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In this weekend’s flagship game in the Premier League, England’s top two teams and the winners of the last three titles, Liverpool and Manchester City, meet at the Etihad. It is their first meeting since City’s 4-0 win over the Reds on July 2, a result that came a week after Liverpool claimed their first league title in 30 years.
This Sunday’s clash has a slightly different tone. Neither team has looked imperious in the first part of the new season: Aston Villa 7-2 Liverpool and Man City 2-5 Leicester City, anyone? – and given the lack of a proper preseason break combined with the flurry of matches in many different competitions, injuries and team problems are mounting.
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Jurgen Klopp has been forced to rotate multiple players through his central defense in light of Virgil van Dijk’s season-ending injury, while Liverpool’s midfield has been taxed due to Thiago Alcantara, Fabinho , Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita have been battling various ailments (and positive COVID -19 tests) since the beginning of October.
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As for City, manager Pep Guardiola has been able to call up Sergio Agüero and Gabriel Jesús just three times combined in the Premier League due to persistent muscle injuries. The center-forward shortage has had a knock-on effect on a generally devastating attack: With just one goal from the duo in the league, their top scorer in the PL at the moment is … Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling, with two one-piece. .
We’re just one-sixth of the way through the 38-game campaign, so all options are still on the table, but the vulnerabilities displayed by the would-be leaders will give their rivals plenty of motivation to keep winning and keep applying pressure. . .
So how will Man City and Liverpool cope in the long run? The city’s problems are a little less serious as Agüero should be back soon and Jesús is fit, but it is clear that they need a Plan B in case of more problems. As for Liverpool, they have a long time (and many games) before they can dive into the transfer market on January 1.
Here’s what they could do on Sunday and how they managed to cope with a busy winter.
Klopp will have to be smart with Matip in his XI given his injury history, but expect him to play as much as possible in Liverpool’s big games until January. LINDSEY PARNABY / AFP via Getty Images Liverpool’s defense: many options with many pros and cons
Much was rightly made of Van Dijk’s major injury, sustained early in the recent Merseyside Derby in a clash with Everton’s Jordan Pickford. This is the end of their title hopes, was the prevailing analysis, and it’s hard to disagree with the magnitude of the Reds’ loss.
Van Dijk was literally, figuratively and emotionally at the core of his 2018-19 Champions League victory and his first league title in 30 years. It also anchored one of the tightest defenses of the modern era – without it, they’ve already seen a spike in xG per shot conceded (0.138 since Van Dijk fell, compared to 0.119 xG / shot from 2018 to his injury) and while that The difference can only translate into about 5-8 goals per season, those goals can turn some of your 1-0 wins into draws and some of the tied scores into losses. Given the narrow margin of error at the top, those points are important.
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That said, all is not lost. Joel Matip’s return to fitness couldn’t come at a better time – he should fit in alongside Joe Gomez to form a reasonable pairing, especially with Alisson in goal and the usual Andy Robertson / Trent Alexander-Arnold double act in goals. lateral positions. . Matip doesn’t hold the record for cleanest physical condition, of course, he played just nine Premier League matches last season due to a long-term knee injury, but he does have a pretty good record when he’s at Liverpool XI – his last league. The loss as a starter was a 1-0 loss at Swansea City on January 22, 2018, with a remarkable 2.25 points per game in 87 career starts since joining the club in 2016 on a free transfer. Not a bad deal.
The other option in CB of the current first team squad is Fabinho, although he will not be fit again until after the international break. His forays as a makeshift defender, rather than his usual role as a containment midfielder / deep playmaker, have been memorable – his three center-back at-bats in the league were Liverpool wins, including an impressive effort earlier this season against Timo. Werner and Chelsea, in which the Reds won 2-0 and limited the Blues to seven shots.
While his leadership skills are perhaps the closest on the team to what Van Dijk offers, he lacks the Dutch international’s aerial dominance and also has a slightly lower range of passes from that depth; Van Dijk’s diagonal rake passes are another unique element in his game. Keeping him on defense only serves to weaken Liverpool’s midfield and thus opens up a different set of problems, although he has shown a good relationship with Gomez, as well as a fairly complementary set of skills in reading the play and also anticipating attacks. that are coming.
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Beyond the senior team, there are youth options capable of occasional changes. Rhys Williams, 19, and Nathaniel Phillips, 23, have had starts in different competitions since Van Dijk’s injury due to the flurry of games and the need to manage minutes carefully.
Williams was a natural choice for a 7-2 victory over Lincoln City in the EFL Cup in September, but he also played the full 90 of Tuesday’s 5-0 win over Atalanta in the Champions League, looking assured in another emphatic victory. . He has been quietly impressive in a difficult situation, but he is still developing his voice and confidence in the heart of a demanding defense. His reading of the game and his positioning is just what the Reds need, but it could be too much, too soon if he is trusted consistently.
Phillips, meanwhile, was destined for another loan this summer, but stuck around and worked his way up the team of the day for the Oct. 24 league win over Sheffield United, then started in a 2-1 win at home over West Ham last weekend. After a serendipitous early goal, West Ham was limited to just four shots in the final 75 minutes of Saturday’s clash. That said, the 23-year-old is still not considered a reliable option, with Williams favored in a starting role as both Matip and Fabinho move toward fitness.
Matip will be Joe Gomez’s long-term partner, with Fabinho or Williams filling in for Matip as needed. That said, when the January window opens, Liverpool could be instrumental in making signings to try to maximize a team that is too built to win now.
Aguero led the Man City attack for years and did it brilliantly, but the numbers don’t suggest a big drop without him on the team. VisionhausMan City’s attack: waiting for the moment until Aguero returns
Guardiola’s pre-match press conference had a solid update on Aguero, noting that while the Argentine forward is approaching full fitness, he would not be available to face the Reds on Sunday. Gabriel Jesús is back in shape and, honestly, the data is quite generous with the young Brazilian every time he lines up as City No. 9:
Ciudad con Jesús, without Agüero (last 12 months, all comps): 18 games, 42 points (2.33 PPG), 2.67 GF, 0.78 GA (+1.89), 0.139 xG / shot
City with Agüero (last 12 months, all competitions): 16 games, 35 pts (2.19 points per game), 2.00 GF, 0.75 GA (+1.25), 0.141 xG / shot
City without Agüero (last 12 months, all competitions): 24 games, 55 pts (2.29 points per game), 2.50 GF, 0.88 GA (+1.62), 0.133 xG / shot
The numbers are close, and there is obviously some overlap in the breakdowns above, but the story is that Agüero’s absence hasn’t hurt too much, overall, and that Jesus is capable of carrying the load if Agüero is out of shape.
Therefore, Guardiola does not need to change much. You can simply continue rotating players through the “false nine” or center forward role until one or both are available for selection. Ferran Torres and Sterling have served as center forward this season, with mixed results: Torres’ form in the Champions League, with three goals in three games, has been an advantage, although the academy products that are given gave an early opportunity, like Liam Delap, they have. disappointed.
The lineups so far suggest Guardiola is more inclined to keep rotating his attacking wingers / midfielders in place of Aguero / Jesus if the pair is unavailable. It is true that the City attack has fallen from its astronomical levels in the last 2 or 3 seasons, but there are many games in which to correct the course.
Source: espn.co.uk
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