Raheem Sterling
The Reds are in good form, so far unbeaten in the league this year and have closed the gap on the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United to three and two points respectively Getty

Liverpool host Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday in an important game for both teams, who are playing for two different objectives. The Reds would want to secure a top-four spot, while the Cityzens would want to close in on the gap with league toppers Chelsea.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is set for 12pm GMT. Live coverage of the game will be on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 1 HD.

Overview

Liverpool come into the game having been taken into extra time in the round of 32 of the Europa League where they lost to Besiktas via penalty shootout. It will be a major disappointment for Brendan Rodgers who could have secured a position in next year's Champions League by winning the tournament.

The Reds are in good form as they have remained unbeaten in the league this year and have closed the gap on the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United to three and two points respectively.

Yaya Toure
Toure is likely to play against Liverpool Reuters

Meanwhile, a win here for Manchester City will take them within two points of Chelsea, who do not have a Premier League fixture this weekend, as they play their Capital One Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur.

Also, the return of Yaya Toure and Wilfried Bony has improved their fire power and should allow them to put Liverpool to test.

The Cityzens had a Champions League fixture against Barcelona in the midweek, where they lost 2-1 at the Etihad and will be looking to avenge that defeat with a better performance against their Premier League rivals.

What managers say

Brendan Rodgers: "That extra period of 48 hours that City have could be crucial, certainly physically, especially as we will have very little preparation time. It'll just be about recovery. We can't train on the pitch at Anfield, we can't make it any worse than it is, so we're having to train during the day. But that's the way it's been dealt and we'll deal with it the best we can. The players have had lots of challenges to overcome this season and we are ready to keep performing and doing the best we can."

Manuel Pellegrini: "Always Liverpool are a strong team with a difficult stadium, but I also think all those statistics -- you must change it. This year we won at Stoke, and in the last six years we never did that. It was a very close game. We couldn't win for different reasons but this year we go with the same mentality, to try to win and try to be an aggressive and attacking team from the beginning."

Betting odds

  • Liverpool win: 27/11
  • Draw: 21/11
  • Manchester City win: 4/3

Team news

Liverpool

Possible XI: Mignolet; Can, Skrtel, Lovren; Moreno, Allen, Henderson, Markovic; Coutinho, Sterling, Sturridge.

Manchester City

Possible XI: Hart; Kolarov, Mangala, Kompany, Zabaleta; Silva, Fernandinho, Toure, Nasri; Bony, Aguero.