On The BallLiverpool have no time to lick their wounds in a race against Coronavirus to win Premier League
- Jurgen Klopp’s men are desperate to wrap up the league title inside the next two games
- Covid-19 threatens to hamper their progress towards a coveted 19th English title
The run-up to Monday night’s match between Everton and Liverpool at Goodison Park could be the strangest in the 126-year history of the Merseyside derby. This is a period of wild uncertainty in England’s top flight.
Everton want to get at their rivals while the hangover of poor results clouds thinking at Anfield. The fans in the Gwladys Street End despise their neighbours and know the dreaded moment when Liverpool will end their 30-year title drought is imminent. Evertonians would love to make life uncomfortable for the champions-in-waiting. The atmosphere at Goodison is one of the biggest factors in Everton’s favour and games played behind closed doors would deprive Carlo Ancelotti’s team of their ferocious backers.
Klopp’s side have stuttered recently. Liverpool’s best XI are superb but the drop-off beyond the first team is steep. The injury to Alisson Becker, the goalkeeper, has a huge impact on the defence. Adrian, his replacement, does not command the same confidence. Ancelotti will instruct his players to shoot from distance and loft balls into the box to disconcert the reserve goalkeeper. The Spaniard – perhaps unfairly – carried most the blame for Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat by Atletico Madrid and subsequent exit from the Champions League this week.
Ancelotti will have enjoyed Atletico’s performance for another reason. The La Liga side disrupted Liverpool’s rhythm and tactics by deploying a 4-4-2 formation, the Everton manager’s favoured system. Virgil van Dijk is at his least imperious when confronted with two strikers. As good as he is, the Dutchman cannot do the job of two men and his centre-back partners have suffered from a dip in form and injuries. The base of Liverpool’s spine has been one of the team’s biggest strengths. This is a rare chance for Ancelotti to attack this area while it is in a weakened state.
Liverpool’s imperious progression in the league in the first seven months of the season could never be sustained. The pace and relentlessness of the top flight means that it is almost impossible for players to maintain elevated levels of performance for the entire campaign. Trent Alexander-Arnold has lost a little of his edge, injuries have rendered Fabinho a little sluggish and Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane have not been quite as sharp.