On the banks of the River Mersey, fans draped in red and blue prepare for one of their most highly-anticipated games of the season.
Sure, the Merseyside derby will forever be enveloped in importance if, for no other reason, than the sake of mythical bragging rights around the city.
But for two sides who have struggled for large chunks of the season, having begun the campaign as realistic top-four contenders, does it not make some sense to forsake local pride and focus on the easiest route for Champions League football next season?
Liverpool fans, who you would think have loftier aspirations than their blue counterparts, are torn into four groups when it comes to this argument.
Many believe that Liverpool’s run of three consecutive league victories show that domestic consistency is on the way back and a top-four finish is possible.
Others think that the romanticism of the FA Cup must be upheld and that Brendan Rodgers should make a trophy his priority, with the Cup arguably the most easily attainable. This was a theory espoused by BBC co-commentator Phil Neville during Wednesday’s Cup win over Bolton.
A third group of fans believe that Rodgers should put all his energy into the Europa League, which would see Liverpool win both a trophy and qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Then there is the lunatic fourth group who believe that a top-four finish, FA Cup and Europa League are all possible. Those loveable optimists are the same lads who are holding out on Balotelli to “finally come good”.
The realisation must surely dawn on the Liverpool boss that the most realistic way of appeasing Liverpool fans is to secure a trophy as well Champions League football next season.
The easiest, if not only, way for that goal to be achieved is by focusing the bulk of his efforts on reaching the Europa League final on May 27 at the Stadion Narodowy in Warsaw.
The never-say-day Liverpool fans will insist that giving up on the top-four in February is tantamount to waving the white flag before the battle has even begun. But the battle began in August when Liverpool’s domestic campaign got underway.
Rodgers can keep sending out Raheem Sterling, Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge twice a week until the end of the season if he thinks that’s the best route to success, but those pace-based players will slow as the months tick by.
You might think that I’m being far too pessimistic when you consider that Liverpool are just four points behind fourth-placed Southampton but, in the context of the next three months, the domestic route is much more difficult for Rodgers and Co.
It’s as simple as this really. For Liverpool to qualify for the Champions League through their domestic efforts, they would have to do so over the course of 15 games with the end result being out of their control as they face a battle with four other sides (Manchester United, Arsenal, Spurs and Southampton) for two qualification spots (let’s assume Chelsea and Manchester City will finish first and second).
As they are currently bringing up the rear of that mini-league they need at least two of the other sides to drop more points than them along the way. Not impossible, but difficult.
But to qualify via the Europa League the Reds would need to come out on top in just nine games, eight of which are divided over two legs, and their progress would not rely at all on the results of other teams. It is completely in their hands.
It is the latter gameplan that one of the probability experts (there’s surely at least one on the fabled transfer committee) would be advising Rodgers to employ and he must do that by refusing to let the romanticism of games such as the Merseyside derby get the better of his managerial common sense.
Whether or not Rodgers chooses that route will become apparent on Saturday evening in a game that will likely be more intensely competitive than any of their remaining matches this season.
The Merseyside derby is the game with the most red cards (20) in Premier League history which goes to show that players from both sides are more than willing to throw in a reckless challenge or two.
If Rodgers does decide to start his big guns at Goodison, he can’t be at all surprised afterwards if some of them are nursing knocks after being on the receiving end of some Evertonian physicality. This wear and tear will hamper his side’s chances at all three competitions in which they currently remain.
Rodgers can’t afford another injury to Sturridge while Sterling – arguably the key man in the squad this season – spent much of the second half at Bolton limping heavily after some hefty challenges.
As well as preserving the fitness of their players by resting them domestically, it can be argued that Liverpool stand a better chance of outfoxing opponents in the Europa League than they do in either the the Premier League or FA Cup. This is based largely on the fact that it would appear as though the domestic sides have, for the most part this season, figured out the style which brought Liverpool such success last season.
English teams have worked out that Liverpool are most dangerous on the counter when given space behind defensive lines to run into, which is why so many of the sides that have sat back have gone on to take points off Rodgers’ side.
Just look at how badly Liverpool have struggled this season against defensive sides like Stoke and Sunderland when compared to their performances against those teams last season.
The opponents against whom Liverpool will face in their remaining European ties, beginning with Besiktas, will neither be as familiar with Liverpool’s playing style nor as content to hold deep in the hope of keeping the scoreline down.
Liverpool face a run of three games in seven days before they host Besiktas in the first leg last-32 and fatigue is going to play a significant part in how their season pans out. They quite simply don’t have the squad depth to take all competitions as seriously as others at this stage.
This is not to say that Rodgers ought to field his first XI for European games exclusively. That would be silly. But pragmatically, Liverpool would have a much greater chance of saving their season by keeping their important players out of games which will likely be the toughest on their bodies.
Why risk Raheem Sterling against a Manchester United side who will be doggedly snapping at his heels? Why would you waste the energy of Steven Gerrard in a tough 90-minute slog against West Brom when you could save him for the Thursday night fixtures?
And why on earth would you start a returning-from-injury Daniel Sturridge against an Everton team who will be putting everything behind their challenges come Saturday evening?
But you hear little from Liverpool supporters touting the importance of their endeavours in Europe’s second-tier competition.
Maybe it’s the disappointment of going out of the Champions League in the group stages
Maybe it’s because some are so busy lamenting last year’s Premier League near-success and the possibility of bidding their departing captain a sentimental farewell in an FA Cup final on his 35th birthday that they can’t see the very clear writing on the wall. Europe is the best bet.
