13 April 2014 was the last time Liverpool and Manchester City met at Anfield. That day could, quite easily, have gone down in football folklore for all the right reasons; in the eyes of Liverpool fans anyway.
The frantic start, which blew away the second best team in the country at that time (in my opinion), and the defiant comeback after David Silva’s majestic second half display had helped to get City back into, just pointed to one inescapable conclusion. I’m sure even the most ardent City fan sat there at full time and grudgingly admitted that it seemed to be out of reach. The title was settled, you have your Martin Tyler “AGUERO” moment, now we have our “COUTINHO”. The post-match huddle brought the reality of proceedings to everyone’s attention, and Steven Gerrard gave his heartbreakingly ironic speech. Then the week after, the rest of the season began to unfold…
Fast-forward nearly a year and a lot has changed at Liverpool’s end. We welcome Manchester City to Anfield on Sunday with only the possibility of a top 4 finish to dream of, and even that seems difficult. In contrast, the men in blue still have far greater plans for the season, with a title defence not off the cards yet due to Chelsea’s recent difficulties. “Campaign Against Chelsea” or no campaign, it is an interesting situation at the top of the table and one which neutrals will be keen to see unfold. To add to that, as someone who has been alive when their team won at the Nou Camp, let me reassure you that the Champions League tie is far from over; you have hope there.
On to Sunday, when Brendan Rodgers’ men will be looking to get revenge for a 3-1 defeat suffered at the Etihad earlier in the season. As someone who likes to remain optimistic where possible, I do see the positive omens ahead of the fixture but I’m far from confident. Despite Rodgers being previously unbeaten at Anfield in the Premier League against Manchester City, there is a first time for everything and we endured a fairly horrendous game against Besiktas in Istanbul on Thuesday. The whole charade of going to extra time only to lose on penalties only made matters worse, and Manchester City can undoubtedly benefit from that. In terms of injuries, Mamadou Sakho would be a welcome return to the defence should he make the game, but if not we have well documented defensive issues and there aren’t many better attacks around than Aguero and co.
Having said that, Liverpool haven’t lost a Premier League game this calendar year and are enjoying the usual post-Christmas run of form that Brendan Rodgers delivers. Everything is set for an exciting encounter at Anfield on Sunday, and it will be one for the neutral to savour.
