Manchester United vs Liverpool Preview:
Possible starting lineups:
Manchester United:
Henderson; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw; Fred, McTominay; Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani
Liverpool:
Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho, Kabak, Robertson; Thiago, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane; Jota
I will write once again about the rivalry between Manchester United and Liverpool, definitely one of the biggest in Europe. The clubs are the two most successful teams in England with 66 trophies for Manchester United and 64 trophies for Liverpool. The Reds dominated English football from 1975 to 1990, winning 11 league titles and 4 European Cups. Manchester United, meanwhile, have dominated during Ferguson's era, from 1993. In that period the Red Devils won 13 league championships and 2 European Cups. United could win one trophy more as they will play UEFA Europe League final (beat Roma with 6:2 in the first leg), while Liverpool had a poor season. However, the tradition is on Manchester side. The two sides have met 206 times with United winning 81 of them, while Liverpool have 67 victories and 58 matches finished without winner. Counting only the league games, United have 68 wins, while Liverpool 57. The points were shared on the remaining 50 mutual games, with 0:0 as the most common outcome (20 times). The reverse fixture played in January also ended with a goalless draw. That was the first derby without the fans.
Manchester United are in excellent form at the moment. They are unbeaten on the last 13 Premier League matches, winning seven of them. United sit on the second place, but without realistic chance to fight for the title as league-leaders Manchester City have a 10-points advantage and their success is a formality at this stage. Something else is important to be mentioned. The home form is very good, they beat the last four opponents at Old Trafford- Newcastle, West Ham, Brighton and Burnley. In addition, the Red Devils were fantastic in Europa. They destroyed Roma and almost secured final after the high 6:2 win on Thursday. Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani both scored twice, while Paul Pogba and Mason Greenwood also found the back of the net. The players confidence is very high and Solskjaer will try to use the momentum for another victory. He has the majority of his players available, only Anthony Martial and long-term absentee Phil Jones are sidelined. Some changes are expected, starting from keeper's position - Dean Henderson should replace David de Gea. It will be wise some of the key players to be rested, but I believe Cavani, Pogba, Rashford and Bruno will not want to miss this game.
Liverpool are in very complicated situation. The Reds were on the first place for Christmas, while now have only theoretical chances to secure Champions League spot. The Reds dropped another two points last weekend, playing only an 1:1 draw with Newcastle at Anfield. Mohamed Salah's goal in the third minute appeared to have put them on track for a victory. But despite dominating, Liverpool were unable to finish the game off and conceded a last-minute equalizer. It is clear Liverpool are struggling at home and the absence of fans perhaps play a part. The Reds have lost six times at Anfield in the Premier League this season. Overall, they have collected only 27 points in home, while dropped 24. According to many pundits, Liverpool are awful in 2021 and don't deserve to play in top European competition. I strongly disagree as there is a reason for poor results - the injury situation. As You probably know, all three central defenders - Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip suffered severe injuries and missed the majority of the season. This is an enormous handicap and Klopp was forced to improvise. He has used almost 20 different centre back pairings and that's a big problem. Only Salah, Firmino and Mane weren't in combination. Klopp has additional worries ahead of this match as captain Jordan Henderson and Divock Origi are out injured, while Nat Phillips is rated as doubtful with a hamstring issue.
Manchester United vs Liverpool Prediction:
Liverpool have not won at Old Trafford since 2014, having drawn four and lost four of their past eight matches there. I don't expect anything to be changed now. Manchester United are in better form and the players confidence is on their side. They have scored six against Roma and I can't see a way Liverpool defense to stop them.
Manchester United vs Liverpool Pick: Manchester United +0.5 @ 1.60 with Betsafe, Betsson