Opinion – The World Is a Ball: Manchester City or Liverpool, who has the best team?

Who doesn’t like to see Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City (at the club since 2016), current English champions and European vice-president, play?

And who doesn’t like to see Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool (at the club since 2015), English champions in the previous season and European champions in 2019?

City love to control ball possession, in the style of their coach, who had successfully implemented this tactic at Barcelona (the famous tiki-taka) and Bayern Munich, and to strike at the right time, when the rival opens a defense gap.

The Belgian De Bruyne, the percussionist that Tite would certainly like to be Brazilian, personifies this control of the game of the ensemble that wears light blue.

The team in the red uniform, nicknamed the Reds, is sharper. Speed ​​is with Liverpool, owner of one of the fastest counterattacks today.

Salah and Mané are sprinters and are very skilful, especially the Egyptian, and the signing of the Colombian Luis Díaz (ex-Porto), another who runs wildly and incessantly, has amplified the range of quality offensive options.

Well, better than seeing City and Liverpool matches in isolation is seeing them duel, preferably in decisive matches. And the month of April will provide two such confrontations.

The first, on the 10th (Sunday), could be the lead of the English.

The championship, until very recently, seemed in the hands of Guardiola’s team, but a defeat (Tottenham) and two draws (Southampton and Crystal Palace) allowed Liverpool, who accumulate nine consecutive victories, to stick.

The difference is a measly point, and before the match, which will be in Manchester, City visit Burnley and Liverpool welcome Watford, opponents that are not scary. There are nine rounds to go.

The second match will be on the 16th (Saturday), on neutral ground (Wembley), and is a knockout.

The winner advances to the FA Cup final, which Liverpool are keen on, as they haven’t lifted that trophy since 2006. City’s most recent title was in 2019.

With the rivalry growing, and about to be appreciated twice in practice, an interesting question to be answered is: do you have a favorite? Quickly, the answer is: no.

But it is possible, in a comparison exercise, without taking into account the collective of the teams (they are equivalent, it is excellent on both sides), to compare player with player, position by position, and define who is superior, even if, perhaps , by a small margin.

That’s what I’ll do next, with the Liverpool player on the left and the City player on the right. In parentheses, the nationality and age of each.

Goalkeeper – Alisson (Brazil, 27) x Ederson (Brazil, 28)

The first is the holder of the Brazilian team, and the second, his immediate reserve. Although Ederson plays better with his feet, Alisson offers a little more security between the posts, and this is the essential item for a goalkeeper. Alisson takes advantage.

Right-back – Alexander-Arnold (England, 26) vs Walker (England, 31)

Alexander-Arnold is, in my opinion, the best position in the world. He’s not a superscorer, but his support is fantastic. He crosses very well, makes tables, triangulations, gets along very well with Salah and is still an excellent taker of free kicks and corners. Walker is average next to him, and not in good form, so much so that Guardiola has sometimes improvised the Stones quarterback there. Alexander-Arnoldeasy.

Central defender – Matip (Cameroon, 30) x Rubén Dias (Portugal, 24)

Rubén Dias, who when at Benfica was a midfielder to good, in addition to taking many cards, became a reference in Manchester City’s defense. He positions himself very well, he makes few mistakes, he is an absolute starter, at the club and in the national team. The now 30-year-old Matip has been suffering from physical problems for some time, and Klopp has been taking turns with Konaté, reinforcement for the season. Rubén Diaseasy.

Quarter-back – Van Dijk (Netherlands, 30) vs Laporte (Spain, 27)

If Alexander-Arnold is at the top on the right side, among defenders Van Dijk is considered unanimous. Tall, strong, excellent header (very dangerous in corners), he makes very few fouls and I don’t remember when he made a mistake, no matter how small. It’s top among the tops. Left-handed Laporte, born in France and with Spanish citizenship, is also very good, including in offensive plays, but in comparison with the Dutch, he is harmed. Van Dijk.

Left winger – Robertson (Scotland, 28) x João Cancelo (Portugal, 27)

I wish my team had one, any one of them, in the position. Southpaw Robertson is great at both marking and supporting; the right-handed Cancelo, ditto. Robertson crosses very well; Cancel, ditto. Roberton is relentless, back and forth throughout the game; Cancel, ditto. The difference in favor of the Portuguese, who has progressed a lot compared to the time he played for Juventus, is that he still plays on the right side, if necessary – that’s even his original position. Because of this versatility, cancel wins by a minimal margin.

​Midfielder – Fabinho (Brazil, 28) x Rodri (Spain, 25)

Another match duel. A former right-back, Fabinho is very good at containment, as is Rodri, a kind of younger Busquets (Barcelona). Both also make their offensive incursions, with Fabinho scoring four goals so far in the Premier League, and Rodri, three. Rodri has a better passing percentage (91% against 87%), and this aspect (a bad pass in defense can define a match) is what makes me choose rodri.

Midfielder/midfielder – Henderson (England, 31) vs Gundogan (Germany, 31)

The two, when on the field, are the captains of their teams (Gundogan because Fernandinho has played very little), that is, they have an important leadership role. Henderson personifies that leader. He talks a lot with his teammates, encourages, demands. German is much more restrained. In terms of playing style, the Liverpool athlete is more of a scorer; City’s appears much more in the rival area and has already scored five goals in the English, against two for the English. Because of this difference, I choose Gundogan.

Midfielder – Keita (Guinea, 27) x De Bruyne (Belgium, 30)

In this case, the comparison is very uneven, since the characteristics are quite different. Keita, in Klopp’s scheme, is a third midfielder. Marcador, like Fabinho and Henderson (or Thiago Alcántara), carries the piano to give full-backs Alexandrer-Arnold and Robertson freedom to advance. De Bruyne is a maestro, the midfielder anyone wants on the team, the best in the job right now. He has vision of the game, his shots and crosses are quality (he often gives assists), he misses very few passes, he finishes very well with both feet (and from outside the area!), He is competent in the dead ball. Anyway, it makes the game flow. de Bruynewith leftovers.

Forward – Salah (Egypt, 29) x Mahrez (Algeria, 31)

Confrontation of two lefties who play for the right wing. If the opponent were anyone other than Salah, Mahrez, for his excellent football (he has technique, objectivity, dribbles very well in one-on-one, has good finishing), would possibly win. The point is that the Egyptian is today, along with Lewandowski (Bayern Munich), the best player in the world. Better than Messi, better than Cristiano Ronaldo, better than Mbappé. It’s always exciting to watch him play. In addition, Mahrez is not always a starter, as he disputes position with the Portuguese Bernardo Silva (also left-handed). Salah.

Forward – Jota (Portugal, 25) x Foden (England, 21)

The two have been playing improvised strikers, despite originally being a second striker (Jota) and an attacking midfielder (Foden). And they both do it very well. It’s impressive how Foden, still very young, has Guardiola’s confidence to play there, so much so that Gabriel Jesus is in the reserve, and playing there doesn’t mean staying there (in the “center forward”), but being there when necessary to finish. Jota, when in playing conditions (he gets injured with some frequency), has been Klopp’s preference in the competition with Luis Díaz and Roberto Firmino. fuck takes by a small margin.

Forward – Mané (Senegal, 29) vs Sterling (England, 27)

If Mané is unanimous there at Liverpool, the left side of the attack has given Guardiola some headache at City. The starter would be Grealish, signed from Aston Villa for the fable of £100 million (R$652.5 million at the current exchange rate), only he just didn’t pay off. Then the option was to return with Sterling, who had not been performing, but started to perform again. Mané and Sterling stand out for their speed and ease in dribbling their markers – and also for the amount of wasted goals. They are very similar, and the option is for mane for more regularity.

How much? Liverpool 5 x 6 Manchester City.

A tight score, with minimal difference to one side. Which only increases the expectation to see the duels between these two great clubs in the coming month.

Program yourself. Book the dates, check who will be showing the games, choose the place to watch; if you go at home, separate the food and drinks to accompany. Call friends.

It will be worth it. Good football, with great characters involved, always counts.

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In time: Who has the advantage in the games already played between Guardiola’s Manchester City and Klopp’s Liverpool? Since 2016, there have been 15 meetings. Liverpool won six, City four, leaving five draws. In one of those draws, however, Guardiola took the cup, triumphing on penalties in the FA Super Cup in 2019. Liverpool’s biggest rout? 3 to 0, in the Champions League, in 2018. City applied a 5 to 0 (English Championship, in 2017) and a 4 to 0 (also for the English, in 2020).