SOCCER/English FA Cup: Fifth round/Liverpool v Manchester Utd: Having reached the previous two FA Cup finals, Manchester United are eager to make it three on the trot, especially as, unlike Liverpool, they have no Champions League campaign to sustain them through the remainder of the season.
Ryan Giggs could be handed a spot in central midfield and goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar should return after being troubled by a groin injury, but it is up front that should see this tie decided.
Once again Alex Ferguson will rely on a combination of Ruud van Nistelrooy, Louis Saha and Wayne Rooney to supply the attacking thrust and its is this potency that could tip the balance in United's favour despite all the adverse publicity surrounding Gary Neville's wild celebrations.
However, both sides are likely to show once again that each has what the other lacks. No matter how grim the conflict might prove, the strengths of these line-ups are complementary. It is a thought that has made Old Trafford minds throb, in one particular case, for a few years.
As Roy Keane aged and had to settle into a more narrowly defined role it became apparent that Steven Gerrard would be the ideal replacement. The Englishman, with all that zest and running power, could have been what the Corkman was in his early 20s. Such a deal, of course, was as unthinkable for Liverpool as it was seductive for United and no futile bid was made that would have further envenomed an already poisonous scene. Now, when there is a general desire to see a worthwhile challenger to Chelsea, there is a more widespread interest in the deficiencies yet to be corrected at Anfield and Old Trafford.
When the sides faced one another last month, United won 1-0 with Rio Ferdinand's last-minute goal, yet it was the visitors who had the better pattern in their play.
Ferguson must covet not just Gerrard but also Xabi Alonso and even, for all his rawness, Mohamed Sissoko in a season when he has been obliged to lever the forward Alan Smith into his midfield.
Despite the £7 million purchase of Nemanja Vidic, a space could also be cleared in the United back four for a defender as intrepid as Jamie Carragher. Such a move would presumably never be countenanced by the player or by his club but Liverpool do need to restructure their own squad.
Rafa Benitez' problems look more intractable than Ferguson's as he contemplates the last few tweaks that are essential to establish a well-rounded team. Whatever else is wrong at United, where much remains to perturb the Glazers, the manager can field van Nistelrooy and Rooney in attack.
There are not even the remotest of equivalents at Anfield. In the Premiership, United have so far scored 20 goals more than Liverpool. The reaction from Benitez so far has merely been to shed strikers. Anthony le Tallec, Neil Mellor and, despite a game-turning display against Luton in the FA Cup third round, Florent Sinama-Pongolle have all gone out on loan to, respectively, Wigan, Sunderland and Blackburn.
Considering that Liverpool have the second best defensive record in the Premiership this season, it appears perverse that Benitez has been confining his spending to centre halves of late, with Daniel Agger already at the club after a £6 million transfer from Brondby and Boca Juniors's Gabriel Paletta due to arrive in the summer now that a £2 million fee has been agreed.
Apart from showing a regard for the club's long-term interests, however, the manager is doing deals in areas where it is relatively easy to transact business. It is a far more tortuous process to identify the right forward and buy him. The evidence of that is still on the premises. Despite the £14 million that Gerard Houllier paid, Djibril Cisse squandered some chances that ought to have secured at least a draw in that 1-0 defeat to United and looks more poised now on those occasions when he is told to stick to the flanks.
Benitez' scheming over forwards has also had an anticlimactic effect. After selling Michael Owen to Real Madrid in return for £8 million and Antonio Nunez, the manager handed back some £6 million to the Bernabeu for Fernando Morientes in January 2005.
The latter, a striker of high repute, has disappointed in his efforts to complete that treacherous passage between football cultures. After the needlessly close 1-0 win over Arsenal on Tuesday, Benitez was again reduced to complementing Morientes on his work ethic, although the attacker had wasted at least two glaring opportunities. Robbie Fowler is at the club once more but that can only be a short-term manoeuvre and, despite the flashes of skill, it is yet to be shown that he can recover enough of his old prowess. The manager requires no one to point out the shortcomings, but he would rejoice if anybody could tell him the secret of signing attacking talent at affordable prices.
Just when Benitez thought he had agreed terms for the kind of figure he needs on the right, Benfica hiked up their valuation of Simao Sabrosa last summer. If it can be so exhausting to haggle over a winger, think how tortuous it must be to negotiate for a high-scoring striker. Liverpool had one until quite recently but having parted with Owen they did not wish to spend twice as much to be reunited.
Despite that, many on Merseyside believe it is inevitable that a deal will be done sooner or later to repatriate him from Newcastle. Benitez would have to swallow an entire humble pie in agreeing to a higher price than he received from Real, but Owen would surely nourish a team starved of goals.
Guardian Service
