Match Preview: Liverpool v. Oldham Athletic, 01.06.12

By: Ed | January 5th, 2012

oldhamgoal

Liverpool step into the last remaining competition on their calendar, welcoming Oldham Athletic to Anfield in the third round of the FA Cup. The League One side got past Southend United in the second round after a draw forced the home replay, which the hosts won 1-0. Liverpool will be looking to get past the third round for just the third time in six seasons after crashing out to Reading and Manchester United in the past two seasons.

Tuesday’s result doesn’t have to linger much longer, with Kenny Dalglish’s squad featuring in the only FA Cup match scheduled for Friday. Thus far Liverpool’s taken domestic cup competition very seriously, fielding strong lineups and progressing to the semi-finals of the League Cup. And while we’re not likely to see many of the same faces we saw Tuesday, we can hopefully expect more of the same from Dalglish and company.

It’s been an up and down campaign for the side from Manchester, with manager Paul Dickov overseeing a first half that’s left the club 14th in League One. Their win over Notts County on New Year’s Eve was their first in over a month, and they’ve won no more than two consecutive matches all season. They crashed out of the League Cup in early August, losing on penalties after heading to extra time level at 1-1 with Carlisle United. Thankfully their performances in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy and the FA Cup have been more encouraging, with the club set for the Northern Section Final against Chesterfield in the former and tomorrow’s third round appearance in the latter.

They started with a 3-1 win over Burton Albion, winning two penalties in the first ten minutes (and missing one) and scoring three times in just over half an hour. Their second-round draw at Southend earned a chance at a replay, which they won in front of their home fans on the strength of a second-half goal from Chris Taylor. Each of Oldham’s goals in the competition have come from a different man, with Shefki Kugi, Robbie Simpson, and Dean Furman netting in the opener, James Wesolowski getting their lone goal in the Southend draw, and Taylor sealing progress with his strike.

For Liverpool:

Who starts for Liverpool?

Doni
Kelly Carragher Coates Aurelio
Spearing Henderson
Maxi Shelvey Bellamy
Carroll

—Luis Suarez serves the second match of his eight-match ban from the FA, and it looks like Jack Robinson and Lucas are the only confirmed absentees through injury.

—The biggest question after methodically poring through the official site’s training pictures from earlier in the day is whether or not Fabio Aurelio survived training (and a stiff breeze on Merseyside). If he did, I wouldn’t be entirely shocked if he got his bi-annual run out in the eleven, albeit for the first twenty or so minutes. There has to be starts for Martin Kelly and Jamie Carragher, who’ve been sidelined due to the solid form of Glen Johnson and Martin Skrtel/Daniel Agger. Sebastian Coates looks likely to feature as well, leaving left back the only point of contention. If Aurelio’s unavailable, it’s either Jon Flanagan out of position or Jose Enrique on three days’ rest.

—Of the midfield that we saw throughout the match against City on Tuesday, I’m guessing that Jay Spearing and possibly Jordan Henderson return, with Charlie Adam in need of a break that lasts just a shade under eternity. Steven Gerrard could be back, but with Kenny Dalglish going out of his way all week to underline the caution that’ll be taken with the captain’s recovery, it looks like a long shot. His absence should allow an appearance for Jonjo Shelvey, though, who’s deserving of an extended look.

—The attack will involve some combination of Craig Bellamy, Maxi, Andy Carroll, and Dirk Kuyt, with Stewart Downing likely left out after putting in a full ninety at City. For all his struggles he did get up and down the pitch all night, meaning it’d be more plausible to see Maxi, Bellamy, and/or Kuyt. And while Carroll also played the entire match at the Eastlands, he needs all the match time he can muster. Starting with Fabio Aurelio in the lineup and a supporting cast that can create space across the forward areas, especially against lower-league opposition, could provide at least a little tonic for Carroll’s troubles.

What’s the most important factor for the Reds?

Tomorrow’s got all the makings of a feel-good match after the poor result against Manchester City. Unfortunately it’s also got the makings of another Liverpool capitulation in a domestic cup competition. There’s a fair few examples on hand—Northampton last season and Reading a year earlier being the most recent—to cause at least a little concern about Liverpool’s prospects. Add in the “magic of the Cup” and all that, and it’s not looking to be the walk in the park that we so desperately want to see. If they can get past all that and start on the front foot, though, they can avoid the types of struggles we’ve seen in the past few years.

It’s bad, bad, bad, BAD news for those of us planning on watching the match, with precisely zero listings at the present moment. That’s also objectively not good for the possibilities of streaming, which also rely on the fact that there’s cameras in the joint. So that makes watching the match sort of a challenge on all fronts outside of being there, which I’m not planning on doing. We’ll scramble around together in hopes that something comes available, though, and will run the matchday post with links and team sheets as usual.

See you back here tomorrow to collectively moan about not being able to watch the match. The Glory of the FA Cup!

Some Related Liverpool Posts:

Match Preview: Liverpool v. Newcastle, 12.30.11

Category: FA Cup, Match Previews, Miscellaneous, Team News

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Neil

Expecting a defeat in this match. Liverpool lack any quality and are shite.
markolfc[FI]

Its Kuqi! :D Well, easy game for LFC - training match, nothing else..
Ryan

Oh noooo you've got it all wrong.

If Aurelio is not available:---------------Reina------------------Kelly--Carragher--Coates-Johnson---------Spearing---Henderson---------Shelvey-----Bellamy----Maxi---------------------Carroll----------------To be honest, I didn't even look at your lineup Ed. And I was just two players off and a midfield mixup away from being the exact same. So that means we are both going to be wrong.
Ryan

.....Well, it did look about the same. Until it got thrown into some crazy ass whirlpool.
Ryan

   Reina
Kelly Carragher Coates Johnson
   Spearing Henderson
Shelvey Bellamy Maxi
   Carroll
Suarez from the car park...

Thank F. for some F ootball again. The blogs in the media have been seriously depressing.

Lets work out how to win again and get some confidence back. Citeh showed why they will be champions the other night and we must accept that.

We were by no means awful but 2 mistakes led to 2 goals and their defence was top draw after that 8th minute chance. Still dropping points to them isn't the most unexpected event so we shouldn't beat ourselves up about it. So I'll stop going on about it. Really. For good. From now. After this full stop. Here.

The next 2 months are key now, so this is a fortunate way of starting off. It gets tougher from here as we must find the a way to hit the net along a rollercoaster of Citeh league cup fixtures, Stoke and lower league sides, before February brings the big guns and bitters our way.

January either prepares us for February or kills our season, before February either prepares us for the season run in making us feel hopelessly optimistic - or it kills our season.

So long as we're notToXabi I'll survive it, just.

The one unknown is we may end up with another recruit. Comolli needs to seriously earn his coin though.
jpr

Klaas Huntelaar rumor for $15 mil. Any truth to it and how good is he? I've never seen him play.
fastrail

Kind of like van nistelrooy type of player..when he got a chance, goal. At least that's what I think from a couple of games I've seen him play.
heitz11

The Lucky Bar in Washington, DC claims to have the game on tomorrow. When I called and asked what channel the female bartender didn't have the slightest clue, but that means some channel somewhere must have it. Or they're lying to me in attempt to get me to leave work early and start drinking at 3 pm.
DCscouser

I'll be there if they have it on...I'm about a mile away from there...
Noel

That's the sort of lying we can get behind around here—the kind that gets people drunk.

And it's bizarre that Friday's only match could go untelevised, but right now it's just not one of the five games that were chosen, though there are (apparently) a few rumours that Al Jazeera is trying to work something out. Which would mean that somebody somewhere might have it in the end if we're lucky, though I don't imagine many bars in the DC area get Al Jazeera sport even if it happens.
Alex H

I'm surprised they haven't put it on the website but wouldn't LFC TV have it online at the least considering its being played at Anfield? I know people have put streams up off of that before so there is SOME hope?
Noel

It's not listed as being carried by LFCtv online or off—there are arcane regulations about the number of FA Cup matches that can be shown each round in England, which stops the club from putting something out but in theory wouldn't stop a channel somewhere else from broadcasting it if there's any kind of feed they can put commentary on top of.
heitz11

At the end of the day there are worse places to be on a Friday at 3 pm than a bar.
Red2death

I'd like to see Kuyt and Bellamy up front in a fast, fluid attacking side that runs out comfortable 4-0 winners.

Of course chances are it ain't happening. Carroll to lead the line then. A billion crosses, 25 half-chances, and 1 goal from someone who wasn't playing as a striker. 1-0.
GerrardsBoxingCoach

Doesn't Bellamy have some kind of persistent problem with one or both of his knees (beyond just being in his thirties)? I don't think he'll start. The rest sounds about right.
Ed

Yeah, I guess I thought that 30 minutes on Tuesday wouldn't be too taxing, but that could be way off.
GerrardsBoxingCoach

...You win this one, sir.
NotTooXabi

Some actual football to focus on...thank, Fowler.

I think Pepe gets the nod, just to work out any residuals from his City outing. If there are any at all. My concern with the Maxi - Jonjo - Bellamy line is that there's a lot of fluidity that might get clogged in Carroll's static ponytail. And with Carroll playing the full 90 against City, he could need rest/enema/electroshock therapy. But, my word (Ray Wilkins TM), how bad was Kuyt? I've seen sharper performances at a Cancun Spring Break Spelling Bee. I think Dirk gets to wirk out some quirks. (Is he in shop window?)

            Reina
Kelly Carra Coates "Class Glass"
          Spearing
Henderson    Dark Lord
Kuyt    Bellamy Maxi

Pass and move them off the park. And if I remember correctly, Paul Dickov is a tit.
Neil

shite team but then again it's Liverpool
Suarez from the car park...

We've missed the NotTooXabi nomenclature of late. Welcome back.
NotTooXabi

Been avoiding the shit storm, with a whiskey in hand, just South of the Mason-Dixon where people are, shockingly, more clear-minded about such matters. But alas, nothing gets me going like facing a team that calls for "aged pork" jokes. And Paul Dickov, who is a tit.

By the way, I've been slutting this gag all day on Twitter. Feel free to ignore as well.

My quick interview with Stuart Downing; I ask him to explain his struggles so far this season: http://youtu.be/InaRIYFPMiY
fastrail

Thumbs up for Dark Lord!
Ed

I kept remembering that Dickov is a tit too, but couldn't recall why. Two is enough for consensus for me, though.
Suarez from the car park...

I think that makes you both a mob.