Johnson speaks out, Liverpool FC Deja vu and a preview for Sunderland

It’s Thursday once again, and I have lots to go through today, including Glen Johnson’s newly announced reaction to the Suarez-Evra handshake and a preview for the Sunderland game this weekend.

First of all, Glen Johnson has leapt to the defence of Liverpool FC teammate Luis Suarez:

Luis didn’t shake his hand because Evra’s hand was down there. What else is Luis supposed to do? Would you go to shake someone’s hand if their hand is way down there by their side? Course not. But then, because Luis didn’t do it, Evra has pulled him back by his arm as he walked on, as if to say to everybody: “Look, I wanted to shake his hand and he didn’t…”

‘He’s following Luis with his eyes as if to say: “Right he’s gone, he’s gone (past me) so I’ll pull him back now…” Evra probably stayed up all night thinking about how to do that. The whole thing was ridiculous.

Glen Johnson, on his official website

And I have to say, Glen Johnson is such a legend. A scouser through and through. He viewed the incident in the eyes of how most Liverpool fans viewed it – Evra pulling his arm away. Won’t talk too much about it, but you really have to admire Glen Johnson’s passion for all things Liverpool FC sometimes.

In other news, Liverpool’s Slovakian defender Martin Skrtel has been awarded the accolade of being Liverpool’s top player of February. Skrtel started all 4 of Liverpool’s matches in the month of February and bagged a goal against Brighton & Hove, along with another shortly after, scoring a crucial equalizer at Wembley to propel Liverpool on to Carling Cup victory.

Another fantastic player for Liverpool FC.

I would like to say thank you very much. I am very happy. February was a very good month for all of us because we won the Carling Cup, and I happy to have won this trophy and also the Carling Cup. I’ve scored four goals so far and it’s the most I’ve scored in one season in my career, but the season is not finished yet and I hope I can get a few more goals before the end of the season.

Skrtel to LiverpoolFC.tv on scooping up the award

And now to the real stuff, Liverpool FC’s visit to Sunderland this weekend. No doubt it will be a hard game, given Sunderland’s resurgence under ex-Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neil, but Liverpool FC should manage to pick up all 3 points here and try to catch up with their rivals for that 4th place finish in the Premier League this season.

It will also provide the Reds a chance for redemption, as this was the game that essentially set the tone for the season, with the season opener at Anfield earlier on in the season seeing a spectacular effort from Sebastian Larsson earning the Black Cats a point. Liverpool will undoubtedly be hoping to score a couple of goals here to start a run of wins, something that the Reds have failed to do in their 2011/12 campaign thus far.

Glen Johnson is likely to return to the Starting XI this weekend ahead of youngster Martin Kelly, whilst there are still some doubts about Steven Gerrard’s fitness, following an injury suffered on International Duty just a week back. Liverpool should experiment a little with their lineup here, and try something different. I reckon a 4-3-3 with Craig Bellamy up front and a Jordan Henderson-Jay Spearing- Steven Gerrard midfield might work.

Lastly, here’s an important message I have to share with you.

We here at Two Liverpool Fans believe in advocating the right messages. This is one that is important, one that can see us shape history for the better. Share this with everyone you know. Share this with your Twitter followers, your Facebook friends, promote it with a YouTube video, and perhaps even contribute by putting up posters etc. 2012 is a year for change.