Liverpool Vs Manchester City Preview

Liverpool Vs Manchester City Preview

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Both teams are attack-minded and high-scoring with exciting forward players, and both have weaknesses in defence, despite City's recent improvement at the back.

So the battle for control of the game in midfield will be vital at Anfield, particularly how each team tries to protect their back four.

For Manchester City, Fernandinho is seen as their main defensive midfielder, but there is much more to his game than that.

His energy will be vital for Manuel Pellegrini's men, not just when it comes down to winning the ball back from Liverpool, but also in turning defence into attack.

I sometimes hear people describe Fernandinho as being an anchor man in the mould of former Chelsea star Claude Makelele, because they think Yaya Toure is the City midfielder who gets forward.

But in fact Fernandinho and Toure work in tandem as a pair of box-to-box players. They have got a great partnership because they share defensive and attacking responsibilities in City's usual 4-2-3-1 formation.

It is Toure who grabs the headlines because of his rampaging runs but Fernandinho is an unsung hero for City because of the energy he brings to their team, his mobility, and the amount of work he puts in.

Defensively, Fernandinho covers a lot of ground when City do not have possession and puts the most pressure on the ball. If you add up interceptions and tackles, he has won it back more than any other City player this season.

So i pick City will win 2-0.