Video Preview: Manchester City v Liverpool

Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli could return for their Barclays Premier League clash against Liverpool.

The Italian was not risked in the New Year's Day defeat at Sunderland due to a slight ankle problem suffered in training.

With no fresh injury concerns, manager Roberto Mancini has a full-strength squad - aside from the absent Carlos Tevez - and will consider changes for the second of two games in just over two days.

Liverpool frustrated then unbeaten City as they held them to a 1-1 draw at Anfield in November.

Since then Liverpool have had some disappointing results of their own but they impressed in a 3-1 defeat of Newcastle last Friday.

Striker Luis Suarez is expected to return to Liverpool's squad after suspension.

The Uruguay international served a one-match ban for Friday's win over Newcastle but is likely to be back in the starting line-up for the clash against the Barclays Premier League leaders.

Captain Steven Gerrard, a goalscorer against Newcastle, has made two substitute appearances totalling 52 minutes after two months out with an ankle infection and could be in contention to start.

Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish insists super-rich City's super-talented squad hold no fears for his side.

The air of invincibility which has enveloped the Premier League leaders for most of the season has evaporated over the festive period.

City have taken just one point from two matches, during which time they have failed to score against West Brom and Sunderland, who inflicted only their second defeat of the campaign at the Stadium of Light yesterday.

They were second best in their encounter at Anfield in late November but escaped with a 1-1 draw and Dalglish draws confidence from all those factors.

Video credits to EOTK.

Source: ESPN

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Rumour Mill: Liverpool in the market for new striker

Liverpool may be ready to bid for Aston Villa striker Darren Bent, who has become unsettled in Birmingham "following a summer of change and a succession of niggly injuries".

Bent joined Villa from Sunderland for £24 million in the 2011 January transfer window, but he has recently expressed frustration at the lack of service he is receiving at the club.

He has also incurred the wrath of fans by missing Villa’s 2-0 home defeat by Liverpool - opting to go Christmas shopping instead.

Liverpool have also been put on alert following reports that contract talks between Theo Walcott and Arsenal have broken down.

Walcott is one of several players at Arsenal who will have just one year left on their existing deals at the end of the season, and if a new deal is not agreed before the summer, manager Arsene Wenger could be forced to sell rather than risk losing him on a free transfer the following year.

Walcott said in October that he was willing to listen to the Gunners about a new contract following reports linking him with a move away from Emirates Stadium, however his agent later admitted that he did not know if the forward would still be at the club next season.

Who should Liverpool FC buy in January to strengthen the forward line?

This story has been reproduced from the media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club or Red's Fury™ blog.

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Liverpool FC were told to leave Luis Suarez “walk alone”

Liverpool have been urged to abandon any thoughts of appealing against the eight-match ban and £40,000 fine that Luis Suarez received for racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra, with a leading anti-racism campaigner warning the club that their vehement support of the Uruguayan is damaging their reputation.

The 115-page written verdict, which was released by the Independent Regulatory Panel on behalf of the Football Association on New Year’s Eve, presented Suarez's evidence as “unreliable” and “inconsistent” and painted a sorry picture of the manner in which the Merseyside club handled proceedings.

The Professional Footballers’ Association and anti-racism groups have supported the judgment and called on Liverpool to preserve their reputation and accept the verdict.

This was despite their legal team admitting flaws in their own evidence and failing to offer a satisfactory response when quizzed on the contradictions within the club’s and player’s testimony.

Piara Powar, the executive director of Football Against Racism in Europe, says Liverpool risk damaging their reputation unless they accept the findings.

   “Luis Suarez and Liverpool FC have the right to appeal, however we would call on the club to think again about their public campaign to dispute the charges and contest the principles involved in the case.

“As a club with a good international standing the vehemence of their campaign is unquestionably causing them reputational harm.

“Racial abuse between players on the field of play has been an unspoken taboo for too long, an area that has been unsatisfactorily dealt with by English football despite many cases over the past 10 years.”

Kenny Dalglish, Dirk Kuyt, Damien Comolli and Luis Suarez's legal representative Peter McCormick were all criticised in Football Association report.

Kenny Dalglish
The commission labelled elements of what the Liverpool manager told Marriner in his room immediately after the final whistle “surprising”, as it contradicted various elements of Suarez's own testimony. In his evidence, Phil Dowd, the fourth official at Anfield that day, said Dalglish had remarked “hasn’t he done this before?” in relation to Evra’s allegations, although this was not remarked upon in the report.

Dirk Kuyt
The Liverpool striker claimed that Evra had told Marriner he was being booked because he was black, an allegation rejected out of hand by the commission, who said the claim made “no sense”. The inconsistencies in his account of his conversation with Suárez after the game over what had been said weakened the Uruguayan’s case, according to the commission.

Damien Comolli
Another witness whose account of what Suarez had said to Evra “surprised” the commission. They drew attention to “discrepancies” in what Comolli reported to the referee about what Suarez had claimed to say to Evra in the immediate aftermath of the game and the striker’s evidence. They pointed out these discrepancies had “not been satisfactorily explained”.

Peter McCormick
Suarez's legal representative was highly criticised. His suggestion that Evra made up his claim that Suarez said “I don’t speak with blacks” to gain revenge on the Uruguayan for failing to explain why he had fouled him earlier in the game was deemed “unrealistic”. He also said that Suarez's claim that pinching Evra’s arm was an attempt to “defuse” the situation was due to “bad drafting” of the striker’s statement, a point that was also rejected out of hand by the commission.

Full report from the FA here: Luis Suarez case

This story has been reproduced from the media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club or Red's Fury™ blog.

Source: Telegraph

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Match Report: Liverpool 3-1 Newcastle United

By guest writer: Jamie McLaughlin

With the games coming thick and fast at this busy time of the year Liverpool were next to face a Newcastle side at Anfield who have had a great start to the season, but have started to struggle a bit in recent times. Liverpool went into the match trying to sort out their home form having drawn far too many for Dalglish’s liken. An added interest in this fixture is former Newcastle favourites’ Enrique and Andy Carroll facing their old team.

THE TEAM

Kenny made two changes to the side that drew with Blackburn on Boxing Day, with Bellamy and Spearing coming in for Maxi and the suspended Suarez. So all eyes were on Andy Carroll in the absence of Luis Suarez to find his goal scoring form against his old team. The defence was unchanged leaving Carragher once again on the bench with Adam and Spearing in the middle of midfield and Bellamy on the left and Downing playing once again on the right. Gerrard started on the bench as he looks to get his match fit.

THE MATCH

Liverpool started on the offensive and Adam miscued an early chance in the first couple of minutes. Then Agger made a surging run from defence only to drag his shot five yards wide. Liverpool kept up the pressure and Downing had the next chance with a near post drive but Krul was equal to it.

But Liverpool was stunned in the 25^th minute when Taylor sent in a dangerous cross which was flicked on by Cabaye only to be diverted past Reina via Agger’s arm. It was a real shock to the home side who had been on the attack for most of the half.

But Liverpool responded quickly and drew level just 4 minutes later when Bellamy fired in a low drive after good work from Adam. The home side continued to press and Martin Skrtel almost made it two but he headed just wide from a corner.

The second half started with Liverpool struggling to get possession as Newcastle found their passing game. There was a feeling inside Anfield that this could be another one of these games that would end up in a draw. Dalglish brought on Gerrard with half an hour to go and he lifted the whole stadium. Suddenly Gerrard was orchestrating Liverpool. Gerrard sent over a superb cross from the right but Carroll just failed to connect and then Gerrard found Carroll inside the box with a superb pass but the big striker’s control let him down when clean through.

Then in the 67^th minute Liverpool were awarded a free-kick 25 yards out, Bellamy’s shot flew past Krul thanks to Carroll making a nuisance of himself in front of Krul, confusing Simpson and Krul. There was relief all around Anfield. But Newcastle almost equalized when Ba got behind the Liverpool defence, but his clipped effort was brilliantly cleared off the goal line by Skrtel who ended up in the net.

Next Gerrard whipped in a dangerous cross which Carroll headed off the crossbar, but Liverpool got their deserved third goal when a good move ended up with Gerrard bursting into the left side of the penalty area before slotting the ball underneath Krul from a tight angle sending the crowd wild in celebration. Liverpool saw out the rest of the match comfortably giving them a much needed home win.

SUMMARY

Great to see Bellamy come back into the side with Carroll up front in the absence of Suarez. I was very worried when we fell behind to a freakish goal as we were struggling to create many chances. Bellamy was superb and took his goals superbly. Jay Spearing was superb and lucky to have both legs intact after being on the end of a horrific tackle. But I felt this is the fewest chances we have created in a match and yet we scored three goals which is very pleasing. But the turning point was the introduction of Gerrard who produced so many quality crosses and passes and what a goal. Great credit to Skrtel who produced an amazing clearance off the line. Great to see us get a much needed win at home.

Man Of The Match – Bellamy – scored 2 goals and was dangerous all night, great energy and pace shown.

Written by Jamie McLaughlin, who writes for Anfield News

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Video Highlights: Liverpool 3-1 Newcastle

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Video: Liverpool v Newcastle preview

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Liverpool striker suspended from Newcastle match

Liverpool’s Luis Suarez has been suspended for one match and fined £20,000 by the Football Association, after admitting a charge of improper conduct for his behaviour towards Fulham fans on December 5.

The Uruguayan striker, already facing an eight‑game ban subject to Liverpool appealing against the verdict of the FA’s tribunal on the Patrice Evra racial abuse case, has also been warned over his future conduct.

Liverpool, who picked up an additional FA fine of £20,000 for failing to control their players in the same Craven Cottage match in which Jay Spearing was dismissed, have decided to accept both punishments and will not be contesting either decision. The club admitted the charge of failing to ensure their players behaved in an orderly fashion but initially contested the financial penalty until an independent regulatory commission ruled it was applicable.

Suárez admitted the charge against him, as did the Liverpool manager, Kenny Dalglish, once photographic evidence was made available, and sources within the club say the intention now is to move on from this relatively minor matter and await the FA commission's detailed report into the Evra incident. Liverpool will almost certainly launch an appeal against the eight‑match suspension once the commission's findings have been made public. The FA are in the process of making a detailed report available, and once Liverpool have been made aware of the exact case against their player and reasons for finding him guilty they have a further fortnight to make up their minds about an appeal.

Suárez, Liverpool's leading scorer this season, has been in England almost a year and has never served a suspension in this country, though just before leaving Holland for Merseyside he was given a seven-match ban for biting an opponent while playing for Ajax. At Fulham he was apparently upset by sections of the home crowd accusing him of cheating by going to ground too easily. Dalglish has never attempted to defend his gesture, though he did use a DVD of the same game to support his view that Liverpool players were not getting a fair crack of the whip from referees.

This story has been reproduced from the media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club or Red's Fury™ blog.

Source: Guardian

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Match Report: Liverpool 1-1 Blackburn Rovers

By guest writer: Jamie McLaughlin

With Liverpool drawing at Wigan through the week in a match the felt they should have won, it was back to Anfield for two home games in a week. A home banker on most peoples coupons with Blackburn in so much trouble at the wrong end of the table and decimated with injuries for this match not helping their cause. Liverpool looking to improve their home form with five draws at Anfield this season.

THE TEAM

Kenny made one change to the side that drew with Wigan with Andy Carroll replacing Dirk Kuyt. Great news for the home support was the name of Gerrard included as a substitute. Maxi once again started on the left for Liverpool with Downing on the right and Adam and Henderson in the middle with the formidable defence remaining unchanged with Carragher once again having to play patience.

THE MATCH

Not surprisingly Liverpool started the match attacking and Suarez went close with a free-kick in only the second minute before Adam brought out a save from Bunn. But apart from a few set-pieces it was a rather low key start to the match.

In the 19^th minute Suarez fired a shot into the side netting from an acute angle before curling an effort wide from inside the box as Liverpool struggled to break down the Blackburn defence. The best chance of the first half came from an Enrique cross which fell to Carroll inside the six yard box but his prodded effort was superbly saved by Bunn.

Enrique and Downing were making good runs down either flank but the strikers were not getting on enough of their crosses. Carroll had the ball in the net in the half hour mark but it was ruled out for offside, then Maxi was brought down by Bunn and Liverpool thought they had won a penalty but the referee’s assistant once again saved Blackburn.

Then right on the stroke of half-time Liverpool were stunned when Charlie Adam diverted a Pedersen corner kick past Reina at the near post.

Liverpool came out for the second half looking sharper and moving the ball around quicker as they set about getting back into the match. After some sustained pressure they deservedly drew level when Maxi headed past Bunn from close range from a Skrtel lofted cross.

The home support was aroused from their slumber with the goal and roared their side on for more goals. Suarez and Carroll went close with aerial efforts as the pressure mounted on the visitors. Then Dalglish brought on Gerrard for Adam with 20 minutes remaining to try and inspire his troops and his first touch almost created a goal when his free-kick was headed by Maxi.

Then Suarez wasted a header off target from a Johnson cross. Blackburn almost stole it when Dunn danced into the Liverpool box but he lost his footing at the vital moment. The chances kept coming and going for Liverpool as they remained frustrated and in the final seconds Carroll prodded an effort from close range but Bunn made an unbelievable save and then from the resulting corner Skrtel’s header was cleared off the line as time ran out.

SUMMARY

Once again I was left frustrated with the amount of missed chances. I was pleased to see Carroll starting and was hoping he would score but things are not going his way. He was very unlucky not to score. But we started off a bit lethargic in the first half as we never created enough chances, but the second half was far better and we should have won the match. Adam made a very poor mistake for the Blackburn goal and his passing was a bit off today. I thought Maxi, Downing, Enrique and Johnson made great efforts to get down the flanks, just not enough support in the box to meet their crosses. Surely we are due to hammer somebody soon but at least we are still in the running for a top four place so hopefully our form will pick up soon. Great to see Gerrard back and he looked pretty sharp to me, oozes class.

Man Of The Match- Enrique – it had to be one of the wide players and Enrique just edges it for me another superb performance.

Written by Jamie McLaughlin, who writes for Anfield News

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