Show Us What You're Made of: Liverpool v Spurs Preview

US: Sunday 11:00 am on NBC Sports

UK: Sunday 4:00pm on Sky Sports 1

Liverpool look to continue their two game winning streak against a Tottenham side that has failed to impress for much of the season, but has finally started scoring more than just penalties. They've won 4 of their last 5 in all competitions since the 6-0 thrashing at the hands of Man City and have miraculously managed to creep quietly into 6th only three points behind Liverpool. The only blip was a 2-2- draw against United. Since a disproportionately large number of Spurs' goals have come from the spot, if Liverpool can keep their heads inside the box they should be fine.

Spurs let their little swashbuckling closet ginger AVB spend nearly all of the Gareth Bale money and the team, from what I've seen, has really failed to click. Many of their wins have been just barely and they are noticing that Bale's ability to bail them out late in games last year may have not been worth the 80m.

Liverpool though have caught the injury bug at just the wrong time. Gerrard is out for a while, Sturridge is out until January and now Henderson is listed as questionable for the match. This could give those who had until now been seemingly cast aside a chance to show what they have like Flanagan. However, if Suarez can maintain his deadly form nothing will matter. Spurs defense has been fairly good this season, but they haven't faced an in form Luis Suarez. Either way, this is not ideal timing for this match.

Given Spurs' recent form and being at home, they should have a bit more confidence than they might have a month ago. That said, they also have one of the most overrated managers in the Premier League and it will be interesting to see how he attempts to stop Suarez. This might be a good game for the 3-5-2 given the injuries at hand and Spurs' lack of a real recognized threatening striker and ability to score. Now that the dubious goals panel has awarded Suarez another goal from last match he has as many goals as all of Spurs.

Some more thoughts:

-The injuries are piling up just as the fixtures are starting to stack up. This will really test Rodgers' mettle as a manager.

-Lucas and Allen should get a chance to play together for the first time in a long time. It should be interesting to see how that works out.

-Spurs defense has been stingy. However, Suarez is Suarez. I can't wait to watch the battle.

-Of all the big upcoming showdowns, this one looks to be the easiest, although I use that label very loosely as Tottenham can be quite the handful. Because of this, it's vital that Liverpool get off on the right foot. (loyal2reds)

-Our biggest challenge is scoring the first goal. And as Adam said, this'll test Rodgers' man-management skills. Who starts for Stevie? Who starts at RB and CB? (JAceKopite16)

Really, I'm not sure we should start Flanagan as he's not exactly fast and got burnt to bits by the Arsenal wingers, and Spurs' wingers are quicker still. (JAceKopite16)

-I believe we should either start Agger and Skrtel, or Agger and Sakho. Agger/Sakho have been our most consistent on form, while Agger/Skrtel have been our go-to for previous big games. (JAceKopite16)

As for midfield, I don't wanna go too defensive and play Lucas & Allen together. 2 midfielders who play the same position, plus no width in the wings into the bargain.... I think it's time to give Luis Alberto his chance. (JAceKopite16)