Danny Murphy has identified one Manchester City player whose influence Liverpool must curb today in order to get a result – and it isn’t one of their prolific forwards.
The firepower of the in-form Erling Haaland and Phil Foden will undoubtedly warrant plenty of attention from the Reds’ defence, but the 46-year-old believes that one of their teammates could be every bit as crucial today.
In his column for the print edition of The Daily Mail (10 March, page 95), the former LFC midfielder wrote: “All the evidence suggests when Rodri is allowed to run the game, City don’t lose. He’s unbeaten in his last 60 games for the club – a mind-blowing statistic.
“Nullifying Rodri is a hugely difficult ask and Klopp will point to the firepower in his own team to question why he should adapt for the opposition. I also think Liverpool have someone in their ranks who can do the job.
“Dominik Szoboszlai has the athleticism to try to do it and it would help Liverpool get a result. If Wataru Endo was deployed to push up onto Rodri, it would take him into an area of the pitch he doesn’t normally play, so it would be Szoboszlai for me.”
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For all the garlands understandably heaped on the likes of Haaland and Foden, Rodri is the beating heart of this Man City team.
He’s been their best player this season according to WhoScored performance metrics, winning more tackles (2.1) and averaging more passes (105.4) per game than any of his teammates, along with boasting the joint-best match average for aerial duels won (1.8) at the Etihad Stadium.
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Despite playing as a defensive midfielder, the Spaniard carries a notable threat going forward, already netting seven goals this season (Transfermarkt) and taking the fourth-most shots per game (2.1) of anyone in Pep Guardiola’s squad (WhoScored).
Stopping him at source could be crucial to Liverpool’s hopes of victory today, and as Murphy explained, Szoboszlai could be the ideal candidate to pin him back.
The Hungarian may well have a massive role to play at Anfield this afternoon, and if he can stifle Rodri’s influence, it might go a long way towards the Reds getting one over on their title rivals.