Liverpool vs Manchester City: 5 players to watch

Sadio Mane

#3 Sadio Mane

Seven goals in 19 league games might not necessarily be a bad return, but Sadio Mane will not be pleased with that.

The Senegalese’s last appearances came in the defeat against Manchester United in late January, and he will want to make up for lost time.

Mane is likely to come up against Kyle Walker, and he is perhaps one of the few attackers who can outmuscle the England international, and beat him for pace.

Mane on song is a hard player to stop, and he has a decent record against Manchester City. Certainly, a player to keep an eye on.

Great cross, committed header 👊⚽️⏪ Sadio's strike from #LIVMCI last season ⏪ pic.twitter.com/siIAJogLEp

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) February 6, 2021

#4 Ruben Dias

It’s amazing how well Ruben Dias has acclimatised to the Premier League in his first season. While his individual defending cannot be praised enough, the way he has made around him better is another important facet of his gameplay.

City have conceded a mere 13 goals, and players like John Stones have become un-droppable in their recent run that has seen them climb to the summit of the league table.

The Citizens have benefitted from Dias’ positioning and ability to organise the defence, something that we rarely saw after Vincent Kompany’s departure in 2019.

Liverpool’s attack will not find it easy to breach the in-form City defence, but lest we forget, on their day they can beat any team. This is going to be a big test for Dias and co.

Jamie Carragher: "@rubendias may be on the verge of joining the elite group of centre-halves named POTY. Based on the criteria, the award should go to someone who has had the single biggest impact on the destiny of the #PL title. That makes Dias the current frontrunner..."

— Man City Xtra (@City_Xtra) February 5, 2021

#5 Ozan Kabak

Liverpool made a deadline day move for Ben Davies and Ozan Kabak, and it’s likely that the latter will play on Sunday.

The Reds need Henderson’s presence in midfield for his work rate and distribution, so Klopp might have to play Kabak with Fabinho at the heart of the defence.

Kabak is expected to come up against a team with intricate patterns of play, but if City go with a false nine and use Bernardo Silva in a central role, things could get interesting.

The Turk likes entering a foot race and going head to head with forwards, so it remains to be seen how he will cope with a much different style and setup.