2) Natural width to cause Stoke problems
Jordon Ibe has been our stand-out player during pre-season and has the ability to really stretch a rather sluggish Stoke defence. With Ryan Shawcross out as well, Ibe will relish the opportunity to cut inside and trying to test the central pairing. It’s something which we simply didn’t have at our disposal last time around, when Lallana, Coutinho and Gerrard formed an incredibly narrow front three. It will be interesting to see who starts on the opposite flank on Sunday, with Lallana probably still the favourite.
