A look ahead to this weekend

Another weekend of top-flight footy awaits us with Liverpool, and all fans for that matter keen to

Brendan Rodgers: Thumbs up for Sunday

 witness the ups an down of another round of games in week 33 of the Barclays Premier League. Vital points will be won and lost as the season moves toward the most exciting finale we've seen in recent times. 

No longer is there a double-digit points lead at the top and everyone else playing for the scraps. Despite Jose Mourinho's public concession of his side's assault on the title, I'm sure privately, he still feels Chelsea have a chance. They must have. It's not over until the fat lady sings and I don't think she's even turned up yet! The Blues will be hosting Stoke in the late kick off tomorrow and one would expect them to be making amends. However, this could be another proverbial banana skin for them in addition to the one they encountered last weekend at Crystal Palace that landed them spectacularly on their wealthy behinds. 

The expression is that there are no easy games and I'll have this in mind for the biggest fixture of the weekend, in my opinion - albeit that I'm absolutely totally biased. Brendan Rodgers and his vibrant Liverpool team travel down to the cauldron that is Upton Park on Sunday hoping to extend their lead at the top against West Ham. The way things have panned out over the last few games, there isn't really much point in speculating as to who will be in the side. Unfortunately Rodgers doesn't have a massive squad to choose from. Those that have been called upon however, have been top class. Seeing as the Hammers are a very physical side as expected from Sam Alladyce, whoever the Gaffer picks will have to be up to the challenge of what will surely be a bruising encounter. And dare I say it, not the most attractive to watch either. I suspect there may be one or two neck aches in the crowd among the travelling support looking up at the long balls being launched into the box for Anfield old boy Andy Carroll. 

Manchester City will host Southampton at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow which will be a tricky one for them too. Southampton will be trying to bridge the gap between them and Manchester United in 7th so potentially another hazard there for Manuel Pellegrini. Despite winning the Capital One Cup this season, I believe Pellegrini will be under the most pressure of all the current title contenders. Should he fail to win the Premiership this season, the powers that be at the Etihad may well feel the need to wield the axe. Notwithstanding the fact that this City side is probably the most effective and clinical we've seen in a long long time. 35 wins from a possible 48 - a 73% success rate in old money - is as good a return as any so it'll be a bold move if he gets shown the door come the end of the season. 

Elsewhere, Crystal Palace travel to Cardiff where a win may all but seal their survival and Cardiff's doom. That said, West Bromwich Albion's visit to Norwich City could also have dire consequences for the loser depending on the outcome of the Palace match. Fulham, for me and anybody else with more than one brain cell, are dead and buried now. They can only play the part of spoilers between now and the end of the season. 

So we have an exciting weekend of footy ahead of us. I'm hoping that Liverpool can continue their current form at Upton Park. What's vital for Rodgers' men apart from winning of course, is to keep a clean sheet. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that this title race may come down to goal difference and if so, it's imperative that the Reds can prevent the opposition from scoring for the fourth game in their last six. Apart from breeding confidence into a defence that has been a tad erratic at times, it will send a clear signal to the chasing pack that they're going to have to be at their very best to get anything from us. 

I have to mention a special good luck to the Liverpool Under 18s side who play away at Leicester City's Aylestone training ground tomorrow afternoon. Unfortunately the lads aren't in a position to win the U-18 league this season but lie in a creditable third position with 41 points (as much as it burns me to say it, behind Everton and Man City) and a further three matches to go. 

Finally, no predictions for me, simply a suggestion that the Reds will return victorious from East London tomorrow, albeit by a slim margin. One thing it won't be is an expansive game as 'Big Sam' will keep the game as tight as duck's bottom and probably as rough as old boots too. 

Follow me on Twitter: @Mrbengreen

Arsenal v Liverpool - Match preview

Today at 4pm the FA Cup Fifth Round brings Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool to the Emirates Stadium to take on an Arsenal side still reeling from their 5-1 pasting at the hands of the visitors a week earlier. Since that result befell Arsene Wenger's team, the ramifications have been quite startling.

The Gooners went on to draw against what has become, a rather average Manchester United side, and then, Wenger found himself embroiled in yet another war of words with his Chelsea counterpart Jose Mourinho who labelled him a "specialist in failure" following another round of mind games initiated by the Alsacian's statement that Chelsea had "...the Premiership title to lose...". Arsenal and indeed Wenger himself will also find it hard to put to one side, the thought that after tomorrow's visit by Liverpool, they travel to Bavaria on Wednesday for their Champions League first leg knockout phase match against Bayern Munich who incidentally, currently lay a healthy 13 points clear atop the German Bundesliga. 

I can't help but feel that all of this plays into Liverpool's hands. One can't deny that Arsenal are in a turbulent period right now. Could this be the start of another infamous implosion brought about by the pressure of looking down at the rest of the Premiership? I don't believe there is as much pressure on Rodgers' charges as there is on Wenger's right now. I wouldn't even consider Liverpool to be favorites for today's match. I'm surprised that someone of Wenger's experience has managed to get himself and his team into this current predicament. Perhaps he's had a chat with an old friend of his, one Sir Alex Ferguson? Rodgers has done well to distance himself from the whole mind games fiasco and this will be of benefit to his team. The less distractions the better, and Wenger has a fair few right now. Mostly of his own making. 

For Liverpool to win, they need to take a different approach to last week. Wenger will be looking to "put things right with Liverpool" as he stated Friday and I think this leaves them only one option, and that's to attack and press the Reds as hard as they can from the off. Liverpool have shown against Everton that they are more than capable of playing a lethal counter attacking game and should be able to cope. That is, if Daniel Agger starts in place of Kolo Touré who's had a woeful time of late. 

The return of Agger to the heart of the defence will bring the much-needed stability and organization that's been missing during his absence. This is a certainty. In the seven games since Agger's injury, Liverpool have shipped nine goals and failed to keep a clean sheet since the 2-0 win against Bournmouth. This compares to conceding six in the last seven games where Agger was involved and the team kept three clean sheets. Bare in mind that four of those goals were against Manchester City and Chelsea, and you can see the difference he makes to the side. This is no coincidence and I don't think Rodgers needs to be reminded of this either. Perhaps he does need reminding that he should concentrate on bolstering the defense during the next transfer window. 

Other than that, I don't see any other changes to the Liverpool side. This game will be as much a mental test for both sides as it will be a physical one. Particularly for Arsenal. Their heads dropped massively against Liverpool last week and they appeared short on confidence against Man Utd during the week. If Liverpool can keep them in check for the first 20 minutes of each half, I don't see Arsenal having the mental resilience to wear the visitors down and, should they succeed to fail - to use a Mourinhoism - then one could even argue that they lost today's game already a week ago. 

We'll know everything by 6pm tonight. Will Brendan's men get rodgered, or will the Gooners be goners? I don't expect a high scoring game but then... Stranger things have happened. 

Follow me on Twitter: @Mrbengreen