City v Liverpool Preview
Manchester City take on the Red Dippers in the second match of Marathon Month. Yes Marathon Month. January, the month that City potentially play 8 matches- two more than any other month thus far. 3 of these matches is against the Red Dippers.
Marathon month started poorly for City after an unexpected 1-0 loss to Sunderland. In a game that City dominated, Sunderland scored from an offside position with the final kick of the game. The red Dippers finished 2011 with a deserved 3-1 win over Newcastle. The highlight of the match was the substitute appearance of the league’s greatest player (apart from Scott Parker, Gareth Bale, oh and Phil Jones of course) Stevie G. Stevie G was amazing, brilliant, he changed the match and the rest of the world had better watch out because he’s back. He’s back and he’s the best in the league and he’s Stevie G and he’s back.
But enough of the commentator transcripts. Let’s talk about these red Dippers because they get nowhere near enough press coverage. This current squad bears a striking resemblance to the City of two years ago. Their record against the top clubs is good, but they are struggling against the teams further down the ladder. They are trying to implement a playing style but it has yet to fully gel. Home results haven’t been brilliant with 4 home wins and 6 draws, including the 1-1 in the reverse of this fixture. The biggest similarity is of course Craig Bellamy.
They do have a great defence and have conceded the fewest goals (City have conceded 1 goal more.) However, up front there is an issue. Suarez has huffed and puffed a lot but not blown the goals in. Andy Carroll is rivalling Fernando Torres in the biggest flop competition and doing one hell of a job.
The game. City’s struggles of late are down to 3 things:
1. The pitches have been rougher than normal. The winter has had a terrible effect on the pitches of Stamford Bridge, the Hawthorns and the Stadium of Light. The state of the pitches has been such that the precise passing game that City rely on to unlock defences has been disrupted. The flow hasn’t been there from earlier in the season as more passes have been misplaced than normal. When trying to pass the ball into the back of the net a bumpy pitch is not ideal.
2. Although the squad is large and of a deeper quality than any other, Mancini has relied too much on his favoured 11. When the squad players have come in they haven’t stepped up accordingly. Samir Nasri is a classic example. Against Sunderland he was tasked with the playmaker role but failed to impose his influence on the game and was substituted after 60 minutes. David Silva has taken on a major workload and is beginning to show signs of fatigue. He needs a break but Mancini doesn’t have faith in Nasri to fill the gap, thus creating a vicious cycle. Silva is being overworked and Nasri is losing confidence in being underplayed. Here’s hoping the workload isn’t too much for Silva, and he can avoid injury and continue to make an impression on the league.
3. At the beginning of the season City sat back in the first 20 minutes of games and encouraged the opposition to come forward in a classic game of cat and mouse. Once the opposition were confident they could come out and play City would attack a reduced defensive line to crack teams and score generally after the 20 minute mark. In the second half the opposition would be forced to come out and chase the game leaving even more gaps at the back presenting City with more clear goalscoring opportunities. Of late, City has pushed from the start of games whilst the opposition have parked the bus and relied on counterattacks. The chances City has created have reduced and conversion of these chances has further diminished.
3 reasons why City will win.
1. Clichy and Richards should start providing a stonger creative outlet than the Kolarov/Zabaleta wingback combination of the previous match.
2. The game is at home. City has won all matches at home, playing on a pitch that is in pristine condition. This will allow City to play the passing game more effectively and break a tight Liverpool defence.
3. Liverpool won’t park the bus. Kenny Dalglish will be aware of the recent success of this tactic but pride will prevent him from playing 11 players behind the ball. Maybe he’ll go for 10 instead. This should leave enough of a gap.
2 reasons why the Red Dippers will win.
1. Andy Carroll does well against us. If ever his drought is to be broken, City is the side for him to break his mini drought. He’s got a history of playing well against City and won’t have a home crowd groaning at every missed opportunity.
2. Stevie G. Stevie G is amazing, brilliant, he changes matches and the rest of the world had better watch out because he’s back. He’s back and he’s the best in the league (apart from Scott Parker, Gareth Bale, oh and Phil Jones of course) and he’s Stevie G and he’s back.
Odds. City 1.83 Draw 3.50 Red Dippers 4.00 These odds are more generous than most games this season for a team that has won all 9 homes fixtures.
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