What to expect from Manchester United vs. Liverpool

Coming up shortly is one of the most historic football matches in the game.

Manchester United vs Liverpool.

If supporters were inside the stadium, it would be one of the most electric atmospheres in world football without a doubt.

This is a huge match for both clubs in relation to the race for European football.

For Manchester United, a win would secure a Champions League spot as they continue to push further ahead of Leicester City in the table.

For Liverpool, every match counts at this stage in the race for the top four as they currently sit sixth - seven points and a game in hand behind fourth-place Chelsea.

With easy points being dropped in recent weeks, Klopp's men will remain hungry for wins.

The Red Devils are coming off of a crazy 6-2 victory over AS Roma in the Europa League.

They started the match quickly conceding twice but a Bruno Fernandes brace led the comeback for United. Edison Cavani and Paul Pogba were also a few of the stand-out performers.

This performance topped off an impressive few months from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men as they have won four out of their last five Premier League matches.

As for Liverpool, the story has pretty much remained the same for the Merseyside club this season. Coming off of two last-minute draws against Leeds United and Newcastle United, the Reds are short on confidence.

The last two matches have seen Klopp’s men going into stoppage time with a 1 goal lead only for them to lose the full three points in the final minutes of the game.

Reds fans will be hoping for a much more composed Liverpool than the one we have seen in recent weeks. As always, it is expected that players will step up to the occasion and perform. Anything less will most likely not be good enough.

While the last two performances have certainly not been the best, it is worth noting that Liverpool have not lost a league game in five matches, marking one of their best runs since the new year. It would still be nice to see the Reds string a few wins together as consistency has also been one of the club’s weak points this season.

With 20 goals in 32 Premier League matches, fans will hope for a standout performance from Mo Salah. Last week saw the Reds take 21 shots on goal with only eight hitting the target, and of course the one goal.

It has been a shocking few weeks from the Liverpool attackers with some pretty easy chances being missed from Jota, Firmino, and even Salah. Sadio Mane continues in his struggles to find form.

The Liverpool midfield has also dropped off from previous seasons with Wijnaldum looking more tired every week and with Fabinho having to continue his work in the defence the club miss a true defensive midfielder. It has been a decent few weeks from the Liverpool defence, only conceding three goals in their last five Premier League matches. It really is time for the attack and midfield to step up.

It will be interesting to see who Klopp selects this time around a well as what kind of formation he is looking to play with. As mentioned above, the front four failed to shine last game so the German might look to change things up.

In terms of the defense, Nat Philips remains a doubt for Sunday as Matip, Gomez, and Van Dijk continue their rehabilitation. Unless Ben Davies makes a surprise start, I expect to see Fabinho in defense again with Ozan Kabak. With Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani in fine form, it will be interesting to see how the makeshift centre back pairing holds up.

Team Predictions

Manchester United: De Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Maguire, Bailly, Shaw, Fred, McTominay, Rashford, Pogba, Fernandes, Cavani.

As mentioned above, Fernandes is coming off of a hat trick and Canvini is coming off of a brace so I do not expect a change on that front. In terms of the defence, I expect one change with Eric Bailly replacing Victor Lindelof in the starting lineup and no changes to the midfield.

Liverpool: Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho, Kabak, Milner, Thiago, Wijnaldum, Jota, Firmino, Salah.

I expect Klopp to switch it up in the attack as all four attackers failed to shine last week. I see Mane getting a break as he tries to find his feet. With Fabinho having to drop back to centre back, I can see James Milner starting and captaining the side.

With Henderson injured and Naby Keita out of form, the only other option is Curtis Jones who may be given some time now that he is back from injury.

It will without a doubt be an interesting match as supporters hope to see multiple goals. These types of matches have a reputation for being cagey affairs but let's hope both teams go for it.