Liverpool will face a Leicester City side in deep turmoil on Monday as the Reds look to carry forward the momentum gathered in their unexpected but extremely vital win over Tottenham Hotspur. They were in danger of dropping to the 6th place but the win ensured that they let Manchester United a degree of peace in their sanctum of the 6th spot.
Meanwhile, at the King Power, the Foxes have sacked their manager in a sensational turn of events. Although the run of results warranted such an action, the fact that the Italian had won the Premier League with this team has made this even more shocking. The players will look to give a response in the next match and given the nature of the League, anything is possible in Monday’s match against the Reds.
Let us take a look at 3 key battles which might decide the course of the match.
SADIO MANE VS CHRISTIAN FUCHS
The Senegalese has been phenomenal and his display against Spurs showed his ability to destroy all kinds of defences. Despite missing a chunk of games due to AFCON, the period which saw Liverpool lose all the momentum, he is still their highest scorer with 11 goals and 5 assists and will be raring to have a go at the beleaguered Foxes.
The reigning Champions will have a tough time keeping him in check and most of the responsibility will fall on the shoulders of Fuchs at left-back. The Leicester City man has to curb his natural instincts slightly and will look to stay tight to his man and not let him run behind the defence.
RIYAD MAHREZ VS JAMES MILNER
Mahrez has disappointed hugely after last season’s exploits and the fall has been as steep as the team’s. The freefall of Leicester has had a direct connection with the dire form of players like Vardy and Mahrez and they need to force a drastic turnaround in form if the Foxes are to have any chance of salvaging the season.
Mahrez, though, retains the individual ability to turn a match on its head and Milner needs to make sure that doesn’t happen.
FIRMINO VS MORGAN
The Brazilian hasn’t been in the best of forms recently and that has been a reason for Liverpool’s mini collapse. But with Coutinho and Mane returning, he finds himself in a more secure and familiar surroundings which might see a spike in his performance graph.
Firmino’s ability to dart into spaces and exploit the relatively static and physical nature of Premier League’s defensive style has been effective in the past and he will be given a chance to showcase exactly that when he faces up to the likes of Huth and Morgan. The captain has to put in a top notch display to deal with the trickery.
