@AdamMNVi
After a postponed game midweek (due to a Covid outbreak amongst an unnamed group of players which makes writing this article a very tough exercise!) it’s time for Liverpool’s FA Cup journey to begin with a clash against Shrewsbury Town. With the league looking like a tough race to win, the Reds should have every intent of trying to go far in the cups – and a tie against a lower-league side at home is a chance to do that without playing a full strength squad.
Of course, we’ll be without Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah for the next few games and while that doesn’t mean there’s a chance to dislodge them from the starting XI, it’s a chance for players to show why they deserve more minutes when the chance arises.
Here’s how we should line up:
If Liverpool have no goalkeepers available due to the Covid-19 outbreak, as has been rumoured, that leaves few options between the sticks and I think it’s a chance for Loris Karius to leave the Reds on good terms. He will almost certainly be gone by the end of the season, maybe even the end of this month.
With Nat Phillips out with an injury and the management wanting to manage the minutes of Virgil Van Dijk and Joel Matip, this game gives a chance for Joe Gomez and Billy Koumetio to make amends after their awful first half display against Leicester City in the League Cup game against Leicester. Andy Robertson returns after missing a few games from a red card, while Neco Williams starts at right-back.
A midfield of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, James Milner and Tyler Morton should be more than enough to get through with comfort, with an emphasis on not playing too many youngsters for the sake of it, though Kaide Gordan’s display against Norwich City earlier in the season means he is worthy of an inclusion further forward.
Curtis Jones starts on the left flank as he garners match fitness – he will be a player we need to get up to speed as a potential starter in the league, and Takumi Minamino completes the lineup as the centre-forward.
How does Paul think Liverpool will line up? Check out the Starting XI Prediction Show below!
