Paul Merson has named his combined Liverpool and Manchester City XI and the pundit has made some big calls when it comes to Jurgen Klopp’s side.
Liverpool face Manchester City for a place in the FA Cup Final this afternoon, while just a point separates the two in the league table. The pair played out their second 2-2 draw of the season in a tense league clash last weekend, demonstrating how evenly-matched both sides are.
However, when asked to complete his combined XI, former Arsenal star Paul Merson made some notable choices that Liverpool fans would disagree with. Starting in defence, the Sky Sports pundit made the bold decision to pick Manchester City defender Kyle Walker over Trent Alexander-Arnold at right-back.
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“I'm going to go with Alisson in goal. Ederson doesn't make as many mistakes but Alisson has made more important saves than Ederson has this season,” Merson told the Daily Star . “The two centre halves are Ruben Dias and Virgil Van Dijk. That's an easy call.
"Kyle Walker plays over Trent Alexander-Arnold for me, just because if it was me I'd rather play against Trent than Kyle Walker. Going forward Trent is different class. But if I had to choose a full back to go at, I'd pick him over Walker. I think Walker would be harder to beat.
"[At left-back] Joao Cancelo can be a game-changer. But I'm going to go for Andrew Robertson over him because he's more consistent.”
Similarly, in midfield there was no mention of any of Jurgen Klopp’s men. Despite Fabinho being among the best defensive midfielders in the world, Rodri was picked ahead of the Brazilian, while his Liverpool team mates were also not part of the conversation.
“I think Rodri is a shoo-in in midfield. I think he has really improved and makes them tick. Kevin De Bruyne is a shoo-in too, he's one of the best players in the league. Bernardo Silva has been on fire at times this season. He has to get in that midfield as well.”
Merson redeemed himself by opting for two Liverpool forwards in his frontline. However, the 54-year-old struggled to find a convincing argument for picking Riyad Mahrez over Diogo Jota .
“Mo Salah is one of the best in the world so he starts in the front three. You could easily pick Jota as well. What's he done wrong this season? He's been more consistent than Foden or Grealish.
“City don't have a centre forward, so I'd have Sadio Mane there just so you can get another one of City's wingers in the team. Do you go Jack Grealish, Raheem Sterling, Phil Foden?
"I'm going to put Riyad Mahrez in there because I think he just shades it over them this season. He's scored goals. But there isn't much in it is there?"
