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Football - FA Premier League - Manchester United FC v Liverpool FCSize matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you?

Not everybody likes Star Wars, yet the words of Yoda are extremely applicable given Liverpool’s current situation.

The 3-0 win at Old Trafford was magnificent. Truly magnificent. It may not have been Liverpool’s best performance of the season (Everton and Arsenal can vouch for that), but it was a game against the old enemy, with the history and the context behind the fixture making it so important.

And Brendan Rodgers’ men passed it with flying colours.

It left the table looking rosier than in previous weeks, as Liverpool’s relentless winning machine continued to make rivals around them nervous. With Chelsea’s loss to Aston Villa, the Reds are now only four points behind the leaders with a game in hand and Chelsea still to visit Manchester City. Conversely, City still hold the upper hand with their extra games, yet that brings added pressure of its own.

Yet it’s not the big games that are concerning. Manchester City and Chelsea will provide the sternest of tests but Liverpool have already blown away top sides recently, with Everton, Arsenal, Southampton and now Manchester United all being put to the sword. With the 12th man known as the Kop, Liverpool will be right up for those matches and have every chance of coming through with the full six points.

There have been precious few title challenges in the Premier League era concerning Liverpool, but the most recent one in 2009 was let down by slip-ups against the so called ‘lesser’ teams. Given the vastly superior goal difference under Rafael Benitez compared to Manchester United, the four point deficit could have been made up had Liverpool not drawn at home to the likes of Fulham, Stoke City and Hull, or losing away to Middlesbrough. Yes everyone has a bad day, like the last minute loss to Tottenham, or the freakish 4-4 draw against Arsenal, where Liverpool tried to win every game and almost succeeded, but the damage had already been done.

It cannot be allowed to happen again.

There have already been lapses which may cost Liverpool when the season is done and dusted, with the home loss to Southampton and the draws to Aston Vila and West Brom calamities for a now title challenging team. Even recently against Fulham and Swansea City, the Reds struggled to pick up the points with 3-2 and 4-3 wins respectively.

Cardiff City are fighting for their lives and even with Vincent Tan they pose a grave threat to Liverpool’s title chances.

They will be at home, with the crowd fully behind them. Furthermore, Liverpool’s record away to promoted sides is abysmal, with only three wins from the last thirteen matches, which has to improve on Saturday.

Promoted sides give Liverpool a headache, not just through their inconsistent quality that always seems to turn up against Liverpool (like when the goalkeepers play a blinder, see Alex McCarthy at Reading) but through the lack of focus and concentration Liverpool sometimes have when facing these teams. It’s almost as if they expect to turn up and steamroll the opposition, like Manchester City did against Wigan in the FA Cup quarter finals. They failed to learn their lesson from the Wembley loss a year earlier and Liverpool cannot make the same mistake. Set pieces could be key, with Cardiff reasonably good at corners and free kicks with the likes of Stephen Caulker in the air.

Meanwhile Liverpool fans always hide behind the sofa whenever a long ball is lofted into the air. Vincent Kompany’s goal at the Etihad in Manchester City’s 2-1 win over the Reds springs to mind, or the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa where Christian Benteke made a mockery of Simon Mignolet and the defence to give Villa at 2-0 lead at Anfield.

Liverpool have to be vigilant and keep on playing in the same manner that has yielded 15 points out of the last 15 and an unbeaten 2014. The team should remain the same, with Joe Allen in for Coutinho in away matches, unless Rodgers has another formation trick up his sleeve.

Just make sure they focus Brendan. Liverpool’s title chances rest on it.

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4 comments

  • Hero says:

    Just allow Cardiff to dominate with the possession, and we attack them from the counter. Smaller teams may hand over possession to us but at the end of 90mins it a win for them. Let the reverse be the case tomorrow

  • stevie Yanna says:

    No problem, we will shred Cardiff into pieces. I expect a massive 5 nil win for LFC.

  • David Tyrer (Editor) says:

    I think that, after the first 45 today, we learned the need for focus. No matter what the opposition it is paramount that the team stays focused for the remaining 8 games – potentially the most important 8 games in the last 25 years of the club’s history.

  • ojukotimi says:

    there are
    things wrong but it just works. That is the thing with this
    Liverpool squad, they are baffling yet brilliant and Skrtel
    is a case in point. It could yet result in the title.

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