Really unfortunate if Flanno is injured. Been such a reliable defender lately for us. Not keen on changing it again
We need to attack. If we play for a draw it'll end inn a cricket score ... ffor them, obviously! If we play well ... who knows! Fingers crossed. I just want a good match to be honest. It should be open and high-scoring!
So is Flanno defo out? Is Cissokho fit? Not really the game I want to see Kelly return in if I am honest. He didn't look to sharp against Cardiff.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says he is down to 17 fit players as Jon Flanagan battles a hamstring problem ahead of the Boxing Day trip to Manchester City. Brendan Rodgers may feel the urge to shake things up. GettyImages Brendan Rodgers has a small squad to deal with. Flanagan, normally a right-back, has started the last six games at left-back as Jose Enrique recovers from knee surgery. But the 20-year-old hobbled off during Saturdayâs 3-1 win over Cardiff, and will be assessed ahead of Thursdayâs match at the Etihad Stadium. Captain Steven Gerrard, who has a hamstring problem, and striker Daniel Sturridge, who is recovering from an ankle injury, are both out until January. And the Premier League leaders are struggling for numbers as they prepare to visit a City side who have won all eight of their home games in the competition this season. Rodgers said: âOur squad is very thin at the moment. Weâve got 17 players, which is unfortunate for us, going into a busy period. We just have to assess young Jon Flanagan. Leading into the game against Cardiff, he had a tight hamstring for a few days. âHe was fit enough to start play, but he felt it a little bit during the game, so we had to take him off. We need to assess that over the next 24 hours. None of the guys who have been out have returned, so weâre quite thin on the ground.â Martin Kelly, who came on for Flanagan against Cardiff, is an option for Rodgers, but has not started a first-team game since rupturing his cruciate knee ligament against Manchester United in Sept. 2012. And the manager has indicated that he is wary of throwing the 23-year-old back in for such a big game. Rodgers said: âHeâs working very hard in training, Martin, and I think all the players know that itâs something I look very closely at. I think heâs said it himself that heâs over the injury now. Itâs really about him performing to a level where we can see him getting the opportunity. âHeâs a good guy, Martin. I like him a lot. Heâs been through a lot with his injury. That just takes that bit of time before psychologically and physically, you feel ready to play. If heâs 100 percent on his game, then heâs a very valuable player for us.â Despite his squadâs injury troubles, Rodgers is relishing the challenge of becoming the first away team to win a Premier League game at the Etihad Stadium this season. Liverpool drew both league games against City 2-2 last season, having been in a good position to win each time. A misplaced Martin Skrtel backpass allowed Carlos Tevez to nip in and score an equaliser at Anfield in Aug. 2012, while goalkeeper Pepe Reinaâs misjudged dash from his line the following February gave Sergio Aguero the chance to earn City a late point at the Etihad. Rodgers said: âIn the two games we had against Manchester City last year, we were the better side, home and away. We made mistakes that cost us and we ended up drawing the two games. âTheyâll know that weâre a good side, and that we arrive there in a really good moment. Our confidence is high, and everyone can see the bravery of our players to play football. The courage is there. âManchester City are a squad who have been built to challenge for every trophy in the world. We understand the size of the task. But itâs about the team. And our team at the moment has shown to be the best team over 17 games. So yes, weâre thin, weâve got injuries, but itâs an opportunity that weâre really relishing.â Liverpool will sit top of the Premier League on Christmas Day, but Rodgers is aware there is still much work to do if they are to become champions of England for the first time since 1990. Of the current squad, only full-back Glen Johnson, central defender Kolo Toure and striker Sturridge have won English title medals, while Rodgers is only in his third season as a Premier League manager. But that relative lack of experience at the very top end of English football does not faze the Liverpool boss. He said: âYou need to get that experience from somewhere. You only do that by going on and winning games. Of course, there are teams with much more experience than ourselves at winning titles. âBut you only get that experience by doing it, and by focusing on the job. We look no further than the next game. If we can continue with that over the course of the next 10 games, then weâll assess it for the run-in, and that will be the really exciting part.â
Win, Lose or Draw, today is the day for Liverpool to mature as a team. City are just another set of 11 players. It is up to LFC to go and impose themselves and play their game. It is up to LFC to achieve what they set out to achieve and let the opposition worry about them
We're gonna win Forget about a draw, we're gonna score And then we're gonna get a few more Maybe another one just to be sure We'll make you look just like an amateur Until the final whistle it's a war And then we're gonna pick you off the floor We wanna hear the crowd really roar Yeah, we're comin' in we're gonna win, win Yeah! It's worked last two games so I keep on doing it. We'll be brilliant. #happilydeluded #soontobepissed
Good luck to Smith if he starts, he's been playing well so deserves a shot and means we will push down both wings.
