Sundays never felt this good, as Liverpool and Manchester United battle for top spot in the most famous fixture of English football.
Match Preview
The stakes are high for Sunday when Liverpool and United will meet. Both teams will be gunning for the first place spot, as Manchester City breaths down their neck in 3rd place. There’s no room for errors.
Liverpool’s road have been a bit shaky lately, having won against Spurs and demolishing Crystal Palace 7-0, we all thought that they’re back to their best. However, two straight draws against West Brom and Newcastle along with a defeat to Souhthampton reminded us how fragile they are. Especially with all the injuries they’re facing, Klopp will have to patch up his defence once again.
Liverpool’s defensive problems must be addressed properly, as it’s affecting the offense as well. Their build up play is restricted, hence reducing their attacking capabilities.
However, United will feel like this fixture could not have come in a better time. Going on a 5 games unbeaten run, from which they won an impressive 4 and currently top of the league.
Solskjaer will be looking to exploit Liverpool’s problems and hope to come away with 3 lethal points from Anfield. Nonetheless, United also faces some challenges as both Martial and Matic sustained some knocks during their win against Burnley. This will be a great game for Ole to repay United’s faith in him.
Match Prediction
The last time these two sides met was nearly a year ago, Liverpool ended up winning the game 2-0. However, a lot have changed since then. After United’s humiliating 6-1 loss to Tottenham, we all thought it would be another frustrating season. Yet here we are, Manchester sits top coming off an impressive 5 games unbeaten run.
However, in big games like these, there is always an x-factor to be taken into consideration. Liverpool are unbeaten at home for the last 4 years. On the other hand, United have their own unbeaten away record, which Rashford highly contributed in. In other words, these records will be highly exposed on Sunday.
This game can go either way, it depends on who will be able to impliment the turning point and benefit the most. Liverpool will rely on Thiago to orchestrate the midfield. Alternatively, United will hope that Bruno Fernandes can put on a big display, to establish himself as one of Europe’s best midfielders.
There is no point in going to Anfield and hoping for a clean sheet, since we know that Liverpool will go all out attack at home. However, Ole will try to protect his defenders by playing strong midfielders, who are good at breaking up counters and sticking to a tackle. That’s why we think that Fred & Scott McTominay could start together.
In terms of scoring goals, both teams are more than capable due to their impressive attacking players. Consequently, we believe that both team to score along with over 1.5 goals seems like the most logical bets to play. Concerning the result, we think that a big encounter like this will most probably end in a draw.
Prediction: 1-1, but if any of them is capable of nicking a winner, it should be the home side, as they look to secure the 3 points and blow the title race even more open.
Current Odds:
- Over 1.5 goals: 1.22
- Over 2.5 goals: 1.66
- Both team to score: 1.61
- Draw: 3.80
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