Our captain will no doubt be desperate to be included in this weekend’s FA Cup semi-final…
Brendan Rodgers will have a near full-strength team to pick from on Sunday as the Reds take on Aston Villa at Wembley in our FA Cup semi-final clash.
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Both Martin Skrtel and Steven Gerrard will be available again after suspension, while Mamadou Sakho is the only man to be definitely ruled out of the game (via the Liverpool Echo).
Doubts persist over Daniel Sturridge, Mario Balotelli and Adam Lallana, who all missed the game against Newcastle United on Monday evening, but all three could potentially be back in time to give the boss a welcome selection headache.
The biggest question however will surely be over whether or not to include our iconic No. 8, who will surely be desperate to help lead his team to silverware in this, his final season with us.
GK) Simon Mignolet
Liverpool’s in-form man, he was brilliant against Blackburn in our last FA Cup outing and will hoping to continue his impressive run on the Wembley stage. He’ll be well aware of the threat Christian Benteke possesses.
RB) Emre Can
Played in the middle against Newcastle on Monday but should make way for the returning Martin Skrtel. The Slovakian’s return should mean either Lovren or Glen Johnson will miss out and we’ve kept faith with the former.
CB) Martin Skrtel
Was sorely missed against Arsenal but will impressed to have seen his teammates rally and record back-to-back clean-sheets against Blackburn and Newcastle. Will no doubt be eager to be back in the thick of the action.
CB) Dejan Lovren
Was left out against the Gunners and has done little wrong in the last two games. This could be make or break for him this one, with another high-profile mistake likely to see this second chance come to a swift end.
LB) Alberto Moreno
Jose Enrique has still not even made the bench since his return to training so there seems little reason to doubt the fact that Moreno will keep his place in the team. The Spaniard will need to get forward well down the left.
DM) Lucas Leiva
As we promised, we’ve returned the Liverpool captain to the team. That means either Lucas or Joe Allen will miss out. We’ve kept the Brazilian, who is more adept to protecting the back four than the Welshman, who’ll have to make do with a spot on the bench.
CM) Steven Gerrard
With Lucas in the holding role and Henderson going box-to-box we’re hoping that our skipper will be allowed to sit in the middle of the park and pick his passes. A bit fanciful thinking perhaps but this should be where he’s most effective in our opinion.
CM) Jordan Henderson
There’s not a lot of pace in this midfield so Henderson will have to be working extra hard to support both attack and defence. We all know the vice-skipper is perfectly capable but he’ll need to be at his best without the extra security of Lucas and Allen sweeping up the pieces.
RAM) Lazar Markovic
Jordon Ibe is cup-tied, and with Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge not 100%, Markovic could make up the front-three. Let’s hope, if selected, he plays like he did around Christmas time.
LAM) Philippe Coutinho
There’s no arguments over this guy’s inclusion. After brilliant goals against Bolton and Blackburn in the previous round he’s definitely the man for the big occasion – let’s hope he can prove it again at Wembley on Sunday.
ST) Raheem Sterling
With Sturridge likely to be on the bench we’ve gone for another young player to start in our front three. The 20-year-old scored the opener against Newcastle this week and will also be anxious to build on his first Wembley goal, which came for England in last month’s game with Lithuania.
