Article by Adam Brown @AdamMNVi
At the start of December, no one expected Liverpool to have a seven-point advantage over Manchester City by the time the sides would meet at the Etihad.
The gap between the sides means that the Citizens will be desperate in their search of a win. Fortunately for us, Liverpool come into this game close to peak-form after a perfect December.
If Klopp can orchestrate a win over Guardiola on Thursday, the Reds will be nine points clear of Spurs and 10 ahead of City. An opportunity for Liverpool which has been almost extinct since the beginning of the Premier League era.
In defence, the back five remains the same. Those fans who laughed at Virgil van Dijk’s price-tag have gone quiet, Jurgen has proven his mastery of the transfer market once again.
There’s a lot of choices to be made in midfield, do we play slightly conservative and look to avoid a defeat? That would mean starting both Fabinho and Henderson. The dilemma with that is Gini Wijnaldum; the Dutch midfielder is producing his best form in a Liverpool shirt. But not just that, Shaqiri’s contributions from midfield have been constant – making this the most difficult team selection of the season.
From previous games against the champions, we’ve seen that they can be hurt when challenged. Shaqiri and Gini keep their place. Henderson or Fabinho in the six? There’s probably not too much difference at the moment, but this could be a game where organisation is key. The skipper starts.
The front three, as usual, remains the same.
Promisingly, City’s last clean sheet was in November. It’s a game where Liverpool should be able to score multiple goals – but Guardiola will have his team as ready as they were for the Champions League semi-final last year.
Score Prediction: Manchester City 1 – 2 LiverpoolScorers: Salah, FirminoAdam Brown – @AdamMNViHow does Chris think that Jurgen Klopp will select the side? Check out the Starting XI Prediction Show below 16+ PODCASTS P/MONTH
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