A Transition Test

A Transition Test
Match Preview Article: Liverpool v Arsenal (English Premier League)
Written by Oliver Gui, Edited by Wong Yang

Tonight's game will prove to be a thriller because both sides are far from the finished product. Both Arsenal and Liverpool will be looking to notch their first win of the season this Sunday when they face one another at Anfield.

Arsenal will be looking to improve offensively after two goalless draws against Sunderland and Stoke. They seem to lack a reliable striker up front with Premier League experience after the sale of Robin Van Persie to Manchester United. New signings Lukas Poldoski and Olivier Giroud are still adapting to the vigours of the Premier League  and while there is no doubt in the amount of talent the duo possess, a period of time needed for them to settle in is still necessary.

However, their other midfield signing, Santiago Carzorla has seem to made a seamless transition from the La Liga to the Premier League as he impressed for the Gunners in his first two matches for them. Santi Carzorla will be the one to provide inspiration for the Gunners as Arsenal tries to notch their first league win of the season.

Despite doing badly in the offensive department, they have kept two clean sheets in their first two matches of the season and their defence will be hard to break down by a Liverpool side with only two recognized strikers. Vito Mannone could continue to play in goal with Wojciech Szczesny and Lukas Fabianski both still struggling for match fitness. Carl Jenkinson  will play as right-back for Arsenal with Bacary Sagna still out injured while Laurent Koscielny  faces a late fitness test.

Liverpool’s first two matches have ended in a 3-0 loss to West Brom and a 2-2 draw with reigning league champions Manchester City. They impressed in the 2-2 draw with Manchester City where they should have won if not for some crucial defensive errors by the Liverpool back four. Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers’s passing philosophy that he looked to impose on the Liverpool squad he inherited from Kenny Dalglish looks to have paid off, especially with pass master Joe Allen and midfield maestro Steven Gerrard directing play for Liverpool in the middle of the park. Overall, the whole team seems to be adapting well to Brendan Rodgers’ style but the back four needs to improve their passing accuracy as it was a Martin Skrtel back pass to Pepe Reina that allowed Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez to intercept and score the equalising goal for Manchester City.

Nuri Sahin is set to make his Liverpool debut in the heart of midfield after Brazilian midfielder Lucas was ruled out for up to three months after getting injuredin the opening stages of the 2-2 draw with Manchester City. Daniel Agger is likely to return from suspension to replace Sebastian Coates in defence but youngster Raheem Sterling is likely to earn another start as he impressed for Liverpool against Manchester City in his previous Premier League match. Liverpool have only two recognized strikers in the form of Luis Suarez and Fabio Borini. While Luis Suarez will look to trouble the Arsenal defence with his brilliant dribbling skills and trickery, both of them aren’t exactly the most lethal strikers in the Premier League and will find it a harder to score against an Arsenal side who kept two clean sheets out of a possible two this season. I am neither a Liverpool fan nor an Arsenal fan, so you don’t have to worry about bias. My predicted score line: Liverpool 2-1 Arsenal.

Arsenal/Liverpool trivia (goal.com):

• Liverpool have won just one of their last 10 Premier League games against Arsenal.
• New signing Joe Allen (pictured, right) has an 85 per cent passing accuracy in the attacking half of the pitch, alongside a 100% passing accuracy in the defensive half.
• Liverpool have picked up just 19 points from 21 Premier League games during 2012.
• Only Arsenal (19%) have a worse shooting accuracy than Liverpool in the Premier League this season (24%).
• There have been seven 90th minute or later goals scored in the last seven Premier League games between Liverpool and Arsenal, and five in the last four.
• Liverpool v Arsenal at Anfield has seen the joint-most own goals of any fixture in Premier League history with four.
• Arsenal have allowed the joint-fewest shots on target against them this season.

Predicted lineups:
Liverpool: Pepe Reina, Martin Kelly, Glen Johnson, Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel, Nuri Sahin, Joe Allen, Steven Gerrard, Fabio Borini, Luis Suarez, Raheem Sterling
Arsenal: Vito Mannone, Carl Jenkinson, Per Mertesacker, Thomas Vermaelen, Kieran Gibbs, Mikel Arteta, Abou Diaby, Theo Walcott, Santiago Cazorla, Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud