes, who drew a yellow from Millwall's Raees Bangura-Williams in the previous round of the competition.

Offers

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down