Joe Apu
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp still smarting a champions league qualification will storm Old Trafford today banking on Egyptian star, Mo Salah to wreck the Red devils as Manchester United and Liverpool go into battle for second place in the Premier League.
Mo Salah has scored in each of his last five Premier League games; only Daniel Sturridge (8 in February 2014) and Michael Owen (6 in April 2003) have scored in more consecutively for Liverpool in the competition.
With Manchester City cantering towards the title, it is left to Pep Guardiola’s rivals to offer the excitement of a race to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League.
United and Liverpool have been trading second place for a few weekends now, and today’s early kick-off will once again pit Jose Mourinho’s cautious tactical approach against Jurgen Klopp’s all-out attack.
Mourinho is not going to rush back Zlatan Ibrahimovic, despite the United manager expecting this to be the striker’s last season at the club.
Klopp only has two injury concerns for Liverpool, with Georginio Wijnaldum likely to miss out with illness and Nathaniel Clyne still working back from a back injury.
This will be the 170th meeting in league competition between these sides – Manchester United have won 67 to Liverpool’s 55 (47 draws).
Liverpool have lost more league matches against Manchester United than they have vs any other side in their history (67).
Two of the last three league meetings between these sides have ended goalless.
The last three league meetings between the sides have ended level; they’ve never drawn four consecutively against each other in league competition, last doing three in a row in February 1921.
Manchester United have won 10 of their last 13 Premier League home games against Liverpool.
However, only Man City and Chelsea (6 each) have won more Premier League games away at Old Trafford than Liverpool (5).
No side has scored more away league goals in the big five European leagues this season than Liverpool.
Manchester United have won three of their seven games against fellow ‘big six’ sides in the Premier League this season (W3 D1 L3), one more than they managed in the whole of last season (W2 D4 L4). Romelu Lukaku has scored 99 Premier League goals; if he scores in this game he’ll be the 5th youngest player to reach 100 in the competition, and the second player to score his milestone goal against Liverpool (after Harry Kane earlier this season).