5 Selection Dilemmas for Brendan Rodgers Ahead of Liverpool vs. Everton

Liverpool's 3-0 sweeping aside of Tottenham last month now feels like a distant memory—an anomaly among the Reds' unattractive start to the season.

Three defeats in their opening five Premier League games has given Liverpool fans cause for concern. Even the least knee-jerk supporters may be feeling a little anxious right now.

A dreary performance away to West Ham was followed by an unsettled and ragged penalty shootout victory over Championship side Middlesbrough in the Capital One Cup in midweek.

Pinpointing exactly what is going wrong at Liverpool this season is difficult, but goalscoring chances have been few and far between, while the thrilling, cavalier attacking football perfected last season has died down.

They say the form book goes out of the window when it's derby day, but with an Everton side just as desperate for a win at Anfield on Saturday, it's critical Brendan Rodgers finds a solution.

He is, however, faced with several selection headaches ahead of the clash with the Toffees. 

Formation and Game Plan

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To categorise Liverpool's tactical setup into a set formation is perhaps naive, and something that has arguably been the downfall of the Reds during their sluggish performances so far in 2014-15.

Last year, Rodgers and his team perfected a fast-flowing style of attacking football—hitting Premier League defences with relentless pace. It was a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield, but only in the loosest sense of a formation.

The team's flexible, overlapping, dummy runs and through balls overpowered teams. Each match featured a dynamic game plan designed to outmanoeuvre teams from the first whistle.

When Liverpool afford their opponents too much time to organise and create barriers early on, they struggle throughout the game—as shown with the defeats to Chelsea at the back end of 2013-14 and Aston Villa earlier this month.

Liverpool only work at pace, and they must hit teams with the same dynamism as last season, sending defenders in all directions in order to carve a path through to goal.

Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert

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How Rodgers chooses to set up his team will dictate whether there's a second-striker's role alongside Mario Balotelli.

Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert have both made their cases for further first-team action in recent games, and with Daniel Sturridge's return imminent, now is the time to give both forwards an opportunity in the side. 

Central Defence

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Liverpool's new-look defence has done little to plug the leaks that were so costly in the side's Premier League title chase last season.

There seems to be a distinct lack of defensive cohesion across the back four, though new full-backs Javier Manquillo and Alberto Moreno have looked exciting going forward.

Rodgers' defensive dilemma surrounds his central defenders—three into two won't go, but does he drop the experience of Martin Skrtel for Mamadou Sakho?

Adam Lallana or Lazar Markovic

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Rodgers is blessed with a plethora of attacking talent, with each player capable of playing behind the front two.

Perhaps this selection dilemma is a root cause of Liverpool's inability to hit teams with the smoothness of last season—the new players yet to fully integrate themselves into the setup.

Adam Lallana and Lazar Markovic are naturally wide players who are versatile enough to play anywhere within the gap between midfield and attack that Luis Suarez so wonderfully made his own.

However, with Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho also vying for those supporting roles, will Rodgers find a way to accommodate all of his best players in a balanced system?

Steven Gerrard

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The Steven Gerrard headache must be one of great discomfort to Rodgers—one that will be a test of the Northern Irishman's ruthlessness over the next few months.

Gerrard has not been performing to the high standards expected for some time, and although he seemed to thrive in a new deep-lying playmaker role in the second half of last season, the benefits that brought have now been sussed out by opponents.

However, a derby match is made for players like Gerrard, who wear their hearts on their sleeves and give it all for the pride of the city.

Perhaps Gerrard's performance this Saturday will give food for thought to Rodgers with a busy fixture schedule on the horizon.