Last season, both Liverpudlian teams were the most attractive to watch. I personally was very disappointed that the Toffees did not get into the Champions League spot when the dust had settled in May.
However, this years’ performances so far by both the red and blue halves of Merseyside has been woeful. Our records in our last six matches are identical with two wins, one draw and three defeats. This derby looks like it will be decided by the defences, in a challenge to see which back line can be less poor than the other. Everton have conceded fourteen goals in their last six matches compared to the ten that Liverpool have let in.
Midweek, Liverpool showed once again that our defence has more holes in it than a shop called Colanders, Sponges and Strainers. On paper, a defence comprising of Skrtel, Sakho, Lovren and Toure should not be as weak and (for a lack of a better word) incompetent as they have been looking. Against Middlesbrough for example, a player with the experience of Kolo Toure should not be making the challenge he did in the penalty area. All he needed to do was shepherd the attacker away from the goal. An under twelves player would have known that.
And to be fair, going forward we did not look any better. I am still picking glass splinters up off my floor from a glass that I flung at a wall out of frustration. Against Middlesbrough, our players would work themselves into good shooting positions, but instead of pulling the trigger, they would try to pass it. Markovic was particularly guilty of this midweek. The only time we did fire was when Suso came onto the pitch and thereafter, we looked a whole lot more threatening.
We have been embarrassingly poor so far this season. Our players appear to be terrified of the ball. They don’t know what to do when they got it, nor do team mate look interested in receiving a pass. Our only bright light so far this season has been Sterling, but we cannot be relying on a teenager to win us our matches. Rodgers ran Sterling close to death midweek. The lad played 120 minutes, and in the end, it was his mistake that gave Middlesbrough the chance to win the penalty. But before and after that incident, he also misplaced passes and then went on to miss his penalty. All because of fatigue. There is a massive mental problem in our squad that we need to fix. I’m hoping the passion of the derby will dislodge that problem this weekend. Both teams need a win to revive their season. The match will reek of desperation.
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Looking at the potential Everton squad, they appear to be vulnerable down the middle. Their defence has been leaking goals and their potential central midfield pairing of Osman and Barry lack pace. However, they certainly do not lack the passion and Naismith will probably be working back to make it a three man central midfield when Liverpool has possession.
There is a slight chance that Sturridge will be fit for the match, though I would rather not risk him from the start. I would drop Toure from the team (and at the nearest airport to be honest) to be replaced by Lovren with Skrtel as his partner. I think Rodgers should consider sending the two on a couples retreat to improve their communication should they be found wanting again this weekend. Moreno and Manquillo for me look very promising and could be the game changers. Everton will look for width from Coleman and Baines, but hopefully our fullbacks can stick with them throughout the match. I am tempted to throw in Rossiter after a great debut midweek. In fact, the seventeen year old looked more composed on the ball the rest of the team, but I fear the passion of the derby may be a little too much for him. I would like to see Gerrard playing in a very deep midfield role with Henderson and Lallana playing ahead of him. Their role should be to cover as much of the field as possible. I saw enough of Suso to warrant a start for him, alongside Sterling and Balotelli. I think Sterling’s pace against Jagielka will be important. Right now, I don’t really care about the result. I just want to see a good performance from the Reds. If we can improve our performances, then the results will come.
And our competitors…
In the other derby match, Arsenal come up against Spurs. Spurs were beaten at home last weekend by WBA and looked awful. Alexis Sanchez seems to have come to terms with the premier league and Ozil appears to have found some form. I think the Gunners will win this one. Chelsea host Aston Villa and I think the Londoners will win. However, I also think it is only a matter of time before Diego Costa sees red in a match, and with Phil Dowd in charge, I see at least one red card in this one. No referee showed more cards than Dowd last season. City will prove to be too strong for Hull and I also see more problems for LVG when Man United visit West Ham.
Follow Kurt on Twitter @kurtellis2
Kurt Ellis is a lifelong Liverpool fan living in South Africa. His first novel, By Any Means, was published by Human & Rousseau Publishers in May 2014. It is a gritty, coming of age crime thriller featuring a young Liverpool FC fan. The novel is available on Amazon. To purchase, you can follow the link below. http://amzn.to/Zj532F