What: English Premier League
Who: Manchester City vs Liverpool
When: Sunday 3rd February, 2013, at 16:00 UK Time
Where: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England
QPR Stalemate Sees Manchester City’s Grip Loosened Further
A 0-0 draw at Loftus Road against the side bottom of the Premier League has undermined Roberto Mancini’s team’s title defence. With Manchester United winning in the week, the gap between the sides is now seven points again. Mario Balotelli is gone, Vincent Kompany out injured and Yaya Toure still in South Africa with the Ivory Coast at the African Cup of Nations. Things are not going to plan at the Etihad Stadium.
Mancini’s forwards are in one of those patches where the goals just won’t go in. Carlos Tevez, Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero were all foiled by a remarkable display from Julio Cesar in midweek and will be desperate to remedy that this weekend. Manchester City have shown themselves to be good under pressure and capable of responding well to setbacks over the last year and the visit of Liverpool will be another significant test of those abilities.
A consistent run of victories is essential now though, with just 14 games remaining to close the gap at the top of the table. Memories of last year will be stirred to try and inspire Manchester City, but they remain rather reliant on a burst of form from David Silva. Their best displays are invariably when the Spaniard is on song and when he is not they can look short of ideas. However, Manchester City have been excellent defensively of late and have yet to concede a goal in 2013 in any competition. If they can continue that run going into February, their hopes of hauling in Manchester United again cannot be ruled out.
Liverpool Look To Build Momentum
From the Emirates to the Etihad for Liverpool, who will have been buoyed by their performance against Arsenal on Wednesday, if not the result, a 2-2 draw. While the signs were that this is a Liverpool team which may not be near to being the finished article, they are certainly moving in the right direction. Daniel Sturridge’s arrival has energised the side further, and his link-up play with Luis Suarez has been superb so far. With the arrival of Philippe Coutinho, Liverpool have an exciting forward line being developed by Brendan Rodgers.
The big problem now for Rodgers is doing something about the defence. Jamie Carragher was brought back in for the game at Arsenal but does Rodgers stick with him against Manchester City’s attack or bring back Martin Skrtel? And does he revert Glen Johnson to right-back and drop the impressive Andre Wisdom in favour of the more experienced Jose Enrique?
The stakes are getting higher for Rodgers and for Liverpool, on who there has not been huge pressure so far this season. But sitting seventh, seven points adrift of fourth place, Champions League qualification is not out of the question. With all of the contenders for third and fourth place aside from Everton stuttering in midweek, there is a sense that, as Arsenal did last year, any team putting together a consistent run can take an automatic Champions League spot for next season. That will be what Liverpool have their eyes on as the season enters its decisive final months.
Recent form
Manchester City:
Manchester City 2-0 Fulham (19/01; Premier League)
Stoke City 0-1 Manchester City (26/01; FA Cup)
QPR 0-0 Manchester City (29/01; Premier League)
Liverpool:
Liverpool 5-0 Norwich City (19/01; Premier League)
Oldham Athletic 3-2 Liverpool (27/01; FA Cup)
Arsenal 2-2 Liverpool (30/01; Premier League)
Key absences
Manchester City: Vincent Kompany; Micah Richards; Kolo Toure; Maicon; Yaya Toure
Liverpool: Martin Kelly; Philippe Coutinho
Players to watch
Manchester City – Sergio Aguero: The Argentine has not scored a goal since New Year’s Day and the latest injury to blight him in a stop start campaign. With Manchester City unable to reproduce the same free scoring displays of the first half of last season, a significant part of that is down to the fact that Aguero has not been in the same prolific form. There is no doubt that at his best, Aguero is one of the best strikers not just in England, but the world. His direct running from advanced positions out wide strike fear into defenders and add some much needed urgency to Manchester City’s play.
Liverpool – Daniel Sturridge: Sturridge was not at his best against Arsenal on Wednesday night but still looked dangerous with his runs. He will undoubtedly be keen to prove a point at the Etihad Stadium against his former team. Luis Suarez will take up much of the Manchester City defence’s attention, whilst Raheem Sterling will be another distraction, so Sturridge can add to the variety of threats with his quick and direct running in behind. A Manchester City defence which has looked vulnerable at times in spite of their present good run can be breached here by the visitors and Sturridge is a good bet to make his mark on his former hunting ground.
Match Prediction
Manchester City have a good record against their opponents, losing just one of their last eight meetings with Liverpool. They come into this game with defensive worries though, with just two fit centre-backs in Joleon Lescott and Mateja Nastasic, hardly the most robust combination when coming up against a combination of Daniel Sturridge, Luis Suarez and Raheem Sterling backed up by Steven Gerrard. Liverpool have their own defensive questions though with Jamie Carragher coming in for Martin Skrtel in the midweek draw at Arsenal.
Liverpool may find themselves on the back foot for spells of this game, but interestingly for a team who are encouraged to play a short passing game, the Merseyside outfit are the most accurate long passers in the Premier League this season. That ability to play quick long passes makes them an interesting threat on the counter attack. When they have the ball, they are capable of keeping it well and with Manchester City’s central midfield far from imposing, they could enjoy similar joy to that experienced at Arsenal in midweek; although the Reds won’t have the luxury of facing Andre Santos again. But Lescott has a mistake in him usually and Liverpool should create plenty of chances – although the same could be said of Manchester City.
Each of Liverpool’s last nine games has featured at least 2.5 goals and although Manchester City have a superb defensive record, the Citizens have played lower league teams and sides set up to defend. The only top half team Manchester City have played in that time was a 10-man Arsenal, while Liverpool have netted in their last 11 in a row, so expect the Reds’ exciting attack to finally break this particular record. With Manchester City’s stars looking short on inspiration, but Liverpool’s frontline in form, this game could see a shock and damaging defeat for the home side’s title chances. Manchester City 1-2 Liverpool.
Why not bet on Man City v Liverpool? We've picked the best bets in our betting preview.
