Liverpool will travel to North London to face league leaders Arsenal on Saturday at the Emirates, where they could go top of the league, should they earn full three points against the Gunners.
Having already knocked out from the Capital One Cup, Liverpool players enjoyed the break while others teams were busy preparing for the midweek actions. With no side distractions to bother, this is one advantage the Reds will enjoy/are enjoying over their rivals. They can rest their best players and Brendan Rodgers can deploy his best eleven week-in-week-out.
Defence: In this crunch tie, Rodgers will have to make few smart decisions. First, whether to include Daniel Agger for this tie or not and for whom? Martin Skrtel has been sensational since he made his comeback against Manchester United. Likewise, young Mamadou Sakho has been playing quite well. However, against Arsenal (a top opposition) Rodgers will be looking to add experience to the side. Hence, either Skrtel or Sakho will have to make way for Agger. Jose Enrique is still injured, so Aly Cissokho will start on the left back.
Midfield: In the last match against West Bromwich Albion, Jordan Henderson started in place of Victor Moses, allowing Lucas to anchor the midfield. With his bundles of energy, the Englishman acted as a third central midfielder or at times as an advanced play maker. However, Liverpool will welcome Philippe Coutinho to the side for this game, after the Brazilian has recovered from the shoulder injury. The 3-4-1-2 formation is tailor made for Coutinho but the question is – should Rodgers drop Henderson for this game? No is the answer for me.
Henderson has become a key player for the Reds especially in big matches. His energy in the middle adds a different dimension to the team. Plus, Coutinho can come on as a sub and make an instant impact when needed. It is simply not the game where Rodgers can experiment with a new player, no matter how good he is.
Forward: Having said that, Liverpool won’t worry with such tactical nitty-gritty when SAS combo is firing all cylinders.
Liverpool are 11/5 with Ladbrokes to win against Arsenal on Saturday. Do you agree with our line-up? Let us know your thoughts below…
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