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Optimism has be the word for Liverpool fans and Brendan Rodgers' team going in to this match. Confidence is high and the team is playing with the freedom that this brings. Add to that the fact that Liverpool have not scored less than three goals against the bottom sides this season - 14 in total to be precise with only three against - and it would take a brave man to bet against Liverpool tonight. The players deserved the plaudits that came their way over the weekend after a result that few would have predicted. Few other than a friend and fellow Reds supporter who bagged a good few quid with a punt on... Liverpool to win 5-1!
The ease and efficiency with which the team dispatched with their visitors on Saturday left many a gasp but not everyone. When asked during the post-match interview if the plan was to score as many, and as early, as possible, Brendan Rodgers replied "Well we've been doing that all season, really..." and you have to say, he's correct. Against Manchester City and Chelsea however, that came back to haunt them, suffering 2-1 reversals on both occasions. Those two teams remain for me, the contenders for the title, and the only teams who can pose any threat to Liverpool. I wouldn't have counted Arsenal before the weekend and I certainly won't count them now. Despite that I think they'll give Manchester United a beating tonight as a result of Saturday.
Having said that, there are no easy games in the Premier League and Liverpool have been found wanting against the likes of West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa and Swansea City. The only upside there is that they were all drawn and points gained nonetheless. Games they'd probably have lost in recent years. However, the performances against Hull City where the Reds were well and truly done over 3-1 and the feeble 1-0 loss to Southampton are the kinds of matches that simply cement my view that Liverpool are not quite there yet. There is a pattern there. three of the five results I've mentioned were away from home, and this is my only concern going into tonight's match at Craven Cottage.
In terms of the starting eleven, I don't see any change from Saturday's team. Jose Enrique and Lucas Leiva are still not back in training and whilst Daniel Agger is, I suspect tonight's match may be a tad too soon for him. Mamadou Sakho shall remain out for the next month or so. The Liverpool Bench is looking very thin and quite unconvincing at this point and I'm not sure the squad can stand many, if any more, injuries for the time being. The bench on Saturday's consisted of just one defender and this fuels my opinion that Rodgers must strengthen the back line in the next window.
On the balance of things, I think Liverpool should come away with the three points tonight, and with a margin of a couple of goals, despite the apparent inconsistency on their travels. As a tactic, I'm sure the team will attack the Fulham left because at 33, I don't believe John Arne Riise is going to be able to do much with Raheem Sterling. I don't think even Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore can help the cottagers tonight. The Tube strike is off, and the match is on. My message for the players, as Francis Underwood would say "...Don't disappoint me!"
Follow me on Twitter: @Mrbengreen
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