As every Liverpool fan of any measure would know, we’re taking on Stoke at the Britannia on Sunday.
The ground is a traditionally hard one to travel to, as our 6-1 humiliation from the final day of last season proves.
If we’re to come away with the necessary result this time around, we’ll need to be infinitely better as a team first and foremost, but also individually.
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Stoke out-battled and out-fought us last time out, and we can’t afford to let it happen again.
Here are three key individual duels which could define the outcome.
Adam Lallana v Glen Johnson
Liverpool fans know better than anybody else that Glen Johnson is defensively suspect. While he used to be a genuine asset going forward, he’s now a liability, and we’re glad he’ll be playing right-back for Stoke instead of us. Lallana, who played on the left during nearly all of pre-season, is expected to be lining up opposite him – and has the ability to give his former team-mate a nightmare. Lallana will be able to get crosses in to Benteke, but also cut inside and either shoot himself or try something more intricate. He won’t gas Johnson on the outside, but his trickery could tie him in knots.
Christian Benteke v Marc Muniesa
With Stoke’s best centre-back Ryan Shawcross out injured, Benteke can cause his deputy a world of problems. It’s likely to be Muniesa alongside Wollscheid, although Geoff Cameron is also in contention. Muniesa is a technical centre-back, more renowned for his passing and positioning than his brutality. If our Belgian powerhouse can bully the opposing defender early on, winning his aerial battles and not letting the defender get too tight to him when the ball’s played to his feet, we’ll be in. This will be Benteke’s first chance to impose himself on an opposing backline, and he’s readymade for the tough, physical Stoke challenge. Let’s hope he’s up for the fight and that his finishing is on song too.
James Milner v Marco van Ginkel
The on loan Chelsea midfielder will be keen to make an impression, and is expected to start alongside Glen Whelan in a midfield double pivot. The young Dutchman has struggled since his move to the Blues, failing on loan at AC Milan after a lengthy injury, and it’ll be our experienced summer signing’s job to get on top of him early on. Milner has the industry and work-rate to out battle van Ginkel – who could struggle if Milner and Henderson press him relentlessly. It’s not yet clear if we’ll have an anchoring midfielder supporting our pair, or if Coutinho will join them in a slightly more advanced role. If Rodgers takes the risk to select Coutinho at no.10 in a 4-2-3-1 formation, Milner will need to be disciplined and limit his forward runs, in order to stop van Ginkel, Whelan and Adam controlling the centre of the park.
