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If their meetings last season are anything to go by, Premier League fans are in for a treat this Sunday when Liverpool host Manchester City at Anfield. The Reds are widely seen as the only team capable of ending the Etihad Stadium outfit’s dominance over English football, seemingly boasting the psychological edge after beating them thrice last term, but we shouldn’t forget how relentless this City team can be.
So, will Liverpool claim another scalp over the Premier League champions or can the Citizens end the Reds’ winning run against them? We can’t predict the final result, but our Match Preview covers everything you need to know ahead of the 4.30pm kickoff…
What History Tells Us
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Liverpool’s fear factor over Manchester City is often thought of as a relatively new trend but in fact, Sunday’s visitors have always struggled against the Reds in the Premier League. Their 42 meetings to date have resulted in just eight wins, whereas the Merseyside outfit have tasted victory in almost exactly half of them.
And City’s return at Anfield is even more concerning. Their only Premier League victory at Liverpool’s ground came all the way back in 2003 when a Nicolas Anelka brace secured a surprise 2-1 comeback, with the Citizens averaging less than a goal per game there.
Accordingly, Liverpool lead the way in terms of goals, clean sheets and red cards. But there’s no doubt Manchester City are better equipped than they’ve ever been to reverse the tide of history at Anfield.
Managerial Head-to-Head
Very few managers get the better of Pep Guardiola but Jurgen Klopp is certainly one of them – in fact, the Spaniard has lost to the German more times than any other manager he’s faced throughout his dugout career. This rivalry of course started back in 2013 when Guardiola was appointed Bayern Munich boss but despite boasting greater resources and finance than his Dortmund counterpart, their Bundesliga bout ended with both managers winning four out of their eight encounters.
Since then, Guardiola has managed just one victory over Klopp in English football – last season’s 5-0 at the Etihad Stadium that was heavily influenced by Sadio Mane’s first-half sending off. Klopp’s gone on to win the next three meetings on the bounce, once in the Premier League and twice in the Champions League.
But in terms of silverware, there’s no doubt Guardiola still belongs in a higher category than his Liverpool adversary with 14 trophies compared to just three.
Referee influence – Martin Atkinson
There’s one bemusing contradiction with Martin Atkinson that Manchester City fans will already be well aware of, after his reluctance to issue a penalty for Ashley Young’s clear lunge on Sergio Aguero in last season’s Manchester derby. While the 47-year-old ranked eighth or higher from the 21 referees to work in the Premier League throughout 2017/18 for fouls per tackle and fouls per game and even finished up top of the table for red cards per game, he came in at a lowly 17th for penalties.
It appears Atkinson’s only prepared to give absolute stonewall decisions and both teams need to bear that in mind this Sunday. It should give defenders license to be much more physical inside the box, but could also result in two incredibly frustrated teams both feeling they’ve been served an injustice. The good news for Manchester City though, in light of their historic struggles at Anfield, is that only one referee to officiate more than one Premier League match last term oversaw a higher percentage of away wins.
Team News
Although an incredibly disappointing performance against Napoli in midweek could convince Klopp that some late changes are necessary, we’re still expecting the Liverpool gaffer to stick with largely same team, which roughly remained in tact for the Champions League defeat following the 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge last weekend.
The only expected change, with Naby Keita still something of a doubt after coming off against the Italians with back spasms, is captain Jordan Henderson returning to the starting XI. He’s still very much a divisive figure amongst Reds fans, but will give the Reds the physicality they need to try and control the midfield.
Guardiola always has a surprise up his sleeve and it could come in the form of Riyad Mahrez replacing Raheem Sterling this Sunday. The former Liverpool man really struggled at Anfield in the Premier League last season and was accordingly left out of Guardiola’s starting XI when City returned there in the Champions League a few months later. Perhaps struggling under the extra spotlight this fixture places on him, a bit of man-management could be in order here with the summer signing replacing a forward who has otherwise been one of Guardiola’s favourites.
The other point of contention is in defence, particularly left-back. With alternatives limited due to Fabian Delph’s injury, we’re tipping Benjamin Mendy to get the nod this weekend despite his dose of ill-discipline allegedly inspiring the wrath of the City boss. At centre-half, Nicolas Otamendi and Aymeric Laporte feel like the likeliest centre-back pairing – Vincent Kompany just hasn’t been his usual dominant self this season, and the Argentine and the Frenchman have partnered each other regularly in recent weeks.
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