Liverpool v Man Utd – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

Liverpool host Man Utd at Anfield on Sunday evening in the English Premier League. The Reds sit at the top of the table after six wins and two draws in the last eight. United are struggling right now and have been outclassed in two of their last three league fixtures.

Liverpool Form

Jurgen Klopp’s team have been beaten just twice in 23 matches in all competitions this season. That second defeat was a 3-2 loss at Toulouse, but they’ve been very strong in their response. They thrashed Brentford 3-0 at home and came back from a goal down to draw 1-1 at Man City.

The goals followed in a 4-0 Europa League win over LASK and then two late strikes sealed a 4-3 home victory over Fulham in a thrilling clash.
A slightly stilted 2-0 win at Sheffield United followed as the game was only put to bed after the 90th minute. On Saturday, they looked on course to lose 1-0 at Crystal Palace before a red card. They immediately levelled and then scored an injury-time winner. Liverpool travelled to Union Saint-Gilloise on Thursday night.

Liverpool Team News

Joel Matip is out long-term in defence but Ibrahima Konate should start after a start outing at Palace. Andy Robertson remains out and both Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic are injured in midfield.

Alexis Mac Allister should shake off a knee complaint to start in the holding role. Harvey Elliott is pushing for a start after some fine impact sub-outings. Diogo Jota should be back on the bench after injury.

Liverpool Motivation

This is the biggest fixture of the calendar and motivation at Anfield will be through the roof. A win would have Liverpool top of the table to finish the weekend.

A draw would be seen as a really disappointing result considering how poor United have looked lately.

Man Utd Form

Ahead of a key match against Bayern Munich, United had won just eight of their last 19 matches. They somehow eked out six wins in eight league matches with some late goals and with five of those victories coming by a one-goal margin. When added to their dire defending in the Champions League (10 goals conceded and just four points from matchdays two to five), it paints a bad picture.

Although they won 3-0 at Everton, it came with 2.47 xG for the Toffees. A 3-1 lead was blown to draw 3-3 at Galatasaray before being outclassed 1-0 at Newcastle. They summoned a top outing to beat Chelsea 2-1 (producing 4.17 xG) but lost 3-0 at home to Bournemouth in their last league match.

Man Utd Team News

Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia are absent in defence but Victor Lindelof should be available. Raphael Varane is out of favour of late. In midfield, Casemiro, Mason Mount, and Christian Eriksen are injured or very doubtful.

Rasmus Hojlund should start over Anthony Martial, but Marcus Rashford’s poor form means Antony and Alejandro Garnacho could start on the flanks. Bruno Fernandes is suspended after five yellow cards.

Man Utd Motivation

Confidence is low and there will be fear of a big defeat here. Erik Ten Hag could play much more pragmatically in this match.

Expect to see a disciplined three in midfield with a counter-attack approach favoured.

Key Stats

Liverpool’s last 49 home league matches have seen just 1 loss (38 wins, 10 draws)

Liverpool have scored 21 goals in their last 7 league matches at home

Man Utd have lost 2 of their last 3 league matches

Man Utd have failed to score on their last 4 visits to Anfield

Man Utd have lost 4-0 and 7-0 in their last 2 away matches vs Liverpool

Verdict

On form right now, Liverpool are huge favourites to win. It would be a surprise if they didn’t win by more than one goal. If Konate and Alisson start, a win to zero is quite possible too.

Best Bet: Liverpool to win to zero at 2.80

Alternative Bet: Liverpool win (-1 handicap) at 2.95

High-Value Goalscorer Tip: Salah to score 2 or more goals at 5.25

James O'Connor

James is a football analyst who writes about the tactics of the PSL and English Premier League. He holds the UEFA A coaching licence and has previously worked for several clubs in analysis roles.Twitter: https://twitter.com/footy_analysis