Liverpool FC: How Will the Reds Line Up for Kenny Dalglish in 2011-12 Season?

The clock is ticking toward the start of next season, a season that looks to hold great promise for the Anfield faithful, a hope that glory and trophies are fast approaching.

And with "King" Kenny Dalglish firmly at the helm, the hope is decidedly amplified. Liabilities and dead weight players are being offloaded, and new talent is being procured. At least that is the aim.

The search is on for a fast, tricky left winger and a solid, attacking left back. With the one-year contract handed to the giant Greek Sotirios Kyrgiakos, Liverpool looks to have options in central defence as well, assuming that Daniel Agger manages to remain injury free and young Martin Kelly can replicate his exploits of last season.

The forward line has been publicized to the extreme with Andy Carroll, that little wizard Luis Suarez and Dirk Kuyt the senior player.

The right back position has two world class players, Glen Johnson and Kelly, with young John Flanagan being no lump with the ball either.

Nowhere is this Liverpool richer than in central midfield with option after option available. But how will Dalglish fit all these pieces, the existing Scousers and the incoming transfers, to complete the puzzle?

Let's find out...

A Conventional 4-4-2

This being a stereotypical Premier League formation, opponents would generally go into a game preparing for this style of play. The 4-4-2 would see Dalglish going with his first-choice center back pairing of Martin Skrtel and Jamie Carragher, his new left back and one of Martin Kelly or Glen Johnson on the right.

Central midfield should see Steven Gerrard and Lucas Leiva with Dirk Kuyt on the right and a new winger on the left. Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll are obviously up front, leading the attack

This formation has its obvious defects. The talents of Jordan Henderson and Raul Meireles are wasted. Moreover, Lucas will find it difficult playing alongside another player high up in central midfield. He does his best work as the lone defensive midfielder, covering for the back four.

Steven Gerrard's attacking runs would be curtailed with the added defensive responsibility on his shoulders. The space between defence and midfield means that creative players like Rafael van der Vaart, Samir Nasri and even Wayne Rooney will be able to work effectively in this hole.

This formation also curtails the newfound pass-and-move game because the midfield is restricted, and space is narrowed.

A slightly more feasible modification would be using a 4-4-1-1 with Suarez the support striker linking the midfield with the target-man, Carroll. Suarez's stamina and work rate mean he can easily do that over the 90 minutes of the game. He will also prevent defenders walking out with the ball because of his ability to close down the opposition.

The 4-4-2 formation will undoubtedly fall flat against solid attacking teams like Arsenal or Tottenham. The predictability of the midfield will also hamper play. All in all, chances of Dalglish employing this conventional and unimaginative formation look to be slim to say the least.

An Attacking 4-2-3-1

This one looks to hold a lot of promise for both the range of players that Liverpool have now and will have potentially at the end of the season. It also looks to fall into place with the pass-and-move philosophy since there are plenty of spaces all over the field for players to operate in.

The centre back pairing of Skrtel-Carragher with Johnson/Kelly and an incoming left-back will lay in front of Pepe Reina. It has to be ensured that the fullbacks do not rush upfield on the overlap too often given the wealth of attacking talent in the the lineup.

Hence, players with sound defensive abilities should slot into the fullback positions. Once again, Kelly looks to be perfect.

Defensive midfield poses a problem. Lucas, certainly, but who to partner him with? Meireles looks to be first choice at first sight, with Henderson and Charlie Adam, if he arrives, also prospective candidates.

But, given that Lucas has shown great ability to cover for his defenders, his partner can afford to relax slightly with his defensive work, so Adam, with his Xabi Alonso-esque long, cross-field balls, should get the nod ahead of the others.

The attacking three poses great possibilities. Gerrard's best talents undoubtedly lie in this area of the pitch between the half-way line and the opposing goal, and that is where he should play, in the center of that attacking three, putting in passes over the defenders' head to Carroll and distributig to the rest of the attack.

Suarez would start by playing on the right not in the mould of an out and out winger. Suarez should thrive in this role as he has already shown a tendency to go wide to get the ball and then jink his way inside either finding his way into the box or picking up an easy free kick.

Expect him to interchange with Gerrard when the need arises. A new winger or Kuyt will take up the left-sided spot, looking to put in crosses to the head of Andy Carroll who leads the line.

But what would potentially work against teams who have excellent defenders who can take care of Carroll's aerial threat would be to use Kuyt up front, as with his poacher's instinct and ability to link up with the rest of the team, Liverpool will hold onto the ball more.

This looks to be an extremely feasible option next season for Dalglish, keeping in mind the free-flowing attacking mindset of the team shown in the latter half of last season.

A 5-1-2-2 Defensive Formation

This formation places extravagant importance on defence, to such an extent there is virtually no space for the opponent to drop anchor and pass the ball around in the Liverpool half.

The formation was used last season to resounding success against Chelsea. As expected, a strong Chelsea front three of Didier Drogba, Fernando Torres and Nicolas Anelka could hardly move without bumping into a man in a red shirt.

The formation should use a strong central defensive pairing of Carragher, Agger and Skrtel with Agger playing slightly ahead of the other two and linking defense with midfield.

It is not easy to forget some of Daniel Agger's amazing long-range strikes and his more than adequate ball distribution from deep in his own half over the past seasons, and it is definitely in Liverpool's best interests that he keeps himself fit and ready to play.

For this formation to produce results, the wing back selections are important. Fast wingers capable of overlapping and contributing steadily in attack over the 90 minutes are the order of the day.

Johnson and Kelly again fight for the right wingback slot, but if someone like Jose Enrique arrives at left back in the summer, it would be best to use Johnson on the right side, given his penchant for attack.

The holding midfielder position does not provoke debate. Lucas Leiva wins hands down. Steven Gerrard would play as a right sided attacking midfielder, looking to cut in and run things in the opposing half while an incoming left winger or Henderson or Meireles would be used in the corresponding left position.

Of the present lot, Henderson looks to be the best candidate.

The front two consists of Suarez and Carroll with the former taking defenders away from the latter and linking up with the attacking players. Suarez should be able to play this supporting role comfortably as has been mentioned in a previous slide.

Carroll or Kuyt can be used as the other striker depending on need, situation and fitness.

In a nutshell this is primarily a defensive formation, that will only be used, if at all, in a handful of games against talented attacks. Lucas becomes the key here as the onus is on him to start counter-attacks after relieving the opposition of the ball.

A Balanced 4-1-2-2-1

The formation that, on paper, looks to be best suited for Liverpool's present game, is a 4-1-2-2-1 lineup.

As monotonous as the defensive story is becoming, Carragher and Skrtel once again start at the heart of the defence with a left back and Johnson/Kelly at right back. Here, the wide defenders need both attacking overlaps as well as sound defensive abilities.

Someone like Jose Enrique or Aly Cissokho might adapt well to this formation.

Lucas plays the holding midfielder role. What's very noticeable from videos of last season is his desire to run all the way to the sides to cover his wingbacks, which in itself makes Lucas a great player in this role, but is also risky when you happen to be the only player in that position, leaving gaps in the middle.

Last season did not pose that sort of risk because of the presence of the tenacious Jay Spearing, who definitely looks like missing out on starting places this season.

The next part of the formation constitutes two widemen. From the present crop of players, Henderson could fit into one of these spots. The other spot is available for an incoming transfer. As a stopgap, Charlie Adam could fit in, though a complete wide-man would be preferable.

This leaves space for the two attacking midfielders playing all over the opposition hole, pulling wide for possession or driving into the box for a shot. Gerrard and Suarez should occupy these positions as both satisfy the attributes mentioned above. Carroll or Kuyt occupy the lead role once again.

The plus point of this particular formation is that it is very flexible. Players move all around the pitch, rather than being restricted to a strict formation which was one of the problems of the Roy Hodgson-era.

Creative talents like Suarez or Gerrard must be allowed to express themselves rather than be strait-jacketed into a one-dimensional style of play. Moreover, a balance between defense and attack is also preserved.

Pepe Reina, needless to say, starts in all the given formations.

Basically, at the end of it all, this is just another opinion. In Kenny, we believe.