Venue: Anfield
Date: 05/05/13
Kick-Off: 13:30
SPIRITS will be high at Anfield ahead of the 220th Merseyside derby after Liverpool managed their biggest win of the season last weekend against Newcastle.
But the Reds will need to be at the top of their game to beat an Everton side who have lost just once in their last eight league matches.
With three Premier League games remaining, Everton are five points above Liverpool, and a win on Sunday would ensure that the Toffees finish above their fiercest rivals for the second successive season.
However in his pre-match press conference, Reds manager Brendan Rodgers insisted that his focus is not on where Everton are in the league, but on ensuring that Liverpool finish as high as they possibly can.
After putting six past Newcastle at St James’ Park last weekend, Rodgers is likely to name an unchanged side for Sunday’s game. This means that Daniel Sturridge, who scored twice against the Magpies, will once again lead the line for Liverpool, while Fabio Borini, who also scored in that game after coming on as a substitute, will remain on the bench as he is still short of match fitness after spending more than two months out with a dislocated shoulder.
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Jamie Carragher is set to play in his 30th and final Merseyside derby before retiring at the end of the season, while outgoing Everton captain Phil Neville will miss the game with a knee injury.
It could also be the final Merseyside derby for Everton manager David Moyes, whose contract is up at the end of the season. In his 11 years as manager of the Blues, Moyes has never beaten Liverpool at Anfield, winning just four of his 24 meetings with the Reds and losing 13 times. Brendan Rodgers will be hoping to win his first Merseyside derby after the sides drew 2-2 at Goodison Park back in October.
If Rodgers and Liverpool are able to collect three points on Sunday, it will greatly enhance the club’s prospects of a sixth-place finish. If the Reds can perform as well as they did against Newcastle, the Anfield faithful have every reason to be confident of a victory.[ad_pod id=’pubsquared’ align=’right’]
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