Liverpool vs. Manchester City: Lineups and prediction

Liverpool face Manchester City in the first leg of their mouthwatering Champions League quarterfinal clash on Wednesday. What lineups can we expect to see?

Liverpool vs. Manchester City is the quarterfinal neither side will have wanted. However, soccer fans were delighted with the draw, as the prospect of England’s two best attacking sides facing up is very exciting.

Both teams got through the previous round thanks mainly to handsome away wins, and both have won five of their last six league matches. It’s a mouthwatering match up. Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola both favor a 4-3-3 formation, but what lineups can we expect to see?

Liverpool will obviously go with their fabulous front three, and it’s safe to assume Loris Karius will be in goal, with Virgil van Dijk leading the defense in front of him.

Klopp may opt to partner the Dutchman with Dejan Lovren (not least as Liverpool’s record is better with him in the team), and the full-backs are likely to be Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson.

Midfield is arguably the weakest area of the Reds’ team, and their options have been lessened by Emre Can and Adam Lallana both carrying knocks. The most likely trio is therefore Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Next: Quarterfinal power rankings: Real lead the way

City have no issues with their midfield, so expect them to field Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva ahead of Fernandinho. At the back, Ederson will need to perform better than he did in the league meeting in January.

Having Vincent Kompany back will help, and he will form a decent partnership with Nicolas Otamendi. Kyle Walker has been in fine form at right-back, and Aymeric Laporte will get the nod on the other flank.

Sergio Aguero has famously never scored at Anfield, and he looks unlikely to get the chance to on Wednesday. City will probably go with a front three of Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Leroy Sane. When they’re your options, the lack of your all-time scorer doesn’t hurt too much.

You can select a combined XI on the BBC website if you’re so inclined.

But these are the teams we can expect to see starting at Anfield:

Liverpool: Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Wijanldum, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Salah, Firmino, Mané.

Manchester City: Ederson; Walker, Kompany, Otamendi, Laporte; Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Silva; Sterling, Jesus, Sané.

City have a horrendous record at Liverpool, and that has to end sooner rather than later. However, not many people would bet against the Reds on a European night at Anfield, so a home win where both teams score could well be the outcome.