“Good performances never give me a headache!” beamed Jurgen Klopp.
The Liverpool boss had been asked about the hat-trick performance of Diogo Jota against Atalanta on Tuesday and how it may impact his forward line for Sunday’s Premier League trip to Manchester City.
But he could easily have been referring to the area that so often wins such titanic tussles – midfield.
That was most emphatically demonstrated in this fixture during the visit to the Etihad in January 2019, when only after Fabinho was introduced in the second half did Liverpool appear capable of snatching something from their only Premier League defeat of that season – one that cost them the title.
The first decision is how many midfielders Klopp will employ.
A desire to include Jota along with the front three could see a switch to the 4-2-3-1 formation to which the Reds boss has increasingly turned this season.
However, history suggests the regular three will be required. But which three?
No Fabinho, of course. And while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, often impressive in these clashes, is another loss, there are plenty of other options available to Klopp.
Key could be the availability of Thiago Alcantara, who Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola gave a debut to at Barcelona and then took to Bayern Munich.
The Spaniard would provide Liverpool a similar incisiveness to that of Kevin De Bruyne in opposition, albeit from a deeper role.
Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum were both substituted in Italy on Tuesday night, indicating they were being preserved for the weekend. They are likely to start.
But if Thiago doesn’t make it – and his absence from Thursday’s team training session indicates that is likely – Klopp then has a major call to make for the third slot.
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Curtis Jones, impressive in Italy, has started the last two matches, Naby Keita returned in midweek after a month out, James Milner will be fresh while Xherdan Shaqiri has emerged as a more progressive option in a number eight or 10 role.
All have in recent weeks sufficiently staked a claim for inclusion on Sunday. Each offers something different.
The choice made by Klopp could go a long way to determining who wins the midfield battle – and which team emerges triumphant in the final analysis.
