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Premier League: Liverpool can trouble Arsenal at Anfield again with pressure and pace, says Phil Thompson

Former Reds defender expects Raheem Sterling to cause problems for Gunners

Raheem Sterling scores the opening goal
Image: Raheem Sterling scores the opening goal against Bournemouth

Phil Thompson believes Liverpool must play a high-pressured and fast-paced game on Super Sunday if they want to cause the Arsenal defence the same problems they did last season.

The Gunners were blown away in the opening 20 minutes on their last visit to Anfield as Liverpool scored four times without reply. Brendan Rodgers’ side went on to win the match 5-1, but have struggled to repeat such scintillating displays this season.

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Liverpool's last Premier League outing at Anfield saw them held to a goalless draw by Sunderland, but Thompson was impressed with their 3-1 Capital One Cup win at Bournemouth in midweek and says they have the potential to trouble Arsenal on Sunday.

“One of the big things about the victory last year was the high pressure,” the former Reds defender told Sky Sports News HQ. “Arsenal like to pass it around from the back and into the midfield at a nice leisurely pace and then they get quicker in the offensive third.

“Liverpool must try to do the same thing as last year and win the ball high up against the guys in midfield. If they win that there then they can play from that area.

“If they have the pace up front and the creativity of (Adam) Lallana and (Philippe) Coutinho I think they can trouble Arsenal. Don’t forget the Arsenal defence has been as poor as Liverpool’s so there are options for both teams offensively.”

Rodgers has opted for a change of tactics up front in the last week, playing a 3-4-3 false nine formation with Raheem Sterling leading the attack.

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The formation paid dividends against Bournemouth as Sterling scored twice in the win, and Thompson hopes the Reds stick with the same tactics against Arsenal.

One of the great things about the cup win was the amount of passes, it was more like last season.
Phil Thompson

“One of the great things about the cup win was the amount of passes, it was more like last season and Liverpool haven’t played like that since the Spurs game,” he said. “Having Raheem Sterling up front they have a different solution.

"If you have Rickie (Lambert) or Mario (Balotelli) up there then sometimes there is the option to play it long into their chest or head, but with Raheem down the middle they can actually try to build up a lot more.

“You can’t be hitting 30-yard balls into the air to Raheem, Coutinho or Lallana, it makes everybody more aware of their responsibilities to pass through the relevant departments.”

Thompson also believes the pace of Sterling could cause the Arsenal defence problems.

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The build up to Raheem Sterling's first goal against Bournemouth in the Capital One Cup featured an astonishing 52 passes!

“When someone has blistering pace you back off as a defender and it’s a worry,” he said. “I think Brendan might have fallen upon a solution of how best to play with this team at the moment.

"I’m not saying Rickie or Mario are out of the picture completely, but right now this looks a good option. Sterling against Mertesacker should be some scene.

“The good victory in midweek will give the players a lot of confidence. It was nice playing the game in midweek because after the defeat against Manchester United everybody was quite down.

"They played quite well but still got beaten 3-0 against their arch rivals so to have the victory against Bournemouth will do the Liverpool players a power of good going into the game.”

Watch Liverpool v Arsenal live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 3.30pm on Sunday.

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