This weekend’s key encounters highlight Nani’s quest to rid himself of the Anfield ghosts following last season’s gory cameo in the 3-1 setback. Elsewhere, Theo Walcott’s free-running will surely give Steve Bruce food for thought, while Neil Warnock will be hoping Adel Taarabt can help QPR drive a bus through the Blackburn back four.
Nani vs Jose Enrique
Two players in strong form for their respective sides will likely face off in a key head to head at Anfield. While all the talk will be of Wayne Rooney going into Saturday’s early kick-off, Nani is the man in form for Alex Ferguson’s side and he, along with City’s David Silva, has emerged as the consistent Fantasy midfield performer.
In Jose Enrique, Kenny Dalglish has a bull of a left-back fully equipped to deal with Nani’s pace and direct running – whether he will be disciplined enough to curb his own attacking instincts to do so is another matter. Nani will go all out to make an impact following the events of last season’s fixture and his battle with the Spaniard is surely set to be a highlight and a key confrontation.
Theo Walcott vs Kieran Richardson
The Arsenal flyer is a potentially tricky customer or any full-back, although consistency from Walcott is always a concern and frustration for Arsene Wenger. On Sunday however, Wenger will once again be looking to Walcott to terrorise his full-back, particularly when that player is likely to be Kieran Richardson.
Although a competent stand-in at left-back, Wenger will surely look to Walcott to get at him and undo a likely rearguard action from Steve Bruce’s team. With Nicklas Bendtner unavailable to Bruce, we’re expecting to see a 4-5-1 – despite talk of Sunderland “getting at” Arsenal from the off. That will likely mean very little space for Arsenal’s midfield, making the width offered by Walcott, Gervinho and perhaps Andrei Arshavin, all the more critical. Our money is on Walcott being a significant figure for the Gunners and a major worry for Bruce.
Adel Taarabt vs Michel Salgado
Neither of these players are certain to take the pitch on Sunday – while Taarabt is embroiled in an off-field dispute following his bus stop capers during the Craven Cottage massacre, Salgado is struggling for fitness and may miss out at Loftus Road.
If the Rovers man is fit and these two do come up in opposition on the flank, there’s every chance that this could be a worrying area for Steve Kean and his Blackburn side. Taarabt has been employed on the left by Neil Warnock in recent matches and he will surely fancy the Moroccan’s trickery to cause all kinds of problems for the ageing Rovers full-back. Salgado is known to like a challenge, while Taarabt is expert at drawing the tackle and will surely be looking to find the penalty box before doing so. Expect teasing, taunting, an early bone-shaker from Salgado, followed by a good few penalty shouts from the Rangers faithful.
