On Sunday, Liverpool line-up against Manchester City in what will be their biggest match of this illustrious season. Two powerhouses of English football that contain strike forces that instil fear into the deadliest of defences. It is a match that promises goals and will provide a momentum boost to the team that triumphs. Many individual battles will be fought at Anfield but one that promises hope to Liverpool fans is Daniel Sturridge versus Martin Demichelis.
Brendan Rodgers wants Liverpool to attack teams at home and take the game to teams, he has no two better strikers than Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez to attack and unsettle a defence. SAS will line-up in attack against what will most likely be a defensive partnership of Vincent Kompany and Demichelis. The former is one of the best defenders in world football and will be adamant on trying to keep Liverpool out as much as he possibly can. The latter is an experienced defender that has struggled to adapt to the life of the Premier League. He has been made the punchline to many jokes by pundits and fans due to his lacklustre pace and left many wondering why he is constantly picked every week?
If Liverpool are attacking Man city they will have Suarez on the left and Sturridge on the right. This is perfect for a number of reasons. Firstly, Suarez is arguably the trickiest player a defender will come against in the league and him on the left will make him a straight match for Kompany. This will mean Kompany will have to be on top form to deal with Suarez and most of his energy will be put into keeping him at bay. This will allow Sturridge to target the Argentinian and with him being the faster out of the strike force he could take Demichelis out of the game completely and start a rout for Liverpool.
Kompany will know this and will try to stop it so now this is where Suarez will come in . When Suarez is off the ball he has to be a menace. He will have to pester Kompany and take him as far out to the left as possible so Demichelis is alone and will have to deal with Sturridge on his own. Sturridge will have to be on top form aswell. If he is not, a great opportunity to get on the score sheet will pass him. The proflic England – Forward will have to make runs in and behind the Man City defensive back line. He will also have to receive the ball deeper than he is accustomed to. This is so he can run at the defence and cause them problems with his frightening speed.
If SAS can manage to frustrate the City defence this much the goals will come flooding in. Make no mistake, Demichelis will know this and therefore will be prepared on how to deal with the BPL’s best strike force but actually dealing with them will be a task that seems to be beyond him at the tender age of 33. Due to the both teams shaky defences and great strikers it promises to be a great spectacle for neutrals and and a nail biting affair for Liverpool and Manchester City supporters.
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Daniel Sturridge Photo Credit: Dean Jones via Wiki Commons, CC
Martin Demichelis Photo Credit: via vimeo.com, CC
