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Livchesterpool United
Published by Ian John on October 6, 2009
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Have you ever wondered just who would get into a combined Liverpool / Manchester United team?
Oh we all have an opinion over which squad is the better (United), which team is the better (United), which individual is the better (Rooney, Gerrard or Torres depending on your point of view) but lets say for one moment that the world of football was shaken up and these two great adversaries were forced to pool their talents to take on the might of Barcarealona Madrid.
For purposes of ease alone, I have listed the Liverpool players first with their Manchester United counterparts afterwards and I have gone for a 4-1-2-3 formation for reasons you will see!
Goalkeeper : Pepe Reina V Edwin Van Der Sar or Ben Foster.
Verdict? : Reina just edges out Van Der Sar on age considerations alone. But it is a very close call.
Right Back : Glen Johnson V Wes Brown, Gary Neville, Rafael Silva, John O’Shea
Verdict? : A relatively easy victory for Johnson, but Rafael would be one to watch closely in future years.
Left Back : Fabio Aurielo, Andrea Dossena, Emiliano Insua v Patrice Evra, Fabio Silva
Verdict? : A stroll in the park for Patrice Evra, though both Insua and Fabio show great promise.
Centre Back 1 : Jamie Carragher v Rio Ferdinand
Verdict : Close, Carragher’s not been in the best form, but neither has Rio but the United man just has the edge.
Centre Back 2 : Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel v Nemanja Vidic.
Verdict : Hands down victory for Vidic, even with Skrtel’s improved form. The United man is a class apart.
Holding Midfielder : Jay Spearing, Javier Mascherano v Michael Carrick, Owen Hargreaves,
Verdict : Mascherano may have his critics but he just edges out Carrick for this important spot in the team.
Central Midfielder 1: Alberto Aquilani, Lucas Leiva v Darren Fletcher, Darron Gibson, Paul Scholes
Verdict : Fletcher is the most improved player in the Premier League the past two years. He fully deserves a place in the team.
Central Midfielder 2: Ryan Babel, Yossi Benayoun, Albert Riera V Ryan Giggs, Park Ji Sung, Anderson
Riera flatters to deceive, as does Babel, Park works tirelessly but even given his advancing years, Giggs gets my vote just ahead of the industrious Benayoun.
Attacker 1 : Steven Gerrard v Daniel Welbeck, Nani
The reason this formation is picked becomes clear, it allows Steven Gerrard into the team in this role…
Attacker 2 : Dirk Kuyt v Wayne Rooney
…And Wayne Rooney into the team in this role, two players who cannot be left out.
Main Striker : Fernando Torres v Dimitar Berbatov, Michael Owen
Berbatov is good and Owen has had his moments, but at the moment few can doubt Torres as the best of the trio.
This gives us a team of :
1. Reina
2. Johnson
3. Evra
4. Ferdinand
5. Vidic
6. Mascherano
7. Fletcher
8. Gerrard
9. Torres
10. Rooney
11. Giggs
Bring on Real Barcemadridlona is what I say!
What team would you pick from the two giants?
Image Courtesy of ***Raymichaelhan*** on Flickr.com
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Nabyl Charania on Wed, 7th Oct 2009 9:42 pm
Great article, I’m sure the puritan Liverpool and ManU fans are seething at the mere thought of combining their two teams, but it makes for great discussion