Saints bid to heap more misery on Liverpool

– Liverpool’s formidable home record was meant to provide the platform for a tilt at three trophies – but Saturday’s surprise 3-2 Premier League defeat by Swansea spoiled that idea.

If Juergen Klopp’s team are to overcome Southampton at Anfield in the second leg of a League Cup semifinal tonight, their defending will have to improve significantly.

The shock of suffering their first defeat at Anfield in almost 12 months is still being felt by the club’s fans, with a run of just two points won from the last nine available damaging Liverpool’s chances of landing a first English league title since 1990.

The visit of Premier League rivals Southampton – who lead 1-0 from the first leg – will be followed by a home match against second-tier Wolves in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday.

Klopp expects expects much better defending from a team who have conceded six goals in their last three league matches.

“We are not happy about the last results,” said the manager. “They are not good enough.”

Centreback Joel Matip is in line for a start since December 11.

An ankle injury was followed by an eligibility row with Fifa as they pondered whether he should be barred from playing for his club during the Africa Cup of Nations after refusing to appear for Cameroon at the tournament.

With Fifa ruling Matip (right) can play for Liverpool, he will now compete for a starting spot with Dejan Lovren and Ragnar Klavan.

Southampton have renewed confidence, having ended a run of four straight league defeats with a 3-0 win over champions Leicester City last weekend.

However, their preparations haven’t been helped by an injury to Virgil van Dijk, the centreback installed as team captain following the departure of Jose Fonte to West Ham.

“Van Dijk is having a scan and I am waiting for the results at the moment,” said Southampton manager Claude Puel.