Burnley desperate to get back to winning ways and move out of the drop zone before the New Year face a resurgent-looking Liverpool at Turf Moor on Boxing Day.
The Pre-amble:
The Clarets face a tough Christmas period with Liverpool next at home on Boxing Day followed by two tricky away games against Manchester City in the Etihad on Sunday and then Newcastle at St James Park on New Year`s Day. The narrow 2-1 defeat against Spurs at White Hart Lane last Saturday and QPR`s comeback from 2-0 down to beat West Brom 3-2 thanks to a Charlie Austin hat-trick ensured Burnley once again were back in the drop zone, third from bottom with 15 points from 17 games. It would be nice to beat Liverpool and go to the Etihad with the pressure slightly off but it certainly won`t be easy against Brendan Rodgers` men. Burnley though will have been encouraged by their performance against Spurs last Saturday when they could so easily have equalised in the second-half. With Liverpool`s inconsistent form who knows what the outcome will be on Friday!
Liverpool have certainly come under a lot of criticism for their performances in general this season and Brendan Rodgers has been under a certain amount of pressure to improve their position. By their standards being 10th in the league with 22 points from 17 games is not considered good enough. The Reds though will have been buoyed up by their comeback at home to Arsenal last Sunday after picking up a valuable point in a 2-2 draw. The equalising goal by Skrtel with Liverpool down to ten men came in the seventh minute of stoppage time and it will have raised spirits in a match where Liverpool dominated play and had 64% of the possession. In their eight top flight games on the road this season though they have lost five of them including a 3-1 defeat at struggling Crystal Palace although they have also won three against Tottenham (0-3) and fellow strugglers, QPR (2-3) and Leicester (1-3). There is all to play for and the scene is set for a cracking atmospheric festive game.
Burnley Team News:
Sam Vokes looks close to a return following a long-term cruciate ligament injury and there is some suggestion he could be back in the eighteen against Liverpool this Boxing Day. Vokes has played a number of development games recently and in the last three matches has played the full 90 minutes. The Welsh international took his tally to five goals in five games for the development squad after bagging a brace in a 5-1 win against Blackpool at Turf Moor recently and Sean Dyche said this week:
“He`s going along really well and we made sure the game was at the Turf to get that nice surface with the weather and make sure it`s a real game with a real game feel, which yet again is him progressing back up to the first team,
“We were trying to recreate what it is by getting him back in the stadium.
“He`s well on the road to recovery and doing a good job.”
Stephen Ward fractured his ankle in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle at the start of the month and has since undergone surgery. He is set to be out of contention for a few weeks yet Matty Taylor has also been under the knife to fix a niggling Achilles problem and he also is still thought to be some weeks away from full fitness although the former West Ham winger is now running again.
Michael Duff looks the closest to a return. The 36 year old centre back picked up a calf injury in the Stoke game but has returned to training. He has however been sidelined for the last five games and even if fit enough to play on Boxing Day could struggle to displace in-form on loan centre back, Michael Keane who has been impressive of late
Player to watch: Michael Keane
The on-loan Manchester United centre back who is reportedly seeking a loan extension in the New Year has impressed of late looking assured and confident in partnership with the experienced captain, Jason Shackell. He has been allowed to shine after replacing the injured Michael Duff and has now notched up five consecutive starts. The England U21 international’s performance could be crucial again this time hopefully thwarting Liverpool`s attack as well.
Liverpool Team News:
Brendan Rodgers certainly faces a few headaches up front with suspensions and injuries wreaking havoc.
There is no doubt that Liverpool have struggled in attack since losing Luis Suárez to Barcelona in July this year and the situation was not improved following the injury to Daniel Sturridge. The striker is currently in Boston where he is undergoing a rehabilitation programme on a thigh problem sustained back in November. He looks set for a return to action in the New Year but will certainly miss the Burnley clash on Boxing Day. Liverpool have struggled to score from recognised strikers this season with midfielders, Raheem Sterling and captain Steven Gerrard currently sharing the spoils as joint top goal scorers this season with five goals each.
Liverpool will also be without forward Fabio Borini who is suspended after picking up a one-match ban in the game at home to Arsenal last Sunday for a second-yellow.
They do however welcome back Mario Balotelli who returns from suspension and looks set to take a place on the bench. Balotelli has not played since the 8th November having been injured as well as picking up a one-match suspension. He received a one-game ban against Arsenal for a controversial Instagram post. Balotelli though has hardly set the world alight since his £16m summer move from AC Milan last August. He has failed to score in ten top flight appearances and has made just one appearance since picking up a thigh injury.
In midfield Joe Allen remains sidelined with a knee injury. The Burnley clash has also come too soon for defenders Dejan Lovren and Glen Johnson (both groin) and Jon Flanagan (knee).
Player to watch: Raheem Sterling
20 year old England international, Raheem Sterling has been playing a pivotal role in attack in recent times for Liverpool despite being more of a winger and attacking midfielder. He might be the joint leading goal-scorer with five goals so far this season but he is still without a Premier League goal since September. There were enough encouraging signs against Arsenal last Sunday though to suggest he remains a very big threat. The Clarets will certainly need to be on their guard and snuff out that threat. Sterling was signed by Liverpool from the Academy at Queens Park Rangers in February 2010 by Rafael Benítez for an initial fee of £600,000. That figure though could rise to £5 million depending on how many appearances he makes for the first team.
Team & Tactics:
The big question mark is whether Sam Vokes will make an appearance. It could be a dilemma for Dyche considering the current form of Ashley Barnes. It would be cruel to drop Barnes now particularly after that stunning goal he scored at Spurs last Saturday. I think Vokes on the bench looks the most likely outcome and I wouldn`t be surprised at all if he comes on to partner Danny Ings at some point.
There is no need to change the starting eleven in my opinion whether some of the injured players have recovered in time to play or not. I therefore think we will line-up something like this:
Heaton, Trippier, Keane, Shackell, Mee, Arfield, Marney, Jones, Boyd, Ings, Barnes
Subs from: Gilks, Long, Lafferty, Reid, Chalobah, Kightly, Wallace, Jutkiewicz, Vokes, Sordell
Ref Watch:
Anthony Taylor gets this one! His last game involving the Clarets was the 0-0 home draw against Sunderland in September this year. The Cheshire referee dished out just three yellow cards in that match. So far this season he has featured 15 times and remarkably just one player has been given his marching orders whilst another 64 have picked up yellow cards.
Match Prediction:
None of these games are getting any easier but there were enough signs in the Spurs game last Saturday to suggest we are up for a fight. Liverpool`s form of late has been indifferent and their position in the table is certainly currently below expectations. There were signs though in their last game against Arsenal that their form could worryingly be on the up after coming from 2-1 down to get a late equaliser with only ten men last Sunday at Anfield. This is another one of those ‘heart` versus ‘brain` predictions. We could so easily lose this but I certainly think we are good enough for a point at the moment. A point though is probably not enough with two tricky games coming up away to Manchester City and Newcastle and a win has to be our goal. Oh blow it, heart wins 2-1 to Clarets!
Next Match:
They don`t get any easier with Burnley having to face Manchester City in the Etihad two days after the Liverpool Boxing Day game. The Clarets play the current second-placed club on Sunday 28th December (3pm Kick-Off)
