Liverpool travel to Sunderland this weekend to try and get some momentum back after a few disappointing results dampened the mood around the club following a blistering start the Premier League campaign. Sunderland will be looking to snatch a result, as usual, after a sacking of their manager, will be ready to put in a tough shift for 90 minutes on Super Sunday with everyone watching.
Three back to back wins for Liverpool were made to look a bit less glamorous after a disappointing loss at home to Southampton forced on a bit of a reality check that in all of our games so far, we haven’t played that well besides the first half against Notts County. The Premier League return of talisman striker, Luis Suarez, combined with the disappointing loss to Manchester United midweek will have Brendan Rodgers team wanting to put in a convincing performance to get back on track and take advantage of a less than difficult run of games.
Sunderland, having sacked Paulo Di Canio, will be lead into Sundays fixture by caretaker boss Kevin Ball and will be right up for a 90 minute fight to gain some respect, after picking up only one point from their first five games this season. People say Di Canio’s strict, dictator like approach to managing may have been the reason for his sacking but I think it’s down to results and performances, Sunderland have been poor and have not picked up enough points. Di Canio, for sure, would still be in charge had they gotten off to a good start in the league. Having said that, the Sunderland players will definitely feel a lot more free and relaxed knowing Di Canio won’t be in the dugout this weekend, making this even more of one of those ‘trap’ games.
Sunderland will have a less than full strength lineup on Sunday with Wes Brown, Steven Fletcher and Phil Barsdley all sidelined with injuries. Unfortunately for Liverpool, Fabio Borini won’t be able to feature for Sunderland as he is ineligible to face his parent club after being sent on loan right at the end of the summer transfer window. Although Liverpool welcome Luis Suarez back to the Premier League, we will also be less than full strength with Coutinho, Glen Johnson and Aly Cissokho all out injured with Daniel Agger also possibly set to miss out again with a freak rib injury he sustained while lifting weights at Melwood.
Brendan Rodgers faces a decision whether to stick with a back three, that showed some promising signs against United, or revert back to a four defender formation. Personally, I’d like to see an unchanged side from United, with Agger possibly taking Skrtels place, if fit. Luis Suarez looked good against United, and with a bit more match sharpness under his belt, you would think he could have taken a few of the chances he had. The link up play the Uruguayan had with Sturridge looked good, at times was just a half step to slow but will only improve with time. Two of the deadliest strikers in the league at present, I expect one, if not both, to get on the score sheet this weekend. I expect Sunderland to come out in a 4-5-1, or 4-4-1-1, whichever you prefer, and try to pack the midfield to stop us from playing our game.
According to Opta stats, Sunderland have won just 3 out of 24 against us, all at the Stadium of Light. With the ‘sacked manager’ effect, Sunderland should put in a shift against us but we do have a much stronger starting 11 and although it’s not the strength of your City’s or Chelsea’s, we have the likes of Luis Suarez, Daniel Sturridge, Steven Gerrard and Victor Moses – I’m going with the theory that a good team can only play bad for so many games before getting it together and playing to their potential, which is why I am backing a 3-1 victory for Liverpool.
I love a cheeky matchday punt, here are some of the bets I would have no problem backing.
– Luis Suarez to score anytime: He looked good against United, and that game will undoubtedly help him to be better this weekend. To follow Charlie and bet, click here
– Daniel Sturridge to score anytime: Sturridge is in good form, and seems hard to not back him to score. To follow Charlie and bet, click here
– Liverpool -1.5: Liverpool have been on the end of some good, yet low scoring results. They’re due a bigger win. To follow Charlie and bet, click here
– Over 2.5 goals: Same reason as above plus, our fragility at corners could well be tested again. To follow Charlie and bet, click here
– Both Teams to score: Again, we look suspect at corners and rarely go through games without looking like scoring. To follow Charlie and bet, click here
