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The pair have combined well in recent matches and leave Kenny Dalglish with a big decision to make when Luis Suárez returns

The beauty of being a defender is that you are in control of the space. In an otherwise reactive role – you respond to the opposition’s moves and try to break up them – the offside rule means you can keep the striker as far away from goal as you like, providing the ball isn’t behind you, of course.

Last week’s column discussed the merits of Jonny Evans and Chris Smalling as a partnership following their largely impressive display against Robin van Persie at the Emirates Stadium. Sir Alex Ferguson was evidently convinced by their performance as he retained the combination despite the availability of Rio Ferdinand for last Saturday’s FA Cup tie against Liverpool at Anfield. This was a completely different test for the duo; Van Persie drops deep and becomes involved in build-up play while Andy Carroll wants to challenge for crosses in the air.

Kenny Dalglish might have used Carroll to exploit United’s potential aerial weakness. He had other options – in the absence of Luis Suárez, the Liverpool manager has used both Dirk Kuyt and Craig Bellamy as a lone striker. Granted, Bellamy’s fitness precludes him from playing frequently and Kuyt has been having a poor season in front of goal, so stylistic concerns were far from the only reason for Carroll’s selection, but his physicality made the decision easier.

However, playing Carroll with no partner played into the hands of Evans and Smalling. To oversimplify things, if a defence is up against a quick striker they defend deep to prevent him using pace in behind, if they’re up against an aerial threat they defend high up to prevent him getting the end of crosses. By playing Carroll up front alone – and hardly a great amount of forward thrust from the flanks in Stewart Downing and Maxi Rodríguez – it made Evans and Smalling’s decision easy. They pushed up, stuck tight to Carroll, and he was ineffective; winning headers 40 yards from goal with no runners is not particularly useful.

Incidentally, it’s worth mentioning that Carroll does have the potential to be more of an all-rounder, offering pace as well as height. Last season for Newcastle, when defenders worked out Carroll was predominantly an aerial force, he often surprised them with his quickness across the ground – he was more akin to the quick, mobile Alan Shearer in his Blackburn days than the penalty-box specialist Shearer became in his thirties. There is no obvious solution to defending against a player who offers both qualities, which makes a player like Didier Drogba positionally as well as physically difficult. Carroll’s fitness problems have meant his threat on the ground has been minimal, but already he looks fitter and leaner than a couple of months ago.

Presently he’s purely an aerial threat, and while quiet for long periods, he noticeably improved after Dalglish turned to the bench at the weekend. Then, Liverpool had two wingers on their natural sides, rather than the right-footed Rodríguez on the left and the left-footed Downing on the right. Downing moved to the left and Kuyt to the right and Liverpool quickly looked more suited to Carroll. Both wide men sent a couple of crosses in, with varying success.

But it was Bellamy’s introduction that provided the mobility to complement Carroll’s aerial threat. The Welshman often played behind Carroll, but also made runs past him, scaring the United defence with the pace he, perhaps surprisingly, retains at the age of 32. Immediately, Evans and Smalling looked more nervous, their positioning was less assured. Liverpool’s dominance of possession clearly contributed to the pressure, but the United centre-backs seemed to drop deeper after Bellamy’s introduction and Carroll could inch closer to his natural habitat, the penalty box.

The winner was interesting. United started off defending high up the pitch for José Reina’s goal-kick (so no offside, despite Carroll and Kuyt being in an offside position) but then immediately dropped deep. Smalling needed to get into a covering position when Evans went for the header but retreated a whole 15 yards from his starting position, possibly to give himself a couple of yards head-start on Bellamy. As it happened, it was Kuyt who found himself on the end of the flick-on – primarily because of Patrice Evra’s poor positioning, but helped by the fact Smalling was so deep, and therefore playing Kuyt onside. Subtly, it was the combination of height and pace that put Liverpool through.

The previous weekend, a Carroll flick-on had also resulted in a goal. Bolton were defending high and the classic big man-little man combination saw Bellamy springing onto Carroll’s header to score. These two seem an ideal combination and have a more natural understanding than either has with Suárez.

Suárez’s imminent returns means the Bellamy-Carroll partnership is unlikely to enjoy much more time together. Suárez is the main man at Liverpool and there’s every chance that his mid-season break

• City manager says reaction to penalty-area foul was ‘a mistake’
• Mancini signalled for Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel to be sent off

Roberto Mancini issued a public apology after admitting he had made “a mistake” by brandishing an imaginary red card during the 3-0 defeat of Liverpool that put Manchester City three points clear at the top of the Premier League table.

Incensed by the referee Mike Jones’s decision to send off Gareth Barry, Mancini could be seen campaigning for Martin Skrtel also to be dismissed when the Liverpool defender gave away the penalty from which James Milner scored City’s third goal.

It was not the first time Mancini has plucked an imaginary card from his pocket during his two years at City and, having promised that he would not do it again, he admitted he had been in the wrong.

“In the moment maybe I did that because I was not happy with the referee but I made a mistake,” he said. “I was nervous, I didn’t agree with the referee for Gareth’s second yellow card and I did not understand why the penalty did not also have a card. I still do not understand but maybe I made a mistake.”

Mancini could otherwise reflect on a satisfying night in which his team rediscovered their scoring form on the back of their 1-0 defeat to Sunderland and the goalless draw at West Bromwich Albion.

“It was a great response in a difficult game because Liverpool are a fantastic team and they also had the advantage of having played four days ago when we had played two days ago,” he said.

“The result against Sunderland was crazy because we deserved to win that game 3-0 but I am pleased that we responded so well. We played very well and we showed spirit. In the second half we had some problems but we came through it and found a solution.”

Mancini identified Yaya Touré for special acclaim and could not hide his disappointment that the Ivory Coast international, along with his brother Kolo, will leave for the Africa Cup of Nations after Sunday’s FA Cup third-round tie against Manchester United. “I will try to find another Yaya in the squad but the truth is there isn’t one,” he said.

“He is very important to the team, to the way we play, and he is a big influence on the side, so we will miss him. If we can still be top by the end of January I think we have a good chance of winning the title because, without Yaya and Kolo, it will be very difficult.”

Kenny Dalglish, the Liverpool manager, suggested there may have been something wrong with the ball when Pepe Reina allowed Sergio Agüero’s shot to squeeze beneath his body. “I noticed they changed the ball right after, so maybe that had something to do with it.”

He admitted his team had deserved to lose on another disappointing night for Andy Carroll, his £35m striker. “If you want to be a successful team, you have to be clinical. We’ve got to get that into our make-up. Tonight we never had that. It’s a lesson learned. We have to take it on the chin and make sure we don’t repeat it.”

Premier League 2011-12Roberto ManciniManchester CityLiverpoolPremier LeagueDaniel Taylorguardian.co.uk

Liverpool intensified their fight with the Football Association at the DW Stadium but the more immediate target escaped unharmed. While Kenny Dalglish and his players rallied around Luis Suárez in the wake of his eight-match ban for racially abusing Patrice Evra, potentially landing themselves in further trouble with the authorities in the process, they missed the chance to draw level with Chelsea as Wigan Athletic became the latest beneficiaries of their profligacy.

With or without Suárez, Liverpool’s prospects of securing Champions League qualification this season appear increasingly dependent on finding a cutting edge within themselves or in the January transfer window. Charlie Adam failed to convert a second-half penalty as Wigan secured a second successive creditable home draw that will enhance their hopes of securing Premier League survival.

Liverpool players showed their solidarity with Suárez and defiance of the guilty verdict reached by an independent commission, the only body to conduct a thorough review of the case, in word and deed before the kick-off. Having issued a statement denying their team-mate is a racist, the Liverpool squad took to the field dressed in ‘Suárez 7′ T-shirts for the warm-up while Dalglish wore one for his pre-match television interview. But this was not Robbie Fowler demonstrating welcome support for sacked Liverpool dockers. This was a high-profile international found guilty of racist abuse 24 hours earlier and, raging with a sense of injustice or not, as Liverpool clearly are, they were inappropriate gestures at this stage of an already damaging saga.

The professional response from Liverpool was to channel the siege mentality that Dalglish has fostered into the excellent form that had brought four wins in their last five away games. To their credit, they did so, taking the contest to Wigan from the start of what developed into an open, entertaining affair, with Suárez displaying no sign of being weighed down by the controversy and the ban that surrounds him.

Liverpool clicked into the form that overwhelmed Aston Villa on Sunday from the first whistle whereas it took Wigan 15 nervous minutes to rediscover the composure and threat that earned a deserved draw at home to Chelsea on Saturday. Suárez, inevitably jeered throughout by the home fans and lauded from the away end, took an immediate blow to the back of the head from Gary Caldwell but recovered to lead a dominant Liverpool opening.

Adam struck an inviting free-kick straight into the Wigan wall when he should have tested goalkeeper Ali al-Habsi, who then saved well from the improving Jordan Henderson and Dirk Kuyt when they met crosses from the right and left respectively from Stewart Downing.

Wigan’s defence was hanging on at that stage but Roberto Martínez’s side then began to pick gaps in their opponents’ rearguard. Victor Moses went down under a nothing challenge from Martin Skrtel inside the area but referee Michael Oliver rightly adjudged the winger to have slipped. Jordi Gómez missed a great opportunity to continue his rich goalscoring form when he shot straight at José Reina from close range and Mohamed Diamé’s shot from distance flashed inches wide.

A superb run from Moses beyond Adam, Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger ended with another Reina save, Diamé went close once more and Skrtel made a vital interception at full stretch to prevent Conor Sammon seizing on Gómez’s flick over the top.

The clearest chance of an end-to-end first half, however, fell Liverpool’s way when Johnson exchanged passes with Maxi Rodríguez on the edge of the area. The England right-back had plenty of the Wigan goal to aim for but shot straight at Habsi.

The Oman international keeper continued to frustrate Liverpool after the interval. Suárez sent a 20 yard free-kick arching towards the top corner only for Habsi to tip over and was then inevitably the source of what should have been the breakthrough for the visitors.

From Henderson’s touch back across the penalty area, Suárez threw himself into an overhead kick that clearly struck the outstretched arm of Caldwell. Referee Oliver had no hesitation in penalising the Wigan captain, Adam stepped up to drive a powerful spot-kick to the keeper’s left but Habsi read the Scotland international’s intentions perfectly and pushed the penalty away.

A familiar tale was unfolding before an increasingly annoyed Dalglish, who was again left with head in hands when Kuyt scuffed his volley over the Wigan crossbar having been picked out unmarked from Adam’s floated free-kick into the area. Hugo Rodallega and Moses then missed good openings to win it for Wigan at the death.

Premier League 2011-12Wigan AthleticLiverpoolPremier LeagueAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk