Lucas and Allen coming into the starting XI for today's Premier League encounter with Norwich, and thankfully, Daniel Sturridge is not in the squad, which means that Brendan Rodgers is being sensible with his latest injury, and allowing the striker the proper time to rest and heal.
FULL TEAM: Mignolet, Johnson, Skrtel, Sakho, Flanagan, Gerrard, Lucas, Allen, Sterling, Coutinho, Suarez
SUBS: Jones, Toure, Agger, Cissokho, Moses, Alberto, Aspas
NORWICH: Ruddy, Whittaker, Martin, Turner, Olsson, Johnson, Howson, Fer, Snodgrass, Redmond, Hooper
It will certainly be interesting to see how Rodgers sets-up the team.
Hopefully, he'll keep Gerrard in the holding role, and won't be tempted to move him further up the field to accommodate Lucas.
When the Brazilian first arrived at Anfield, he played a slightly more attacking role, so he should be comfortable playing a little higher up the field today.
Luis Alberto is also back in the match day squad for the first time in ten games, but that's clearly due to necessity rather than merit. Possible formation:
Mignolet
Johnson ---- Skrtel --- Sakho --- Flanagan
----------------- Gerrard
------- Lucas --------------- Allen
------------------Coutinho
----------Sterling
----------------- Suarez
Predicting a 2-0 win to Liverpool, Mark Lawrenson noted:
"I just don't see anybody stopping Liverpool's title charge now. They are playing outstanding football, and blowing teams away so early on in games. I hate to say it, because there is no such thing as a team in unstoppable form, but they are as close to that as you can possible be".
My prediction: 4-1 to LFC
Author: Jaimie K
FULL TEAM: Mignolet, Johnson, Skrtel, Sakho, Flanagan, Gerrard, Lucas, Allen, Sterling, Coutinho, Suarez
SUBS: Jones, Toure, Agger, Cissokho, Moses, Alberto, Aspas
NORWICH: Ruddy, Whittaker, Martin, Turner, Olsson, Johnson, Howson, Fer, Snodgrass, Redmond, Hooper
It will certainly be interesting to see how Rodgers sets-up the team.
Hopefully, he'll keep Gerrard in the holding role, and won't be tempted to move him further up the field to accommodate Lucas.
When the Brazilian first arrived at Anfield, he played a slightly more attacking role, so he should be comfortable playing a little higher up the field today.
Luis Alberto is also back in the match day squad for the first time in ten games, but that's clearly due to necessity rather than merit. Possible formation:
Mignolet
Johnson ---- Skrtel --- Sakho --- Flanagan
----------------- Gerrard
------- Lucas --------------- Allen
------------------Coutinho
----------Sterling
----------------- Suarez
Predicting a 2-0 win to Liverpool, Mark Lawrenson noted:
"I just don't see anybody stopping Liverpool's title charge now. They are playing outstanding football, and blowing teams away so early on in games. I hate to say it, because there is no such thing as a team in unstoppable form, but they are as close to that as you can possible be".
My prediction: 4-1 to LFC
Author: Jaimie K
Come on Liverpool!
ReplyDeleteclearly we have no midfielder left in our squad except alberto... we really need some more players there in summer!
ReplyDeletei can see allen scoring a goal today, suarez with a double to make it 3:0!
ReplyDeletehopefully another 3 points today, and another step to the trophy!
Such a blow those two misses, I think we will suffer today. Hope BR moves gerrard forward and allen does well which is doubt! If we win this the title is 70% there I think!
ReplyDeleteim not sure why but further we go in these last games of season, the more harder it becomes for me to watch, i mean my nerves! i swear i didnt sit during the city match. maybe my arse hits sofa once or twice today. but everyone seems to be dropping points, i hope its not contagious.
ReplyDeleteGood call resting Danny for nxt match . Time for Allen to step up - Raheem to score with Luis LET'S GO AGAIN
ReplyDeleteAlberto needs 10 appearances to get a EPL winners medal. He currently has 9 appearances . That could be a reasons for him being on the bench.
ReplyDeleteReckon Gerrard will start in usual holding role but having Lucas/Allen there should enable him to push further up if things get tricky and we need a goal. Lets hope for a comfy win, can't be doing another nailbiter!!
ReplyDeleteTeixeira is another option.
ReplyDeleteSet pieces might be more important today, cos we don't look full of goals with this line-up. Hope I'm wrong and Suarez gets his customary hattrick in a 6-0 win :-)
ReplyDeleteLol you're not serious are you!
ReplyDeleteThe rules changed last year; only 5 required now.
ReplyDeleteSent from Samsung Mobile
-------- Original message --------From: Disqus Date:20/04/2014 11:28 AM (GMT+00:00) To: serpico1977@hotmail.co.uk Subject: Re: New comment posted on Confirmed LFC XI vs. NCFC: Lucas in attack? £7m misfit returns after 10 games | Liverpool-Kop.com Settings
A new comment was posted on Liverpool-Kop
Loganlfc
Alberto needs 10 appearances to get a EPL winners medal. He currently has 9 appearances . That could be a reasons for him being on the bench. 6:28 a.m., Sunday April 20
Reply to Loganlfc
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Time for Coutinho/Sterling to chip in with another goal or two. If Norwich concentrate too much on Suarez they'll get the space. Mind you stopping Luis easier said than done...he should relish being back in main striker role.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you not remove personal information when replying? See this regularly happens when you reply to other people too.
ReplyDeleteTheir confidence should be high after last week, so fingers crossed. Will be interesting to see if Stevie gets further up the pitch today, given the new look of our midfield.
ReplyDeleteYou know I couldn't stop myself from looking up you IP and I am quite amazed to learn your location. You might want to take off your email address and IP from up there.
ReplyDeleteReckon he will if required, on subject of set pieces you highlighted, that's another area we have greatly improved on. Lets get that early goal, should be open enough game, they'll be trying to win their home games...point not good enough for them.
ReplyDeleteWhat's so amazing about being in Bristol?
ReplyDeletewell yeah forgot about him, but he hasn't regularly played for us so i dont count him..
ReplyDeleteWe only know how to play one way attack attack attack,bring home the three points lads.Justhope Moses doesn't do his parent team anyfavours ;) .come on you redmen Cheers
ReplyDeleteThe official Premier League website still states that you need 10 appearances to get a medal. When last year were the rules changed?
ReplyDeleteAnd if you do reply, then please remove my personal info.
What do you mean?
ReplyDeleteWe haven't won by 4+ goals in a few games, so it's definitely due. I'm gonna go with 8-0!
ReplyDeleteSeriously everyone predicting a close game, tough game - not gonna happen, they've lost 3 in a row, already see Suarez on the teamsheet, a proper blasting it will be.
Alberto has not regularly played either.
ReplyDelete@Jaimie K actually it was @Loganlfc 's IP and not yours and that's why it showed SA which made me wonder that you always said UK, but it showed SA so you know.
ReplyDelete8's the number. Let's give Norwich 1 though :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a goal!
ReplyDeletewoooooooooo hooooooooooo 1-0
ReplyDeleteAAAAAMMMMMMAAAAAAZZZZZZZZZZZZIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeletenooooo twoooooooo
ReplyDeleteComon lads ,Let's do it for ourselves and a bit for mighty Sunderland..
ReplyDeleteThe rules have changed.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.manutd.com/en/News-And-Features/Football-News/2013/Apr/manchester-united-fringe-players-to-receive-barclays-premier-league-winners-medals.aspx
There's Joe Allen, making his usual zero contribution to Liverpool's success, creating a chance and setting up a goal at one end and saving one at the other in the first fifteen minutes ; )
ReplyDeleteIs it me or is Joe Allen a man possessed today??!!!
ReplyDeleteHow exactly did Allen 'set up a goal'? Also, just because he makes a contribution in a single game doesn't mean the criticism that he hasn't made contributions in previous games was wrong. Such flippantry is tiresome.
ReplyDeleteWell maybe the premier league needs to update their website and how funny to find the info on the manc website.
ReplyDeleteAs I recall the goal from one viewing, he moved out wide to draw the defenders enabling Sterling to drift into Allen's position.
ReplyDeleteFlippantry! Must use that word. Jokes do tend to be flippant. Obviously I feel your position on Allen has been too critical; I think that at times you have watched him with one eye on winning the argument about his value to the team; and obviously I rate the player highly.
That's not setting up a goal, and you know it :-) You sound like Logan.
ReplyDeleteRe your other point - I want Allen to be a success at LFC, as that means the Reds are being successful. He's contributed very little in the grand scheme of things, though, and if he wasn't in the squad this season, Liverpool would still be in the same position.
at least he started a few times!
ReplyDeletejust dont use him (; too risky!
ReplyDeleteYou want Allen to be succesful at LFC but claimed the other day that he will be sold?
ReplyDeleteWhilst he's at LFC, I want him to be successful, yes. Any more pedantic questions?
ReplyDeleteHaha, yes, well, I wrote it for Logan really :)
ReplyDeleteI've always felt that movement off the ball can be as good as a pass. Partly because I was always rubbish the ball at my feet!
I understand your argument about Allen, and it's solid. But I see another player than you do there; one whose talent deserves respect.
Good response this from Norwich, meanwhile...
the officiating has been horrible ref you have cards for a reason
ReplyDeleteDon't get me wrong, I think Allen is a good, talented player, and I was happy when he signed. I just don't think the team can support a midfielder whose only contribution seems to be short-passing and keeping the ball. He doesn't score, assist, or directly impact the results of games. He's a very good squad player to have, but (IMO) LFC need another midfielder capable of challenging Henderson, i.e. someone who can do all the ball possession stuff, but also effects games in an attacking sense. You can't have two senior midfielders who never score/create, and LFC have Allen and Lucas.
ReplyDeleteI'll make a wild guess here and say possibly
ReplyDelete"Even when Joe Allen is sold, you will probably still insist he'll be a success for Liverpool."
ReplyDeleteI quote this from one of your recent articles about Eriksen.
Irony.
You have absolutely no idea what irony is, do you? That quote has zero relevance to what we're discussing.
ReplyDeleteLet's agree to disagree.
ReplyDeletei was thinking on the same lines
ReplyDeleteI guess my point is that, given the responsibility to do so, Allen has influenced the attack today positively.
ReplyDeleteEven so I agree that we need another midfielder or two from outside. I've carried on watching Derby this season and still see Hughes as a major talent; and I've got something of a crush on Granit Xhaka, too. But perhaps we need someone with a bit more devil about them than the kind of players I tend to get drawn to.
Mr Marriner is in a very gracious mood today i just hope our players don't get in the end of some nasty tackles
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the Alberto line...
ReplyDeleteWhy would you claim it is based on necessity and not merit?
Couldn't one claim that he's on the bench because he's the next guy up based on merit and not necessarily necessity?
Otherwise, why not throw someone else on the bench based on merit?
Yet another sterling performance! What do you say to that now? He's now more crucial than ever. The lad's heading towards the right direction, really hope he takes the pressure well.
ReplyDeleteWith two players out, he's the obvious choice to put on the bench. If he's in on merit, why has he not been in the squad for the last 10 games?
ReplyDeletePerhaps he's the next man up based on merit... there are other players that BR could have put on the bench (for instance picking a younger player like he was doing around the turn of the year).
ReplyDeleteWho else could've gone on the bench? It would've been poor man-management (IMO) to ignore Alberto and put in Teixeira, or some other untested teenager.
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying I disagree with the assertion you made... I'm just wondering why you made it, or if there's more to it.
ReplyDeleteIf, for example, Teixeira deserves to be there based on merit, why wouldn't he be on the bench instead of Alberto?
And vice versa.
Just seems to me that spaces opened up on the bench, and Alberto is the only other senior player not on the bench.
ReplyDeleteNorwich putting up a massive fight. We need to make an attacking change.
ReplyDeleteGood suggestions. This is what I mean about Allen, though. Norwich have slowly ramped up the pressure since the 15-minute mark, and now it's 2-1. Allen is never going to take the game by the scruff of the neck and make a game-changing difference. LFC need that now; they need a midfielder to step up. Sterling has done his part. Coutinho has also (in other games). Allen hasn't in this game, and never does.
ReplyDeleteHe'll probably score now :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat LFC need is for players like Allen to make an actual difference in the game.
ReplyDeleteJust when I thought we'd keep a effing clean sheet!!! ffs
ReplyDeleteWhat difference?
ReplyDeletewell done sterling
ReplyDeleteSterling u starrrrr!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteDestiny!!!!
ReplyDeletefinish them off noww
ReplyDeleteJeez, you are the king of pointless questions. What do you think 'difference' means? An attacking difference. An actual contribution to effecting the game. He is a midfielder; he needs to score or create a goal once in a blue moon.
ReplyDeleteOH MY GOD WHAT IS WITH THIS REFEREE GET A GRIP SON
ReplyDeleteHe has been getting into the box, even had a shot on goal and has supported the attack.
ReplyDeleteIn your argument that cannot be classified as making a difference.
That's the bare minimum he should be doing. What about actual, specific, measurable impact? Allen has done nothing all season in that regard. He doesn't effect games. You don't win matches by having a shot on goal every now and then, or 'getting into the box'.
ReplyDeleteHe is just a spectator! Let him mow the pitch rather.
ReplyDeleteIn all seriousness: please name one thing Allen has done where he specifically influenced the result of a game.
ReplyDeleteSo because Lucas never creates or scores goals, that means he does not have any impact on the game.
ReplyDeleteSee, I just do not understand the way you come to your conclusion.
victor moses oh no oh no oh no the tom cleverly of liverpool
ReplyDeleteoh my
ReplyDeleteCoutinho gets a bit of a rest.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't you just stay on topic instead of doing your usual thing of muddying the waters? Lucas is a DM. That is his primary role. He's not required to score/create goals. He effects games in a different way. Allen is not a DM, but what does he bring to the team? Again, please provide one example of how Allen has influenced a result this season.
ReplyDeletetrue but would've prefered alberto
ReplyDeleteBut does Lucas not have an impact on the game, because today he is not playing as a defensive midfielder.
ReplyDeleteOH FFS MIGNOLET. WHAT ARE YOU DOING TODAY!!!!!!
ReplyDeletesnodgrass shouldn't even be on the pitch sigh
ReplyDeleteTHIS TEAM IS GIVING ME THE SHITS. THEY JUST REFUSE TO GO FORWARD
ReplyDeleteagree trying to hold the ball side to side then back
ReplyDeleteWhen Steven asked for the same again... I doubt this is what he had in mind!
ReplyDeleteTHEY ARE SHITTING THEIR FUCKING PANTS FOR GODS SAKE. NO BOLLOCKS TO GO FORWARD WHATSOEVER
ReplyDeleteagger for lucas?
ReplyDeleteheres the theme of today. get the ball, pass sideways, pass backwards, lose the ball. i dont understand. its f**king norwich...
ReplyDeleteYup he doesn't have that in his game. Might come with experience, but have to concede the point that he's not a leader.
ReplyDeletejohnson you are the clumsiest pile of garbage.
ReplyDeletemignolet, please, show some balls.
ReplyDeleteThey're good players man, playing for their careers. This is just how it is.
ReplyDeleteour players are better, fighting for a title.
ReplyDeletehe just did
ReplyDeleteas soon as we scored the second, we decided to just sit back, JUST LIKE AGAINST CITY.
ReplyDeletehe needs to claim those high crosses! the defense should never be under that kind of pressure!
ReplyDeleteHe should be back slapped to wake him up!
ReplyDelete