Liverpool: This is the FA Cup back four we want against Everton

Liverpool take on Everton this Friday at Anfield in the 3rd round of the FA Cup. Here is the Liverpool back four we want to see against the Blues.

Away from the drama of Philippe Coutinho pushing for an imminent move to Barcelona, there is the small matter of a Merseyside derby in the FA Cup third round! The Reds will host their city rivals in the competition that is the club’s best hope for silverware this season.

In previous seasons manager Jurgen Klopp has used the competition as a good excuse to use his squad. Though this is no run-of-the-mill third round fixture. This is not Plymouth or Northampton town. It is the Ev. And we love beating those Bitter Blues.

That leads me to believe that the Liverpool side Klopp selects will not be filled with youngsters. It may not be the ‘first team’ but it won’t be far from the best available. Mohamed Salah will miss the game with injury as will *cough* Judas * cough* Coutinho.

Sadio Mane is accompanying Salah to Ghana for an award ceremony the day before so he will likely be on the bench. Alberto Moreno, Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge are not expected to be ready either.

I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Liverpool have signed a new defender. That means there are now four specialized center backs and five options for the role. We will begin to see soon who Klopp really rates as good enough.

We have selected a back four that will excite the fans, keep the team in rotation and get the result we need.

Right Back: Trent Alexander-Arnold

I think you have to consider every Liverpool player that started both games over the New Year’s weekend unlikely to start on Friday. Two games in 48 hours is a lot of for anyone, not even taking into account the busy run up until that point. That makes Joe Gomez top of the list for getting a rest in the FA Cup.

The England international has been Liverpool’s most consistent defender over the course of the season. This is despite a couple of lapses in concentration that cost the Reds against Arsenal and almost did the same against Burnley.

That means Trent Alexander-Arnold is likely to get the nod for the FA Cup derby. The young Scouser didn’t feature against Everton in the league. He must be begging Klopp to get a game. And we all know that there needs to be a local lad in a game like this.

Everton have been playing with Cuco Martina as a makeshift left back. We should take advantage of that by having our most attacking full back pair up against him. Allardyce will surely have his side set up to defend heavily. That will allow us to let our full backs to get forward and cause the Toffees problems on the wings.

Center Back: Ragnar Klavan

Liverpool fans love a cult hero. The departure of Lucas Leiva in the summer to Lazio after 10 years at the club opened a gap in the cult hero stakes. Ragnar Klavan has stepped into the fill the space, much like he does on the pitch.

The calm and consistent performances from the Estonian in November and December have really helped steady a shaky back four. Ask most Reds today and they will tell you that Klavan is ahead of Joel Matip in the pecking order. You couldn’t have predicted that at the start of the season.

That growing cult status was cemented against Burnley on New Year’s Day. The Reds looked like dropping more points from a winning position. But in the 94th Klavan got on the end of Dejan Lovren’s header to nod home a crazy winner.

That has led to a flood of Klavan memes and jokes on social media. He is being heralded as the next coming of Sami Hyypia. While that is a stretch it has certainly been a relief to see his name on the team sheet in recent weeks.

Raggy should play against Everton as he was rested for the Leicester game on Saturday. The big question is about who will partner the latest cult figure at Anfield…

Center Back: Virgil van Dijk

Big Virg. This is the first game Virgil van Dijk is eligible for since his transfer from Southampton on New Year’s Day. This week Klopp spoke about giving him time to settle and learn a few of the systems. He only joined the first team today for training. Yet, interestingly, the manager did not rule out him starting.

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Reds cannot wait to see their record signing in action. Liverpool crushed the transfer record for a defender. He has the kind of talent at that position that we have not seen before. As great as Hyypia and Jamie Carragher were, van Dijk has more physical gifts. He may also be better on the ball too.

I think the manager is as excited about seeing him as we are. He had to wait 6 months to get him to Anfield and I don’t think he will be coy about starting him.

And what a debut for van Dijk! At home in the FA Cup for a Merseyside derby. You cannot dream of better fixture to make your bow in the famous red. The atmosphere will be electric. Seeing van Dijk on the team sheet will send Anfield into a crescendo of excitement.

Come on Jurgen. Do it. Give us Big Virg dressed in Liverpool Red. Bigger than Ron Yeats and bossing the Blues.

Left Back: Andrew Robertson

There really isn’t many other options for this spot. Klopp gave Gomez a run out on the left against Burnley. Overall he did well but fell asleep for the Burnley equalizer. It seems clear that he is more comfortable on the right hand side.

The other possibility is that James Milner will return to the left back position he made his own last season. Klopp has yet to do that this season with veteran’s nous more important in the midfield areas. I think Milner will start in the center of the park on Friday.

That leaves Andrew Robertson to continue his extended run in the first team. He got a game’s  rest on New Year’s Day. That should leave him fit and ready for the crunch derby matchup.

The Scotsman started in the Premier League against Everton and put in a very solid performance. The Toffees had Wayne Rooney and Gylfi Sigurdsson trying to work down our left side. Neither have the pace to threaten Robertson.

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If van Dijk starts I think that only increases Robertson’s license to get forward. With Salah and Mane likely missing we will need an injection of pace from other areas.