Two teams coping very differently with English football's high-intensity
mid-season fixture programme meet on Wednesday when Premier League
leaders Arsenal resume their pursuit of the title at injury-ravaged
Liverpool.
While Arsenal could afford to make five changes as they breezed past
Sunderland in the FA Cup on Saturday, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp's
decision to field a youthful starting XI at fourth-tier Exeter City on
Friday almost backfired as his side scraped a 2-2 draw.
First-team regulars like Mesut Ozil, Aaron Ramsey and Per Mertesacker
will come back into the Arsenal team at Anfield and right-back Hector
Bellerin believes such strength in depth bodes well for the months
ahead.
"The legs are fine and we have shown that we have very good players on
the bench also and the rotation helps us get good results," said the
Spaniard, who set up goals for Ramsey and Olivier Giroud in the 3-1
success against Sunderland.
"We have a lot of games and they are all hard games, but we have to
respond in the way we did (against Sunderland) and I'm sure we will be
fine.
"The team was up to the challenge. We didn't rush the games and we knew
we had to be patient. It is nice to get the three goals and that is
confidence for the team as we had a difficult week ahead."
Klopp can only envy the riches at Arsenal counterpart Arsene Wenger's
disposal as he contemplates an injury list that currently features 11
senior players.
Seven of those – including playmaker Philippe Coutinho, striker Daniel
Sturridge and centre-backs Dejan Lovren and Martin Skrtel – have
hamstring problems, but Klopp has dismissed suggestions that his
hard-running playing style is to blame.
Assessing the situation after the draw at Exeter, he said: "The main
problems we have is because our centre-halves are injured in this
moment.
"We had five centre-halves at the beginning of the season and at this
moment no centre-halves. That's the situation, but next week it could be
different."
Leicester City, two points behind Arsenal in second place, return to
White Hart Lane to face Tottenham Hotspur, just three days after a 2-2
draw between the teams there in the FA Cup.
Leicester were a minute from victory when Harry Kane equalised from the
penalty spot for Spurs, but having made seven changes to his line-up,
Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri was satisfied with the outcome.
MANCHESTER UNITED TOIL
"I was very pleased with our performance because eight players without
play – some play sometimes, in the League Cup – and now they play in the
FA Cup, and I think they deserve a positive result," he said.
"Two-two is a positive result. Well done!"
Spurs start the week in fourth place, but Manchester United can draw
level on points with Mauricio Pochettino's men if they win at struggling
Newcastle United in Tuesday's stand-out fixture.
United required a stoppage-time Wayne Rooney penalty to see off
third-division Sheffield United in the FA Cup on Saturday, but
midfielder Marouane Fellaini believes there was no shame in being made
to toil by well-drilled opposition.
"It was difficult against a team like that who come to defend," the Belgium international told MUTV.
"We tried to create chances and we kept the ball well. We had patience
and, in the end, we won and we are now ready for the next game."
United's cross-town rivals Manchester City had a far more
straightforward third-round assignment, easing to a 3-0 win at Norwich
City.
Seeking to bridge the three-point gap between themselves and Arsenal,
Manuel Pellegrini's side resume hostilities with Everton, who beat them
2-1 last week in the first leg of their League Cup semifinal.
"It's very important to be focused game by game. We've played in the FA
Cup and now we must return to the Premier League," said Pellegrini.
"We have to play two games at home and it's very important that we try to reduce the gap that we have with Arsenal."
Guus Hiddink's improving Chelsea, 2-0 victors against Scunthorpe United
on Sunday, host West Bromwich Albion, seeking to record consecutive
league wins for the first time this season.
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