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MOTD preview: Liverpool vs Manchester City – a potential title decider

By on April 11, 2014

This Sunday sees a clash between two of the Premier League title hopefuls as Liverpool host Manchester City at Anfield.

On what will be a poignant day, with all fixtures this weekend kicking off seven minutes late to mark the 25th anniversary of the Hillsbrough disaster, Liverpool could pay tribute to the 96 by putting themselves in pole position to win the league.  The Reds haven’t won the league title for 24 years and haven’t won a single Premier League trophy, although they did come in second as recently as 2009.

But this season, with no European football to focus on, manager Brendan Rodgers has masterminded an incredible assault on the top tier of English football, and they will go into the game top of the table with Chelsea playing later in the day.

Meanwhile in Manchester, Manuel Pellegrini has already led City to a Capital One Cup triumph, as well as being the first manager to oversee their qualification for the knockout stages of the Champions League.  Yet the real test of success is still the Premier League and City remain favorites – just four points behind Liverpool with two games in hand.

And a win at Anfield for either side would give them the edge in the title run in.

The majority of people would tell you that Chelsea are still in the title race, but The Blues manager Jose Mourinho has seemingly conceded defeat saying that his side “won’t win” the league.

And with the Londoners proceeding to the semifinals of the Champions League, there is a clear distraction for Mourinho and his men, who still have to travel to Anfield but are only two points behind Liverpool.

The game between Liverpool and City will be decided by goals, that is almost a given, being the two highest scoring teams in the league so far this season, while the home side possess the league’s top scorer Luis Suarez.

Captain Steven Gerrard will be determined to get the result for Liverpool on the weekend of the Hillsbrough anniversary, especially as it may be his last shot at winning the title as captain.

But the opposition have a very strong squad with four different players scoring against Southampton in their last game. Yaya Toure, Samir Nasri, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic all got on the scoresheet last weekend in a squad that also includes Sergio Agüero, Alvaro Negredo, Jesus Navas and David Silva.

And after winning the title in 2012, City will want to reclaim the crown from Manchester United this season to ensure Pellegrini’s first year has been a success.  Defeat wouldn’t completely rule City out, but it would underline Liverpool’s credentials and the Citizens would surely have to win all of their remaining games on top of hoping for the Reds to drop points.

However, defeat for Liverpool could leave them in a precarious position – especially if Chelsea win later in the day. In that scenario, Liverpool would be second – a point behind the Londoners – and a point ahead of City but with two more games under their belt.

A draw would still leave City as favorites, but Liverpool would still be in a confident mood ahead of their game against Chelsea next week.

Realistically, this could be a title decider. If Liverpool recreate the sort of performances we have seen from them all season, they have what it takes to take the game to City and come away with the points.  Yet if we see a poor display from the Reds you would have to expect City to capitalize.

However, Anfield will be rocking and the famous atmosphere will be on display. This is an important and emotional weekend for the city, and it could be a memorable one for the club in a more positive sense.

Becoming the sixth team to win the Premiership would be a remarkable achievement, both for the club and Brendan Rodgers, and it’s an achievement that could well be realized in May.

About Darren Ash

Darren Ash Raised in South East London, the 18-year-old Media student is passionate about all things football. A season ticket holder at local team Millwall, he loves nothing more than the highs and lows of the beautiful game. Having followed the sport for as early as he can remember, Darren's goal is to become a professional football journalist. Follow him on Twitter @AshDarren