Liverpool v Swansea: Key Battles

Brendan Rogers will be looking to make it 4 wins on the trot
Steven Gerrard

Steven Gerrard

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Philippe Coutinho and Steven Gerrard v Leon Britton and Jonjo Shelvey

In today’s game , the midfield is where the match is decided. These four men are pivotal to their team’s fluidity in attack and the game will be played around them.

In Steven Gerrard, Liverpool have an able central midfielder who can do the dirty work as well as dictate the pace of the game. His long passing range and vision will be vital for Liverpool along with his leadership skills. He would be the ball-carrier in Rodgers set-up and Laudrup must enforce one man to keep him out of the game. One thing Steven Gerrard is not adept at is playing as a box-to-box midfielder. He doesn’t retain possession as well as he has done in the recent past and his decreasing pace has led to him becoming more of a defensive midfielder. He hasn’t got the energy that he had few years ago and cannot run for the full ninety minutes.

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Leon Britton is Michael Laudrup’s answer for dealing with the threat of Coutinho and Gerrard. He usually plays between the opposition’s attacking midfielder and the defensive midfielder. He positional sense is excellent which leads on to him having a high rate of interception. He has forged a good partnership with Shelvey ever the since the season began. Shelvey’s attacking instincts and clever play has led to Britton taking up more of a defensive role.

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What Britton must do is watch out for the movement of Coutinho around the midfielders. Coutinho, a classic Brazilian No.10 likes to operate within the spaces and is capable of finding the forward with an extraordinary pass out of nowhere. If Britton keeps Coutinho from advancing forward and puts pressure on him, he would naturally be inclined to pass backwards, thereby stopping supply to Sturridge.

Coutinho on the other hand, must find a way to break of Leon Britton and acquire space to create an impact on the game. He can find Sturridge who would be making his late run behind the defenders. His nimble-footed tricks and feints must allow him to shake off his markers.

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Shelvey was described by Clarke Carlisle as being the ‘Quarterback’ of Swansea’s team against Malmo. Unlike many other English players, Shelvey is someone who just brings everyone into the game. His clever movement around the front four would bring defenders out of their position. He has the ability to find the forward with an exquisite through pass between the defenders. Steven Gerrard should keep Shelvey in his pockets throughout the match and try his best to not let Shelvey dictate the pace of the game.

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Michu and Wilfried Bony v Simon Mignolet

Usually, it would have been a forward against a defender. But this time I am going on two strikers against one goalkeeper. As much as Liverpool have performed above expectations this season, they must owe a good part of it to their goalkeeper Simon Mignolet who is yet to concede a goal this season after signing for Liverpool from Sunderland. Anonther player of the Belgium golden generation is making waves in the Premier League.

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Having taken over the goalkeeping reins from Reina, Mignolet has impressed everyone and has proved that he is one of the best in the Premier League. Now, he comes up against two of the more daunting strikers in the Premier League. Wilfried bony, has impressed since his arrival, scoring on the opening day. Michu, as we all know can make the best defenses look meek. They showed in the Europa League that they could play together and have formed a solid partnership.

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Now, they are facing a defense which is yet to concede a goal this season and a goalkeeper who has made the best strikers look ordinary. While Wilfried Bony is an out and out striker, Michu operates as a False nine getting in between the center backs and at the same time creating chances for his teammates. Another thing Mignolet should be careful is set-pieces. Both of them are extremely good at set-pieces and are adept at beating their man in the air. This can be warranted by the fact that Michu had scored the most no. of headed goals last season.

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This match may end in Michu and Bony cutting a frustrated figure. Or it may end up having seen Mignolet let the ball go past him for the first time this season.

Whatever happens we do have an exciting clash on the cards

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Edited by Staff Editor
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