Liverpool - beach balls need not apply..

Well, the first real nerve jangler of the year is almost here in what is the biggest game in British and probably world football.

I made my second trip of the season to Old Trafford last week for what turned out to be a fairly routine outing against Bolton, last ten minutes aside. Standing on the concourse watching the Villa match started off a great footballing weekend and getting a text just after 3pm telling me that a beach ball had just put Sunderland ahead added the icing to the cake after our rather fortuitous opener.

The train home seemed much more satisfying that evening, in stark contrast to the same trip last March when I hurried away from the ground after witnessing our 4-1 drubbing at the hands of the enemy. It seemed to take forever as I lay slumped against the window as the train snail-paced the entire way.

Will there be similar feelings tomorrow?

Well all signs point to no but what does form mean when this game comes rolling around?

The midweek game on the pinball pitch seems to have taken little toll on the squad except for Fabio cramping up far earlier than a professional should, showing his lack of match exposure of late. He won't feature tomorrow, so even that can be forgotten.

There's no doubt that we look better with VDS back in nets but we are still leaking goals (as are everyone at the moment as the Premier League average three goals a game at present) and maximum concentration will be needed tomorrow as surely even the boo boys at Anfield will get behind their ailing team and give them a much needed lift.

My team for tomorrow would be :

VDS
Neville (playing like the Neville of old at present)
Evra
Ferdinand
Vidic (given his form though, I'd not be sad at all to see Jonny Evans start)
Valencia
Giggs
Fletcher
Carrick (Ferguson hates him, fully expect Scholes to start)
Rooney/Owen (the romance of Owen playing would be fantastic but Rooney is our best player)
Berbatov


Ferguson MUST resist the temptation to go Berbatov alone up top if Rooney doesn't make it, we are toothless with him playing as a sole striker. I can see us going three across the middle with Valencia on the bench. He played the full 90 in Moscow and I feel that may indicate his being dropped for this game.

Liverpool's injury worries are well documented this week. Personally I hope Glen Johnson plays, the space he leaves could see Evra and Giggs having a field day down the left. Gerrard normally does very little against us (watch that come back to bite me in the ass) so if he starts at anything less than total fitness, I won't lose any sleep. Torres looks to have made it back and we'll need Rio to have a blinder to keep him under control as Vidic seems like a rabbit in the headlights when the Spaniard gets him in his sights.

So am I confident? Well yes, as much as I can be for this game I guess. On paper, we should win but the old clichés ring true in games like this.

I hear Eric Cantona is sitting in the Anfield Road End tomorrow, in many different seats.

Oooh ahh.

Whatever happens, there will be Strongbow. And vodka.

In celebration, hopefully.