Bournemouth’s hopes of achieving an FA Cup shock on Saturday have been boosted by news of Liverpool’s deepening injury crisis.

The Championship outfit are set to welcome the Premier League giants – and seven-time Cup winners – to Dean Court for their fourth-round tie this weekend and Reds boss Brendan Rodgers will have to cope without several first-team regulars.

Rodgers confirmed on Thursday that Lucas Leiva will be out for a “few months” with a knee problem sustained in the 2-2 draw against Aston Villa last week and Glen Johnson is to be unavailable “indefinitely” due to a “number of injuries”.

Lucas and Johnson join Mamadou Sakho (hamstring), Jose Enrique (knee) and Daniel Agger (calf) on the sidelines, while striker Daniel Sturridge has only just come back from a six-week lay-off with an ankle problem.

This means Rodgers looks to have little choice but to start key players such as Sturridge, captain Steven Gerrard and top scorer Luis Suarez on Saturday – even with Tuesday’s crucial Merseyside derby against Everton looming in the distance.

First-choice goalkeeper Simon Mignolet will be rested, though, as Rodgers revealed that Brad Jones – who played in Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Oldham Athletic in the third round – will start.

The Merseysiders sit fourth in the Premier League and are the second-highest scorers in the top flight with 53 goals in 22 games this term – Suarez accounting for 22 of those.

And their attacking potency will be of concern to Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe, whose 16th-placed team have got the second most porous defence in the Championship, having leaked 45 goals in 26 matches.

Bournemouth overcame League Two club Burton Albion 4-1 at home in round three but that result represents one of just two wins in their last eight in all competitions at home.

Nevertheless, Howe has urged his players to relish the “rare opportunity of taking on one of the best teams in the world.”

“This is a really special game. Not just for us players but as fans and the buzz around the town,” the 36-year-old said.

“We don’t want to show Liverpool too much respect and freeze on the occasion.”

There’s FA Cup fourth-round action on Saturday, with our tipster backing the home side to give their illustrious visitors a scare

After beating Burton Albion last week in a rearranged fixture, Bournemouth secured their spot in the next round of the FA Cup and host Liverpool in a glamour match at Dean Court.

Eddie Howe’s side hosted a friendly against Real Madrid in the summer, but this game will top that with so much at stake for both sides.

Liverpool have looked like a very impressive unit this season and, despite falling away slightly in the Premier League, they will see the cup as a realistic target. The Reds are unbeaten in their last four matches, winning three of those games. Last time out away they were involved in an eight-goal thriller against Stoke, coming out 5-3 winners. Betway price they at 7/20 (1.35) to win the match.

Bournemouth have had a difficult season in the Championship so far, struggling to put any consistent form together. Despite sitting 16th in the league, they are unbeaten in their last four matches, drawing with Watford 1-1 last time out. Betway price them at 8/1 (9.00) to cause a shock. The same firm price the draw at 7/2 (4.50).

With both sides involved in plenty of matches involving goals this season, the both teams to score bet seems a certain to land in this match. Bournemouth have netted in 12 of their 15 home games this season, with Liverpool only keeping one clean sheet away from home in the last 11 matches. However, with the price a tad short at 13/20 (1.65) with Betway, it’s worth looking elsewhere for value.

With Liverpool looking deadly in front of goal with the likes of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge scoring for fun, it’s worth backing the Reds to win the match. With the goal stats in mind, the both teams to score and Liverpool to win bet seems like a fantastic price at 8/5 (2.60) with Betway.

Expect the Cherries to put up a valiant fight against the Premier League outfit, but class will show through in the end.

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The Liverpool boss says the full-back has accumulated a mixture of problems and has not been 100 per cent fit this term, while is hopeful over Mohamed Salah’s transfer

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed that he expects full-back Glen Johnson to be sidelined ‘indefinitely’ following a series of injuries.

The 29-year-old England international has made 18 appearances for the Reds this season but has been criticised for his mixed form.

And his manager believes he has not been 100 per cent fit for the entire campaign, telling reporters: “Glen Johnson is sidelined indefinitely.

“Glen’s got a really bad ankle, and one or two other issues which haven’t allowed him to be 100% this season.

“We’ve got no timeline on Johnson’s injury.”

Rodgers did have better news in the shape of a return for Jon Flanagan, who has missed the past few weeks with a hamstring injury.

He added: “Young Jon Flanagan is back and has been training really well.”

With just eight days remaining in the transfer window, Rodgers said the Anfield club are keeping tabs on ‘several targets’, including Chelsea target Mohamed Salah.

He said: “We don’t need to bring any more defenders in. We just need to get some of our players back fit.

“We’re missing key players, but we’ve got to manage with what we’ve got. If we can bring anyone in, great, if not, we have what we have.

“We’ve looked at a number of players, but Salah is a talented player, but we’ll see what the window brings. We’re looking at several targets.”

Rodgers also addressed the news of Lucas Leiva’s injury. The Brazilian suffered a knee complaint in the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa and is expected to miss up to eight weeks, something Rodgers lamented.

“I’m disappointed for Lucas,” Rodgers said. “He’s been very important for our squad this season. It’s put him out for a few months.

“Hopefully he’ll be back sooner rather than later. But in the mean time, it leaves us short of a really good player.

“Lucas has still got a great chance of being in the Brazil squad for the World Cup in the summer. That’s up to Scolari.”