23 November 2023 , 10:48
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Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher believes his old employers will struggle against Manchester City on Saturday due to their defensive and midfield woes.
Liverpool sit just one point adrift of City as they prepare to travel to the Etihad Stadium. The hosts are without some senior stars themselves, while they'll be hoping Erling Haaland has recovered from the injury he picked up on international duty,
Last season's meeting ended with the eventual Treble winners claiming a 4-1 victory without Haaland, while this time Liverpool's absentees could play a part. That's certainly how Carragher sees it, with the ex-England international also worried about the problems City's new man Jeremy Doku can cause his former club.
"It will be tough - the best Liverpool will get is a draw," Carragher said on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet. "Liverpool’s record there is poor. Liverpool have the best goalkeeper in the world and they’ll definitely need him.
"Liverpool’s defensive record has been really good this season and Virgil Van Dijk has been not too far away from his best. But there are still chinks in the armour with [Andy] Robertson out, Trent [Alexander-Arnold] in that midfield going back to fullback, and I’m thinking of Doku coming up against him.
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"Also, Liverpool defensively in midfield still haven’t really got that top class number six, so it will be difficult. The best they’ll get is a draw.”
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Manchester City beat Liverpool 4-1 in April (AFP via Getty Images)Carragher's fellow pundit Ian Wright disagreed, though. He backed the visitors to claim all three points - a result that would lift them top of the table, at least until Arsenal's trip to Brentford later on Saturday.
"I’m going to go with Liverpool," former Arsenal and England striker Wright said. "Liverpool, defensively, should have conceded more goals by now but the keeper is amazing and their midfield with Salah are on amazing form – this will be a good one for Liverpool.”
Summer signing Doku could prove key to the outcome, regardless of whether team-mate Haaland is involved from the start. The Belgian delivered two assists during the international break as his national team beat Azerbaijan, and is expected to give Alexander-Arnold a run for his money as the Liverpool man reverts to full-back after stepping into midfield for England.
Liverpool's poor record away to City also remains an issue for Jurgen Klopp and his squad. Klopp claimed a 4-1 victory on his first trip to the Etihad Stadium in 2015, but has not repeated the trick since Pep Guardiola took over as City boss.