The weekend following our Carling Cup win sees Arsenal visit Anfield in what is usually a very exciting encounter. Both teams should be full of confidence after their successes on Sunday, Arsenal winning their derby handsomely and us bringing home our first trophy in a few years. I think of the two performances last weekend it was quite clear that Arsenal were far better going forward than we were but our defence looked far more organised than theirs, this Saturday lunchtime could be a very close game and it’s not so easy to predict a winner. Indeed it’s so close that, added to our home form this season, it’s hard to see anything other than a draw at the end of the game. If last season is anything to go by don’t stop watching until the final whistle blows though…….
In the fixture at Anfield on the opening day of last season ten man Liverpool under newly appointed Roy Hodgson looked to be heading for a 1-0 win until a last minute Pepe Reina own goal gave Arsenal a draw. The meeting at the Emirates saw the game at 0-0 well into injury time until a very late penalty for the Gunners and an even later one for us meant another 1-1 draw. We beat them quite comfortably in London early on this season but despite a few notably bad results since then they have improved drastically and our 2-0 victory back at the start of the season will have little bearing on Saturday’s match. It’s a shame that after winning a trophy last weekend the majority of the players have been away on international duty all week and couldn’t use the time to train at Melwood in the positive atmosphere the victory will have brought to the club.
The international fixtures have given our captain yet another chance to pick up an injury with England, hopefully nothing serious but it’s still annoying. His injury record over the last eighteen months hasn’t been good and Stuart Pearce’s decision to start him in the friendly match against Holland two days after he played 120 minutes against Cardiff didn’t make sense. Maybe decisions like that are why Pearce isn’t a genuine contender for the job full time. Daniel Agger and Glen Johnson have also picked up injuries and we’ll have to wait until Saturday to see exactly who is fit. Kelly and Carragher are more than capable replacements and it is Gerrard who would undoubtedly be the biggest miss for us.
Andy Carroll has had a full week to train for the game and should be ready and motivated to deliver a performance, especially after being overlooked for the England squad, he has a point to prove to more than just Liverpool fans and I will be disappointed if he has an ineffective match. The Arsenal centre backs are ideal for somebody of Carroll’s physical stature to play against and if Dirk Kuyt can provide the kind of service he did for Huntelaar on Wednesday our number 9 can be the matchwinner for us. Carroll hasn’t really stepped up for us in the big games since he arrived but we know from watching him at Newcastle that he is capable of scoring regularly and it’s time he delivered. Listening to the Arsenal fan’s treatment of Theo Walcott recently Carroll should realise the Liverpool fans have been very supportive of him. It’s true he has been complained about in conversation but within the stadiums on match days he has had support and he owes us decent performances for the rest of the season.
It’s never an easy game against Arsenal and I’m sure they would say it’s never an easy game against us, both teams are capable of excellent displays and results but they are also both prone to losing concentration and losing matches they would be expected to win. If we can turn up fully focused and play to our potential we have a good chance of winning but any lapses and we will be punished. The gap between us and Arsenal is currently 7 points but we have a game in hand. If we can make up three points on Saturday and win our extra game we will be in with a good shout of finishing in the Champions League places. Sunday’s cup final and the upcoming Merseyside Derby shouldn’t take the focus off just how important this game is to us. Champions League qualification would be massive for Liverpool and in order to achieve this we really need to deliver on Saturday. YNWA.
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