They're obviously a very good team with some exceptional players, thing is mate I've seen them enough this season to see that by and large they are looking not 'that' good. And generally their results have flattered them in the league.
They'll finish 15-20 points off city again at least this season.
Can they beat us, obviously they can and if they suddenly click then they likely will do, but this season they aren't looking the same explosive team as they did last year.
Similarly we have a front three that if it embraces the game and puts it shooting boots on can do them real damage.
They have had a fantastic start. I haven't crunched the numbers but I imagine they'd probably be top maybe 20 seasons out of the last 25 with the points total. Make no mistake this is akin to going to a side that would normally be top of the league.
However I do think it's a slightly false position for them. Would a side that dominant domestically normally be scratching around having to win final group games in the CL to make it through the group? Would they have gone out at the first hurdle of the League Cup? They've won a lot of games by a narrow margin having had reasonable bits of good fortune. I do think it's a somewhat false position they are in domestically. This is not meant to criticise them unfairly but to try and pitch where this Liverpool team are currently. I'd also say, to balance it, they are probably a bit better than the CL form shows them. They've been a bit more unfortunate in that.
Once you factor that in and say they could be a few points below where they are in the league as a kind of "mean" score to me you can start to frame the game more accurately to where the two teams are at. When you then add in 2 stupid red cards cost us dearly in early fixtures, when players fitness was tested on hot days you see 2 sides that are more evenly matched than the initial points totals show us.I still think LFC are ahead and have had harder games but I would say we are quite close.
They are exceptional at the back at Anfield. The goalkeeper, or more pointedly not having a poor goalkeeper has made a big difference. I maintain that the first goal is crucial in this game. Thats their big strength. The front 3 haven't clicked and looked a long way off again on Wednesday.
Wednesday was a hard night for them too. I think they had to put a lot of running in to avoid being pasted. Carragher pointed out he's fearful of the fact we've had over a weeks training and focus on this game, whereas Liverpool will have 2 sessions. We have a manager now who utilises training. He's a red and can be a a bit of a knob, but he's generally a good pundit and I think it shows a general unease.
I also think in the later post where you say about their expectation it can work in your favour but also work against you. There's a generation of reds who haven't seen Liverpool behind in a derby at Anfield never mind losing one. For some they'll only have seen them hammer us. If we frustrate them and stop them controlling the game that unease will slap through. As will the reality that they need to win to keep up with City. Playing on that is our big advantage.
So lots of positives for us. Lots of if's buts and maybes and we will need some good fortune as well. This Liverpool teams results are better than performances. In those situations one has to catch up with the other. Either performances get better or results get worse. It's a good time to play them.
