Daniel Sturridge of Arsenal
The match of the weekend in the English Premier League sees table toppers Arsenal travel to Anfield to take on fourth place Liverpool. The two teams met at the Emirates at the beginning of November with Arsenal coming out on top winning 2-0. Both managers have the firepower to gun each other down, but who will get it right tactically on the day?
Brendan Rodgers was left frustrated as his side missed a chance to tighten their grip on fourth place in the Premier League after failing to beat West Brom last Sunday. Liverpool were in control but a horrible mistake by Kolo Toure gave West Brom the equaliser as the game ended 1-1. The Reds will be looking to put Sunday’s disappointment behind them and continue their impressive home record, which has seen them win 10 of their 12 league games at Anfield this season and take 31 points from a possible 36.The Reds have also scored an impressive 33 goals in these 12 home games, with only free scoring Manchester City (42) scoring more home goals this season. Rodgers’ men will know all about the opposition after suffering a 2-0 defeat in the reverse fixture.
Liverpool will be relying on Coutinho to be their main source of creativity in midfield and the man they look to provide that killer pass for the lethal duo of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge. He has already shown his intelligence to find pockets of space in between opponents’ defence and midfield and is one of few players blessed with the ability to create something out of nothing. Sturridge has been on fire since returning from injury and already has fourteen goals and three assists to his name in just 17 appearances this season.
With every game, Suarez is proving why Liverpool were so adamant on him staying in the summer and, more recently, signing a new contract. He has the energy to harass defenders for the full 90 minutes, exhausting them into the ground and producing little bits of magic. Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker will be weary of the threat Suarez and Sturridge poses. The frightening pair now have a combined 55 Premier League goals this season.
Arsenal have 55 points from their opening 24 matches this season. This is the third best ever top flight points tally at this stage of the season; they had 58 in 03/04 and 57 in 07/08. History is on the Gunners’ side as they have lost just one of their last 13 clashes with Liverpool, winning five and drawing seven. Mesut Ozil has played an important role in Arsenal’s impressive run of form. French striker Olivier Giroud has been one of Arsenal’s stand-out performers this season and he will be key to he’s sides title hopes. While strikers win matches, it is defenders that win league titles.
Wenger’s men have surrendered the fewest goals this term. Their defensive excellence is the defining feature of their success so far. Towering centre-back Per Mertesacker continues to make a mockery of his critics. His obvious lack of pace has yet to undermine the Gunners. It is also more than compensated for by precision tackling, excellent positional sense and a natural air of authority. More worryingly for Arsenal, they will be without the services of combative midfielder Mathieu Flamini on Saturday as he misses the second of a three-match suspension following his sending-off at Southampton two weeks ago.
Liverpool have been impressive at home, winning their last three home games. It will take a lot to beat The Reds on their turf this term, the Gunners will need to be at their best against a tough Reds defence and the prediction calls for neither side to earn a clean sheet and both sides to cancel each other out.
