Table of Contents
Staying in the race
At this point of the Premier League campaign for Manchester United, the name of the game is staying alive as they prepare to host Liverpool on Sunday.
In a distant second, they are 10 points back of rivals Manchester City in the Premier League table.
Overtaking City will take some doing as United will need them to have a few slip-ups, but they will also have to handle their business.
Lineup News
Anthony Martial and Phil Jones are out with knee injuries.
David de Gea got the start in their Europa League tie with Roma, which means Dean Henderson should get the call this weekend.
For Liverpool, Nat Phillips will miss his third successive match with a hamstring problem which means midfielder Fabinho may have to fill in defensively.
Jordan Henderson has a groin injury, while Divock Origi is out with a muscle problem.
Unfriendly Hosts
The Red Devils have enjoyed a lot of success at home lately against the 2019-20 Premier League champions.
United have lost only one of their last 15 home games versus Liverpool in all competitions and are unbeaten in their previous eight.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have played the Merseysiders twice this season, with United winning the last match 3-2 in an FA Cup tie.
Comeback Kids
Man United have had no problems coming from behind in the Premier League this season.
The Red Devils have earned 28 points from losing positions.
Only Newcastle in 2001-02 got more points in one EPL campaign when trailing (34).
If United can come back and win on Sunday, they could match or beat a team record in this competition.
Under Sir Alex Ferguson, they earned 29 points in the 2012-13 campaign, the last time they won the league.
Letting it Slip Away
After a dominating 2019-20 campaign that saw them capture the Premier League, Liverpool have struggled.
Last season Jurgen Klopp’s team flew out of the gate and never relinquished their lead.
It’s been the opposite in 2020-21 as the Merceysides can’t seem to hold onto a lead.
They have dropped 15 points from winning positions in this current campaign.
That’s the most for them in a season since 2016-17 when they gave up 18 points after leading.
Loving the road
Before this season, Liverpool were virtually unbeatable at Anfield.
Lately, though they’ve been at their best away from home.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have won five of their last seven away game in the Premier League.
That’s more than they had in their previous 15 EPL games on the road.
Getting in on the action
Marcus Rashford clearly relishes playing the Reds of Liverpool.
The 23-year-old striker and MBE recipient has been involved in five goals in his last four encounters at Old Trafford against Liverpool in all competitions.
Twice in a century
Liverpool haven’t been as sharp this season, but their leading goalscorer Mohamed Salah is not to blame.
The Egyptian has 20 goals in this EPL campaign which is just one less than the league’s leading goalscorer at the moment, Harry Kane.
Salah netted twice in a losing effort in their FA Cup tie from Old Trafford at the start of the year.
If he can find the back of the net on Sunday, he would become only the second Liverpool player to score away against Man United in two different games in one campaign.
The last Liverpool player to do that was Harry Chambers in 1920-21.
Tied Up
The name of the game for Liverpool lately has been ties.
Jurgen Klopp’s team have drawn their last three matches in all competitions.
They have nine draws in the Premier League this season.
Failure to Score
Man United have plenty of scoring threats, but those players have failed to step up when they needed it earlier in the campaign.
The Red Devils have drawn seven league games this season 0-0 including their opening league encounter with Liverpool at Anfield.
Had they been able to notch a few more goals, they may be a lot closer to City in the standings.
Another goalless draw this weekend would put this United team even with the 1980-81 squad that had eight scoreless matches.
Managers Words
Heading into Sunday’s clash, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer talked about the quick turnaround between the Europa League and Premier League and how that may affect his team selection.
“The performance was excellent, but you can see they had two chances and scored two goals. If they get too many chances in Rome, we can’t put ourselves in that position.
“We’ll pick a strong team for that one [the second leg], and on Sunday morning, we’ll have to decide on the Liverpool team because it was a hard game.”
Match Info
Sunday’s game from Old Trafford gets underway at 4:30 pm. (JSL).
