Match Preview: Liverpool v. Swansea City, 11.05.11

By: Ed | November 4th, 2011

swansea

Swansea visit Anfield in the last match before the break, looking to earn points away from home for just the second time this season. They find themselves in tenth on the strength of three home wins and two draws, but their only point on the road came via a 2-2 draw at Wolves. Liverpool will hoping to change things up as well after two consecutive 1-1 draws at Anfield prior to their win at the Hawthorns last weekend.

Tomorrow’s is a match that we’ve collectively grown to be wary of; a newly-promoted side that’s maybe punching above their weight, nothing to lose, haven’t played in a league match at Anfield in almost twenty years, you know the drill. Liverpool do seem to be hitting their stride, though, after all they could do was hit the post, the bar, or bears.

Brendan Rogers has been roundly praised for Swansea’s early form, as most assumed they’d be cemented to the bottom of the table if they stuck to the more fluid style of play that saw them finish third in the Championship and promoted after playoff wins against Nottingham Forest and Reading. As noted in the intro, they’ve yet to find their feet on the road, but at home, they’ve sparkled, scoring at least twice in each of their three home wins.

Most impressive of late have been Scott Sinclair and Danny Graham, as the former Chelsea winger’s started all ten matches and scored in both of Swansea’s October wins, and the forward man has scored in each of the last four matches. Rogers can also call on Nathan Dyer on the opposite flank of Sinclair, and a midfield with Leon Britton and Joe Allen that could be boosted by the return of Kemy Agustien. The personnel at the back’s been fairly consistent as well, with Michael Vorm putting together an impressive campaign in goal behind a back line that’s often featured Angel Rangel, Ashley Williams, and Neil Taylor.

For Liverpool:

Who starts for Liverpool?

Reina
Johnson Skrtel Agger Enrique
Lucas Adam
Henderson Maxi
Suarez Carroll

—Steven Gerrard’s the only confirmed absence tomorrow, as he continues to recover from an ankle infection that kept him out of the West Brom match. Jamie Carragher’s the more likely to future, but as usual, Kenny Dalglish was coy about his prospects.

—I’m banking on Carragher not being fit, and while I can’t see him being left out if he is, the partnership between Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger deserves at least one more run-out. Both full-back positions seem to select themselves at the moment, with Glen Johnson right and Jose Enrique left. There can’t be any debate about the latter, whose form has been remarkable, but I’d guess there’s still some that would prefer to see Martin Kelly as first-choice.

—Odds of the Lucas-Charlie Adam pairing in central midfield breaking up are slim to none—after Jay Spearing put in an excellent shift against Stoke he was relegated back to the bench, with Adam coming into the side. That looks like the way forward for better or worse for Dalglish, and while there’s signs of progression for Adam, I’m still not convinced. Same but more positive for Jordan Henderson, who’s had a number of consecutive strong showings lately and will likely get another start in front of Dirk Kuyt. I’m not sure who would be mostly likely to come into his place, but I again think a rest for Stewart Downing should be on the cards; tomorrow I’m hoping for a large dose of Maxi to change things up.

—Barring a late injury there’s no reason we shouldn’t see Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez up top, as their developing partnership really seemed to blossom last weekend, even if you couldn’t get the announcers to stop shouting in your ear that it’s just not going to work. That leaves Craig Bellamy in an impact substitute role, which hopefully Liverpool won’t need.

What’s the most important factor for the Reds?

One of Liverpool’s biggest weaknesses over the past few seasons has been their tendency to leave just enough breathing room for sides that are willing to make a go of it. Most of the time (at least this season) it’s been the inability to take chances, but in years gone by there’s a sense that mid- and lower-table sides pose as big a threat, if not more, than the sides Liverpool expect to challenge them. We hear plenty about the respect for everyone in the pre-match, but the style of play often betrays that sentiment. I’d love to see Liverpool show lots of respect to sides like Swansea and Norwich and Sunderland. Just by completely dominating them, both on the pitch and the scoresheet.

For the first time in awhile, a league match is difficult to come by on TV, with no live listing in the US or the UK. There’s got to be streams coming from somewhere, though, so we’ll make sure to include the usual links along with anything else that pops up between now and kickoff. Share the wealth if we’re not in the know, and we’ll run what we have late tonight, with team sheets appearing about an hour before kickoff. Or whenever one of you decides to get smart and show me up again.

Hope you all have a good Friday, and let’s all hope we share a great start to the weekend tomorrow.

Some Related Liverpool Posts:

Category: Match Previews, Miscellaneous, Premier League, Team News

« Video: José Enrique’s Season So Far | Home | Matchday: Liverpool v. Swansea City »

brother jon

Let's Go Oakland!! Liverpool 'pon Bay.
Scrottytoohotty

Woo Football drinking out of my comically large new liverpool shot glasses, not sure if this is a good thing or not. Give me more BELLERS!!!
Ravenilli

For the next installment of the manger and captains notes click below.

Enjoy.

http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/emai...
Ed

Hero.
Ryan

Weren't we in the relegation zone this time last year, or in some other crapy bottomless pit similar to said zone?
Joshua Mtengese Mlay

This has to the best Liverpool website... Never seen a dull or biased article. Keep up the good work gents. LFC for life
Ed

Appreciated, thanks stopping by. Or continuing to visit and finally chiming in. Either way, glad to have you around.
Thomas Hoppe

Len Bias
NotTooXabi

Wait....there are other Liverpool websites?????
Ed

None that will have you.
NotTooXabi

Daglish is still mad about Cinco de Mayo in Mombasa in '93?!?!?

You can barely see the scar, and the giraffe totally recovered!

At least I have you, Ed. You feel my pain. You were there.
Ed

It's like, don't hog all the mescaline and go giraffe-jousting if you're just gonna bitch about it for twenty years.
Purify_the_body

I agree Kenny will pick your lineup except my guess is Kuyt & Downing instead of Hendo & Maxi. Kenny could care less about Maxi's playing time, and Kuyt benched 2 games in a row behind the young kid?? That's just insulting.

Here's the lineup I'd start:

Reina
Kelly Skrtel Agger Enrique
Johnson Lucas Spearing Downing
Kuyt Suarez

Subs: Doni, Coates, Maxi, Bellamy, Henderson, Adam, Carroll
JPR

Very harsh to just leave out Charles like dat. Maybe I shouldn't drink too many Chimays on Friday's pre match. It's like truth serum. Jonno, DAgger, Enrique, Spearo, Downing Kuyt, Suarez wudn't bring da O? I'm confused.
Latortillablanca

its honestly kinda hard to argue with that suggested lineup... but, just cuz i can't help myself - in this theoretical world where johnson is a rw and wee jay is a starter, where does your offense come from in mid? jus the wings? or r u suggesting wee jay or lucas be a box to box...
Joshua Mtengese Mlay

Bellamy has to start tomorrow
Suarez from the car park...

Swansea have conceded 14 on the road (only scoring 4) with Chelsea, Citeh and Norwich scoring a heavy 11 of them and their one away point from a 2-2 stalemate with Wolves.

It's a real Jeckyll and Hyde side with their remarkable home form (and resulting league position), scoring well and even beating Stoke after a cautious start of 0-0 scores (a game where Stoke contrived to see how many of their team could be booked in a single game).

The great thing about the West Brom game was how it showed that we won't give weak semi-organised teams time and space so Swansea won't have an ice cube's chance in Satan's night club of getting anything tomorrow.

The only thing that we don't know is will we demolish them in the scoreline. We need to, we should do looking at their away record, our goal difference certainly needs a boost and our goal scorers need to up their conversion rates.

Feel for Maxi not getting game time. Hope he's cool with it for a while. This is going to be a Hendo, Adam, Downing, Carroll, Suarez lineup.
Latortillablanca

i totally thot this was an away fixture for a while and it scared me quite a lot... ne(eee!)way, as-is, we good.
Suarez from the car park...

Adopt home game position (extra nibbles and beer to hand).
Mike Riddlesworth

It's on FoxsoccerTV live streaming in the States, via a PC.
So here in the Sunshine State of Florida that's what we'll be doing at 11am!
That's what we get for not finishing in the top 4!!!!
YNWA LFC Tampa, Fl
Suarez from the car park...

How is it 11am for you? I always thought East US was 5hrs behind. 11am would put you about 500 miles out into the Atlantic no?
JPR

Jonny. Time to invest in a fancy watch. I'll be tuning in at 11Am EST too. And I won't be wearing my fancy scuba gear.
Suarez from the car park...

So you don't get all of your kicks dressed in rubber!
Ed

Our Daylight Savings doesn't end until 2am Sunday, or it starts then, or something.

That could explain it, or have nothing to do with it.
CheekyFellow

Yes.
Suarez from the car park...

Sounds very nice down there as winter threatens over here (remarkably mild here actually).

How are house prices doing down there, is the US still going through a mare?
mattiecamp

Move to Australia, watch every match live, wake up hung over on a beach.
Thomas Hoppe

your words are like poetry, braj
Tom Foolery

I'll be hitting the beers in the hopes it offsets Liverpool's trend of hitting the bars/bears, lately.

Cheers to the back of the net!
NotTooXabi

To all the intelligent beings out there (even Scotland), a good Friday to you.* May the booze flow and the saber-tooth squirrels remain extinct. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetw...

In making the usual wagers for the coming weekend, who do you think scores next/first: Downing, Enrique, Kuyt, Agger?

And for the weekly, "It Will Never Happen" XI...what about Lucas as a CB?

Kelly     Lucas Agger   Enrique
            Henderson
     Kuyt               Aurelio (swoon)
Bellamy    Carroll       Suarez

*And to everyone else, the trick is to rub the sticks together guys.
PDubz18

Lucas is not strong enough in the air. He actually kind of walks the line of being not strong enough in the air to be a holding midfielder. Same with Hendo.
CheekyFellow

Dude, just based off what I have seen, he is quite dominant in the air - constantly winning duels. He may not be extremely tall/huge, but he has great timing. I'm sure this can be backed up statistically.

Retract those comments now!
Tom Foolery

Lucas is an absolute beast in the air. Examples are winning headers against Kevin Davies and Marouane Fellaini. His timing is immaculate, which easily compensates for his lack of natural physical/technical abilities.
Latortillablanca

um, guys, its called the "it will never happen XI" - not the "King Confirms Swansea XI" lucas in the air is the most moot point ever, besides 'andy's kruyff turn' or 'carra's 40 yard sprint time'
Ed

Well right, he'll never end up at CB (or at least probably not), but his ability in the air isn't a moot point at all.
Latortillablanca

meh... until noel gives me some opta-stats graphing the amount of aerial challenges won by lucas in our own half per minute played at home vs. minute played away (with and without adam next to him), it seems sorta moot - boy's not locked in aerial battles all that much i guess is the (rather flimsy) extent of all my jargon...
JPR

at least you're not sayin he's windy in da challenge. he's not locked in ground challenges all dat much either. he just takes da ball and says thanks.
Ed

Well yeah, nothing's valid until Noel proves it, but I still think his ability in the air is an asset.
Ed

Agreed completely. At times he's dominant in the air, and wins plenty of aerial challenges you wouldn't think he could or should.
Suarez from the car park...

Agreed.

His timing in getting in front of opposing players when competing for the ball is the big difference in his game from his early days. Hence he doesn't give away all the fouls he once did and makes oppositions impotent.
No idea what happened, but last season, he just suddenly got it.

Enrique has similar technique. Let's hope Adam can learn something from them.
Tom Foolery

Not that he should be put into a CB role, but if neccessary, he could probably do a job...and distribute from the back better than most.
NotTooXabi

Whilst a more theoretical idea than anything, my idea is that when we're playing against a "False #9" with a lone striker, Lucas at CB would be interesting, if not terribly effective.

Along with Enrique, Agger, Kelly (not the wayward Johnson) & and some engines in Henderson and Kuyt, you could snuff out the lone striker and handle a fluid front line such as -

Spurs: Ade, VDV, Bale, Lennon, Modric
Arsenal: RVP, Theo, Wilshere, Ramsay
Chelsea: Torrible, Mata, Sturridge, Lampard

Snuff out and still have massive firepower with Suarez, Carroll and the Wee Iron. Like finding yourself at a bar with Natalie Portman. It will never happen. Again. But that's not too Xabi.
Latortillablanca

3-1. carroll, suarez and agger on the scoresheet, with skrtel ceding a pen to sinclair for that smidgeon of a mistake that leaves the door open for carra's return as the week in week out central defensive talisman next to aggs.
Nick

In Washington DC the Lucky Bar is showing the game. No clue what channels they have but they purchase every football package imaginable.
kenny

I don't understand why it wouldn't be live in the UK, or hard to get a viewing
alex_snow2

3pm kickoffs are never broadcast in the UK on any channel; Sky in all their Murdochian wisdom choose 3-5 games to broadcast live in every round of fixtures. This includes a (all UK time) 12.45pm kickoff on Sky 1 or 2, and a 5.30 pm kickoff on ESPN UK on Saturday, and on Sunday a 1.30 pm and a 4pm kickoff both on Sky 1, and finally sometimes a 8.00pm kickoff on Monday on Sky 1. All others are resigned to the traditional 3pm on Saturday, originally designed so as to occupy everyone between lunch and dinner I guess.
Noel

Just to clarify for anybody who's continually puzzled about 3PM games being blacked out in England, that's always been the traditional start time for matches—including lower league ones. No television coverage of 3PM starts is a regulation meant to encourage people to actually go out and watch Accrington hosting Bristol in person rather than staying home to watch Norwich and Aston Villa duke it out on TV.

Undoubtedly there'll be plenty of streams from Australia and Qatar.
Mike

Yes, hopefully one of the web relays picks up an Aussie stream, but please, spare us the Qatar: to much echo on the feed.
Ed

DOWN WITH REASON
alex_snow2

Which to be honest is for the better, both in terms of standard of football in England and the health and sociability of the supporters who watch it.
Guest

I have to believe there's a way for Sky 1&2 and ESPN UK (and consequently, FSC, FS+ and ESPN2 in the U.S.) to broadcast all ten fixtures in a given matchday, spread out across the Saturday-Monday schedule, if the networks/league really made a push for it. This could be done without screwing over the 3-5pm slot for the lower leagues:

-have 11am and 1pm (6am and 8am) matches on Saturday and Sunday. With the aforementioned networks in place you could televise as many as three games each in those slots if you really wanted to, and let the consumer decide what they want to watch.

-In addition to the 8pm Monday game, perhaps add night games to Saturday and Sunday, particularly big showcase games.

I sort of wish that this is the direction that Ian Ayre went in discussing television revenues, rather than talk about the international revenue split. I have to imagine all clubs would benefit if all the games were televised. Or I could be completely off-base...
Jack Coleman

there are now loads of pubs in liverpool that show 3pm games from Greece or Ireland or wherever channels. I assume pubs elsewhere do this as well, but will probably show the local teams
Suarez from the car park...

So all these international types are just too lame to ever want to come and attend a live game so they get to see it on tv?

Bleedin lazy poofters!
alex_snow2

This is further supplemented by VERY occasional 12pm kickoffs on either Saturday or Sunday which are always on either Sky 1 or 2
Ed

It might be, just couldn't find anything via the official website or anywhere else. Hence the begging for anyone to clue us in.