Liverpool are set to take on Reading in the Women's Super League this weekend and manager Matt Beard believes his side have learnt some valuable lessons from their last encounter with the Royals.
Katie Stengel gave the visitors an early lead during November's meeting in the South East before goals from Tia Primmer and striker Natasha Dowie - who returned to Liverpool in the January window - put Reading in front. Stengel swiftly levelled things up and Rhiannon Roberts restored the Reds' advantage before a late header from Sanne Troelsgaard Nielsen saw the spoils shared at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.
But the Liverpool boss is hopeful his side will come out on top when the two teams meet again at Prenton Park on Sunday, with only a point separating the two sides ahead of the clash. Kelly Chambers side will travel to Merseyside looking to bounce back from their narrow defeat to Manchester United last time out, while the Reds will hope to deliver the kind of performance that saw them triumph over West Ham in their last home game back in December.
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"It was an interesting game, the first game," Beard said, reflecting on the reverse fixture. "We should have been out of sight by half time but when you don’t take those chances, if you make a mistake at this level you get punished.
"We showed a lot of character that night and we were disappointed we didn’t see the game out. The learning curves were: don’t let Reading put crosses in the box, don’t give away silly set plays and take our own opportunities. But it’s a completely different game now. "
He added: "Our team has changed, their team has changed. I think when we played them before they had a few out missing. It will be a tough game and Reading never give up, they keep fighting to the end. It should be a good game for the neutral and it will be two teams looking to get the three points."
Ahead of Sunday's game, Liverpool have had to contend with another two major injury blows, with Shanice van de Sanden likely to be sidelined for around two months after picking up a knock to her knee in the pre-Chelsea warm-up and striker Leanne Kiernan having suffered a setback in her rehabilitation from an ankle injury.
"Shanice was upset when we got the scan results but she’s a wonderful character," Beard said. "She’s still vocal in the meetings and the dressing room and still as infectious a personality as always. She’s more upset she can’t contribute with the team on the pitch.
"She’s had no luck with injuries this year and its a shame because we were really starting to get to a point where we could see the true Shanice but it’s part and parcel of the game. With Leanne, we got a scan and there was a bit of scar tissue in the heel and a bit of a fluid but that’s all been cleaned up.
"She’s had an injection just to settle that down so she’s in a protective boot for a week. She’s now back in the gym and she’ll back back running next week so where we were probably anticipating the end of February we’re now looking at March/April but we don’t want to put a timeline on it because it was a bad injury so we want to make sure she’s fully fit and comfortable."
While Liverpool are set to be without Kiernan and Van de Sanden for the forseeable, the Reds' attacking options have been bolstered Natasha Dowie's return to the club, while the arrival of midfield trio Miri Taylor, Sofie Lundgaard and Fuka Nagano affords the manager with some more creativity in the middle of the park.
"I think if you look at the transfer window I’m pleased with it," Beard said. "We brought Gemma Bonner back in, we’ve got Natasha Dowie in who are two experienced players who know the WSL and have had success here.
"They know the club and I think sometimes that’s important because Liverpool Football Club is a big brand and there’s a certain expectation that comes with playing for Liverpool. And then we’ve strengthened with Fuka, Miri and Sofie who are younger players so I think we’ve got a good balance with what we’ve done in this window.
"We’re really pleased with the business that we’ve done and we’re now looking forward to the second half of the season."
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