Preview: Sheffield Utd vs Liverpool

Liverpool get their 06/07 Premier League campaign kicked off at Brammal Lane on Saturday lunchtime (with the game going out on Sky) which should be a special occasion for The Blades after a 12 year exodus from top-flight football.

While Rafa Benitez returns to the sidelines after letting Gary Ablett take the reigns for the midweek friendly against Lincoln City (with Liverpool winning 2-1), Neil Warnock will have to watch the game from the stands as he must sit out the first six games of the season courtesy of an FA touchline ban.

The last time the sides met in the league back in 1993 the game played out a goalless draw and on the form of recent performances from Liverpool I would highly think that Saturday’s game will not produce the same result.

Getting off to a winning start to the season means everything and with a good win against Chelsea with an understrength starting eleven, coupled with our great coups of the summer transfer market including the arrival of Craig Bellamy, Mark Gonzalez (at long last) and Fabio Aurélio, Liverpool now more than ever have the strength in numbers to overcome the opposition - starting with Sheffield United.

Bellamy has been on fine form during preseason and although we went and lost our three foreign friendlies (Kaiserslautern, Grasshopper and Mainz) I feel that those results are a distant memory after victories against Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League and Chelsea in the Community Shield, each time grabbing victories where they count and the same can be applied to the league.

Sheffield shouldn’t be underestimated all the same and will be out to make their mark in the league. The most recent encounter was in the Carling Cup in January 2003 with Liverpool progressing 3-2 on aggregate, Sheffield taking one leg and Liverpool the other.

The time to strike, however, is now. Liverpool are unbeaten in their last nine league games from the end of the 05/06 season. Peter Crouch is on form in the international fold, Craig Bellamy is raring to go, we’ve got fantastic ability and competition on the left side of the field, Robbie Fowler is looking sharper than ever, our midfield trio of Gerrard, Alonso and Sissoko are firing on all cylinders and our backline is one of the strongest backlines Liverpool have ever had.

Roll on Shefflied United today, roll on the Premier League and roll on a victory to Liverpool this afternoon.

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