Dan Rimmer's Reds Blog

Post #6 - Barclays Premier League Preview - Liverpool v Swansea City

We all hope that it will be back to business in the Barclays Premier League and back to winning ways as they look to bounce back from an FA Cup exit at the Emirates on Sunday. With only 12 games to go in this magnificent season, many may start to believe that their Champions League dream is on the horizon. All will be focused on this Sunday's run of fixtures that see Garry Monk's Swansea City visit Anfield and Spurs' visit to Carrow Road to play Norwich City. 

The Reds are three points clear of Spurs in 4th place, and a win may seem a difficult result to pull off against a side that will have a lot of confidence after a pleasing performance in their UEFA Europa League Round of 32 first leg draw against Rafa Benitez' Napoli. Liverpool fans will also have payed attention to the selection of Europa League matches, with their transfer target Yevhen Konoplyanka netting from the penalty spot against Tottenham for FC Dnipro on Thursday night. The goal also caught the attention of members of the media, who then put the question of whether the Ukranian International would be signing for the Reds in the summer, to Brendan Rodgers in Friday's Press Conference at Melwood. The Northern Irishman suggested that 'A spot amongst Europe's elite would increase player attraction' and the position that his side are currently in is "what we(Liverpool) have been building towards over the last 18 months". At this stage, myself and many other fans have to agree with and like what the Liverpool manager is saying in his press conferences about his ambitions. Football would be "a very boring exercise" were the words of England and former Reds manager Roy Hodgson when he told the press that he is dreaming of World Cup success in the Summer upon his visit to Brazil and to a very warm Manaus. This quote can certainly be

applied to Liverpool's situation as they look to return to the Champions League after a four-year absence. However it is important that we all don't get ahead of ourselves with still a dozen matches left to play and our two biggest rivals still somehow within reach. It would only take a bad run of results for our season to derail, but a Liverpool victory would still mean going one step closer to where we want to be and that is what we all have to focus on. 

The home side have a strong squad, despite the promising youngster in Jordan Ibe joining Championship outfit Birmingham City on loan for the remainder of the season.

The youngster's temporary move to the Midlands can only be a good thing with Brendan Rodgers trying to get his future stars to gain some match experience. We also shouldn't be surprised if Joao Carlos Teixeira makes an appearance on the bench, as the Under-21 starlet's fine performance in the latter stages of the Reds' victory against Fulham caught the eyes of many. The squad will ultimately be made stronger by the return of defender Glen Johnson, who was confirmed to be ready for selection by Rodgers in the Press Conference. The future also looks promising for Lucas and Mamadou Sakho, who could be back sooner than expected, but are still on the sidelines. It seems like years since we've seen Jose Enrique in a Liverpool shirt, and we may be faced with his absence for the rest of the season, as the boss also confirmed he is "nowhere near playing" as he continues his recovery by visiting a Knee specialist in America.



Will Liverpool beat the South Wales side with former midfielder Jonjo Shelvey back from injury and go that one step closer to their target? Find out on Sunday lunchtime when the Reds line up against Swansea ready for their 1.30pm kick off.