Liverpool vs Man Utd Preview; Kickoff and team news, how to follow, stream | football news
Who: liverpool vs manchester united
What: English Premier League
Where: Anfield, Liverpool, United Kingdom
When: On Sunday at 4:30 pm (16:30 GMT).
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Liverpool boss Arne Slott believes struggling Manchester United are better than their place in the Premier League standings, and said he does not plan to rest any players when the two teams meet at Anfield.
Liverpool top the table with 45 points and a game in hand on the other title contenders. They are six points ahead of second-placed Arsenal, while United are 14th on 22 points with five defeats in their last six league matches.
While United are no longer the force they were during the Alex Ferguson era, Slott was left wondering when asked if he planned to rest any of his key players for Sunday’s match.
“No. Not at all,” Slot said. “For me, they have far better players than they show in the league table at the moment. It may take a while for (manager) Ruben Amorim to get it out of the players but They are much better than the league tables show.
Liverpool still sweating over the future of Alexander-Arnold, Salah and Van Dijk
In relation to his own players, Slott insisted that defender Trent Alexander-Arnold is focused on his job despite speculation linking the out-of-contract defender to Real Madrid in the summer.
Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah is also out of contract, along with club captain Virgil van Dijk, who has said a new deal is “a long way off”. The Egyptian leads the league with 17 goals and with his 13 assists, his goal contribution amounts to one every 53 minutes.
Asked whether Salah is the best in the world at the moment, Slott said it is difficult to compare players.
“If I only look at our team, Virgil (van Dijk) has also had a great season, but he doesn’t have the numbers because he’s a defender,” the manager said. “The stats that Mo has have speak volumes for him. If you just look at the numbers and the way he plays, he’s definitely a great, great player.
Slott’s side, who have lost just one game this season, beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford in September and United have only one win over their rivals in their last 13 league meetings.
Slote had kind words for Amorim, who admitted after Monday’s 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United that his team could face a possible relegation.
“Every manager is sympathetic to every other manager,” Slott said. “We all know how much pressure this job brings. This is something we like. He has done very well at Sporting and I think they have a good squad of players so he will eventually bring out the best in them.
Manchester United needs “leaders” on the field to reverse recent performance
Meanwhile, Amorim says Manchester United are “starved for leaders” during the turbulent period.
United will be able to welcome back captain Bruno Fernandes back to Anfield after he was suspended for Monday’s disappointing 2-0 defeat to Newcastle, while the club have agreed to extend former captain Harry Maguire’s contract by a year until 2026. Option has been started.
Defender Maguire, 31, joined the club from Leicester in 2019 and his deal was due to expire at the end of the season.
“I spoke to him (Maguire) this morning and I told him he has to improve on the pitch, we need him very much,” Amorim said on Friday.
“Also, he has to improve as a leader. We all know what his situation was here (losing the captaincy and falling down the top order) but we need him very much at the moment, so we are happily going to opt for him.
Amorim said: “When you look at our team we are craving leaders on the field. He is a leader.”
Arsenal win over Brentford cuts gap on Liverpool to six points#festivalfixtures pic.twitter.com/JAIzpRDlkG
– Premier League (@premierleague) 1 January 2025
United have lost four games in a row and have also been knocked out of the League Cup due to a poor run of form recently.
The two most successful clubs in English football history could not have gone into Sunday’s match in more contrasting fashion, with Liverpool closing in on United’s record of 20 English top-flight titles, despite Arsenal making it six after their win at Brentford on Wednesday. The difference in marks has been reduced. ,
United last won at Anfield nine years ago and have suffered 4-0 and 7-0 defeats in two of the last three matches.
However, Amorim is hoping some rare time on the training pitch this week will help his side.
“In football, anything can happen in a game,” he said. “If you look at seasons, almost every time the best team wins.
“At the moment they are better than us but we can win any game. We have to focus on performance, not context. We have to improve the simple things.
“Of course, it is a difficult moment because we are losing a lot of matches and we are going to face the best team of this year, but, as I said, with training, we prepare more of the team and we improve. “Want to perform better than the previous game.”
Amad Diallo has been a source of United’s optimism during the difficult first two months of Amorim’s reign.
The Ivorian is close to agreeing a new long-term deal at Old Trafford, according to the Portuguese coach.
liverpool team news
Joe Gomez will be on the sidelines for at least two weeks after being sidelined with a hamstring injury which forced him out of the win against West Ham.
However, Connor Bradley and Ibrahima Konate have resumed training as part of the first team to strengthen the defence. Meanwhile, Dominic Szoboszlai is returning from a one-match ban.
Estimated Lineup:
Alison Baker; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Ryan Gravenburch, Alexis McAllister, Mohamed Salah, Curtis Jones, Cody Gakpo; Luis Diaz.
manchester united team news
Marcus Rashford, who has been heavily linked with a move away from the club, will remain out of action due to illness.
United welcome back Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte from suspension. Victor Lindelof, Mason Mount and Luke Shaw are all ruled out through injury.
Estimated Lineup:
Andre Onana; Lisandro Martínez, Matthijs de Ligt, Harry Maguire; Diogo Dalot, Manuel Ugarte, Kobi Manu, Noussair Mazraoui; Bruno Fernandes, Amad Diallo; Rasmus Hjolund.
head to head
This is the 216th meeting between English football’s fiercest rivals, with Manchester United winning on 83 occasions, while Liverpool have emerged victorious on 73 occasions.
United’s only win in their last five fixtures came with a dramatic 4-3 win at Old Trafford in the FA Cup last season.
Their last league win was a 2–1 home win in August 2022 – their only top-flight success against the Reds in 13 games. The last win at Anfield for United was in March 2015, when Juan Mata scored twice, before Daniel Sturridge scored one for the home side.
Next stop: Matchweek 20 🚂 pic.twitter.com/bhpb6jbKzT
– Premier League (@premierleague) 2 January 2025
