WITH the fixture list for the 2013/2014 Barclays Premier League having been announced this week, the excitement for the new Premier League campaign has been taken up a notch.
Often, with the release of a fresh batch of fixtures, Liverpool fans will fixate themselves on our opening opponents, this time a home tie against Stoke City, as well as subsequent fixtures against Merseyside rivals Everton and our long-term nemesis Manchester United.
Games against the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City usually get a look in too, with Boxing Day and the final match of the season also popular sights.
Right, let’s crack on with it. The first thing that caught my eye about this season’s fixture list was the chance the club have been given to make an excellent start to the season. In the first three months of the 2013/2014 Premier League campaign, Liverpool face only Manchester United from last season’s top six.
After the opening day against Stoke at Anfield, Liverpool travel to the Midlands to take on Aston Villa and then comes the big one – United at Anfield. If the Reds can negotiate three points from arguably their biggest home game of the season then Brendan Rodgers’ side could be on their way to impressing a fair few of their hardened critics.
A tricky trip to Swansea kicks off September, but with a home game to Southampton followed by a trip to last season’s relegation-threatened Sunderland, the Reds have the opportunity to pick up some early points.
October welcomes a journey up north to Newcastle to face the Magpies sandwiched in between two home matches versus recently promoted Crystal Palace and last season’s overachievers West Bromwich Albion. If, unlike the past few seasons, Liverpool hit the ground running, it could set them up for a serious assault on the top four.
However, with their being a lot of winnable games coming early in the season, as the autumn settles in, the tough ties come thick and fast. November begins with a tricky trip to the Emirates to play in a stadium that Liverpool often struggle to win at. Fulham at home comes just before the first Merseyside Derby of the season at Goodison Park, and we all know that form goes out of the window for those games. A visit to Hull to face Steve Bruce’s men concludes November, a month that could be a big test for the Reds.
Nevertheless, it is December that, in my opinion, gives us our biggest test of the season. Despite being difficult tasks in their own right, two home games against Norwich and West Ham provide us with an opportunity to start the month well, however, it is the second half of the final month that will give Liverpool fans sleepless nights, and not just because Santa will be on his way.
It all begins with an away tie against Tottenham Hotspur, which is followed up by some potential respite in the shape of a home match versus Cardiff City. Then, in the traditional Boxing Day/28th December pair of fixtures over the course of three days, Liverpool face the daunting task of a trip to the Etihad to take on Manchester City quickly succeeded by the arduous task of facing Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
[ad_pod id=”unruly-video” align=”center”]
The New Year provides Liverpool with a few opportunities to pick up points if they struggle during December. January begins with Hull City travelling to Anfield and that proceeds the ever-difficult trip to the Britannia to take on Mark Hughes’ Stoke. Aston Villa come to Anfield in the first part of a home double – the second game being the Merseyside Derby on January 28th.
February has conjured up two home games and two away games. The Reds face trips to West Brom and Fulham while entertaining Arsenal and Swansea at Anfield. February could be seen as a key month for Liverpool if they are still in with a shout of qualifying for Champions League football.
Southampton away is the Reds first fixture of March, followed by the home fixture against Sunderland. The second instalment of the most famous fixture in English football, Manchester United vs Liverpool, comes on March 15th. Cardiff away and Tottenham at home conclude the month.
April has Liverpool travelling to West Ham and Norwich while welcoming Manchester City and Chelsea to Anfield. For me, April provides the perfect opportunity for Rodgers and his team to prove their credentials if they are still in the hunt for the top four or, dare I say it, the Premier League title.
Our final two fixtures of the season sees us take on Crystal Palace down south while finishing the season with a home tie against Newcastle United.
For me, it is a season that gives us a great opportunity to start and end the season with a flourish. It will be the middle section of the season that provides the biggest threat and the Reds will have to come out fighting through the Christmas and New Year period if they are to prove their doubters wrong and start to challenge in the top tier of the Premier League once again.
What are your thoughts on our fixtures? Have those that have the power been kind to us or harsh? Have your say.
Complete fixture list:
AUGUST
17 Stoke City (H)
24 Aston Villa (A)
31 Manchester United (H)
SEPTEMBER
14 Swansea City (A)
21 Southampton (H)
28 Sunderland (A)
OCTOBER
5 Crystal Palace (H)
19 Newcastle United (A)
26 West Bromwich Albion (H)
NOVEMBER
2 Arsenal (A)
9 Fulham (H)
23 Everton (A)
30 Hull City (A)
DECEMBER
3 Norwich City (H)
7 West Ham (H)
14 Tottenham Hotspur (A)
21 Cardiff City (H)
26 Manchester City (A)
28 Chelsea (A)
JANUARY 2014
1 Hull City (H)
11 Stoke City (A)
18 Aston Villa (H)
28 Everton (H)
FEBRUARY
1 West Bromwich Albion (A)
8 Arsenal (H)
12 Fulham (A)
22 Swansea City (H)
MARCH
1 Southampton (A)
8 Sunderland (H)
15 Manchester United (A)
22 Cardiff City (A)
29 Tottenham Hotspur (H)
APRIL
5 West Ham (A)
12 Manchester City (H)
19 Norwich City (A)
26 Chelsea (H)
MAY
3 Crystal Palace (A)
11 Newcastle United (H)
[ad_pod id=’pubsquared’ align=’right’]
Live4Liverpool is recruiting columnists. For further info contact the site editor at live4liverpool@snack-media.com
Follow us on Twitter here: @live4Liverpool and ‘Like’ us on Facebook
Wow!!!!nov-dec are going to be some difficult months…5 out of 6 from last year’s top6 ,all of them away….
Nice summary Elliott. We definitely have a good start and we have to take advantage of it. The players and Rodgers can’t have any excuses really. Last season it was a very difficult beginning fixture list and with Rodgers trying to implement certain new systems we made a big hash of it. It would have been better to implement the changes a touch more progressively and after the initial big games were out of the way (the season prior, Kenny’s last we had had very good results and against top 6 teams).
Pleased with Stoke at home. Mid table team that has changed manager and Hughes is certainly not going to stick with the high ball lumping it up approach that always causes us so many problems.
Good fixtures overall. Now we need to get some good signings in and resolve the Suarez thing one way or another.
With this sort of fixture liverpool will get upto 75 to 77 point at the end of the season * Note I counted loss to the team which were above us except everton any draw or win will b valuble to add that as extra point even tough high 70 is achievable lets see wat happens
i so much tank d FA 4 giving lfc such a wel spaced fixture dat lfc fans shud b happy abt. Playin all d big teams away except man u in d 1st half of d season, is a fair fixture which wil enable BR 2plan his 2nd half of d season wel if he really want his team 2 lift d trophy or end up in top 3.
For me the epl fixture has lfc as it’s biggest winner….pray lfc fans dat br n his boys take gud advantage of it….the fixture is realy spaced
Ferguson leaves – Liverpool get great fixtures, United get horrible ones.
I thought the same. First time in years!
Its a fair fixture for us buh I want to make sumthing clear, we could have smaller teams but “no team/game comes easy”. You don’t enter a game with a plan to loose.
This season with very excellent for Liverpool.
wow i luv dat fixtures.
Ntin much to say, though it’s was nt dat a dificult fixtures, but let nt d anfield giants trow dem out, wel we wat i c, F.A just anounced dat 2013/2014 epl winners was liverpool f.c
Go away and learn English!!
with dis fixture you would think we ve won d league but in reality u can neva tell. esp with other teams fixtures. YNWA
We can be in good 4m without suarez nest season