Liverpool has a hectic fixture in January, and it got worse when the Reds failed to beat Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup third round, which ended in a goalless draw. Now, Liverpool has to play Plymouth in the FA Cup replay on Wednesday.
There is no point looking back for Liverpool, but rather focus on the replay- a match they have to win at all costs to reach the next round.
Liverpool played with a young team against Plymouth in the last match, and the line up is likely to remain the same. Jurgen Klopp will play with few experienced players including Alberto Moreno, Lucas Leiva and Divock Origi. Philippe Coutinho, who is biding his time after he picked up an injury, looks poised to get his first start of the year. Meanwhile, talks are doing rounds suggesting 19-year-old Harry Wilson might get a chance to play following his consistent performance for Liverpool U-23 side.
However, it's the youngsters including Ben Woodburn, Sheyi Ojo and Alexander-Arnold, who will see the match as an opportunity to impress Klopp. Though this is a must win game for Liverpool, some sceptics think Klopp does not take the FA Cup seriously. The German manager spoke about how he considers FA Cup a part of his plans.
"I love this cup. I love playing in cup competitions. Everything is fine. If people want to think this, I cannot change it. If anybody thinks I don't respect the cup, I cannot change," Daily Mirror quoted Klopp as saying.
"If anybody thinks out there that I don't respect the cup you cannot imagine how little I'm interested in this opinion, even if it is a supporter or not. I am responsible for this team and we have to play a lot of tournaments. If I think a player is ready for the next game he plays, if I think he is not ready he will not play."
Liverpool's attacking line could use some creativity, if they were to score goals against Plymouth. The home team, with the ground support to boot, will not make it easy for Liverpool.
Meanwhile, Plymouth cannot afford to focus their energies on defense alone, as the match is a decider. Liverpool are going to have more possession, but Plymouth might be eager to turn that into their advantage with quick counter-attacks.
Plymouth showed a lot of character and grit in their first game, especially at the back, and manager Derek Adams does not see any reason why he will change his approach on Wednesday.
"We have to defend very well again. I think that we've shown in the first game that we can do that, and we'll have to do exactly the same," BBC quoted Adams as saying.
"I can't see that we're going to be too cavalier on our approach. We've got to show respect to the Premier League team. They're third in the top flight and we've got to be careful of that."
When to Watch Live
Plymouth vs Liverpool FA CUP third round match is set for a 1.15 am IST (7:45 pm IST, 11:45 am ET) start.
Live Streaming and TV information:
India: TV: Sony ESPN HD. Live Streaming: Sonyliv.
UK: TV: BT Sport 2. Live Streaming: Watch BT Sport.
USA: TV: Fox Sports 1. Live Streaming: FoxSoccer2Go.
Middle East: TV: Bein Sports Arabia. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Connect.
Thailand: TV: Bugaboo Tv.
Singapore: TV: Eleven Singapore.
