Tomorrow at 12:30 GMT Liverpool will visit Old Trafford and take on old rivals Manchester United in what for me will always be the biggest game of the season.
No matter where each team is placed in the league or what was at stake it was always ingrained in me from an early age that we HAD to beat Manchester United! Going into school the day after Danny Murphy had scored the winner against United were some of the happiest feelings of my childhood, while late goals from Wes Brown and Rio Ferdinhand to snatch the points for United still bring painful memories flooding back. It is a rivalry that goes back hundreds of years and extends beyond typical football competitors, I hope to some day go into more detail and post a blog about the rivalry but in the meantime I will focus on the match tomorrow.
With just 2 points between them in the league for 2nd and 3rd spot and with Spurs and Chelsea breathing down their necks to occupy the top 4 it is a game with plenty at stake despite both being well behind Manchester City who have all but wrapped up the league title. Man United have 62 points with a goal difference of 34, Liverpool have 60 points and 35 goal difference and with both teams boasting really great form this may be the most evenly balanced and competitive encounter between the two legendary clubs in years.
Team News
United have several injury concerns ahead of the game with Jones, Blind and Herrara set to miss as well as possibly Martial. They will be boosted by the possible return to fitness of Belgian Fellani who is a favourite of Mourinho and sure to play if he is fit.
It's mostly good news for Liverpool regarding injuries while right back Clyne is not yet fit they should have Robertson fit again and Henderson seems to have shrugged off his slight knock from the last game and will be available. Recent absentee Wijnaldum is also ready to return after being out sick with a bug.
Source The Managers Mourinho and Klopp
Jose Vs. Klopp
As well as being an epic battle between two great teams it also see's two of the top managers in the game face off, the pair have met 8 times previously and it is the German who seems to have the edge when it comes to head to head encounters. He has won 3 of their encounters and 4 have ended in draws leaving Mourinho with just 1 win against Klopp, and that was a second leg of a Champions League tie which saw Klopp progress on aggregate.
While both managers are regarded as two of the best in the game and have guided their team to almost identical positions this season they go about things in almost polar opposite ways. Jurgen Klopp likes his team to play 'heavy metal football' focusing mainly on blitzing the opponents with aggressive pressing and a constant emphasis on attack. Mourinho leans the other way and focuses on controlling games, being solid defensively and often 'parks the bus' in order to stop teams.
While Klopp has the edge between their personal encounters and has his team playing a style often praised Mourinho will likely point to his trophy haul over the years and may suggest that his style while not as entertaining to watch gets the job done more effectively.
Source Matic after recent winner
Form
United very easily could have been coming into this game off the back of a humiliating defeat after a dismal first half performance against Crystal Palace in their last game. They played terribly, went into the break 1-0 down and then let in another shortly after half time. But with goals from Smalling, Lukaku and an injury time winner from Matic they staged a miraculous comeback to reclaim 2nd spot.
They have a really impressive home record this season with only 1 defeat to Manchester City and 2 draws around the busy festive period. Other than those 3 games they have won every other home game this season and have only conceded 1 goal in their last 5 at home.
Similar to United, Liverpool have a really impressive home record and it is on their travels where they have been slipping up most of the time this season especially against teams from the top 6. Man City beat them 5-0, Spurs 4-1 while Arsenal drew 3-3. On top of that they have also dropped points away to Watford, Newcastle and were defeated by Swansea.
Since that Swansea loss though Liverpool have looked a more solid team overall and in the 3 away games since then they have won all of them, with 3 clean sheets while scoring 10 goals.
Man U have proven to be difficult to be broken down at home this season only 6 teams have managed to score against them at home this season and only Manchester City with 2 have been able to score more than 1. This could be put to the test by Liverpool as the Reds have scored 2 or more goals away from home in 14 out of 20 away games this season.
Source Key to their success De gea
Key Players
The stand out player in United for me is David de Gea in goal, in my opinion he is the best goalkeeper in the world and is largely responsible for his team being in the position they are in. When the rest of the team have under performed De Gea has been highly consistent and keeps them in games by making world class saves other keepers wouldn't, including the previous game against Liverpool this season which ended 0-0 after Liverpool's attackers couldn't put one of their many shots past the Spaniard.
Beyond De Gea Man United have other world class players Paul Pogba in midfield can be a powerhouse and despite recent reports of a fall out with Mourinho he has not been in bad form this season providing 9 assists for his team mates. New signing from Arsenal Alexis Sanchez is a big threat, he works hard off the ball and is constantly on the move making him a nightmare for defenders to keep track of. Their top scorer this season has been the big Belgian Romelu Lukaku, he has sometimes been criticized for not performing in big games but was instrumental in the 2-1 victory over Chelsea with a goal and assist and has 14 so far this season.
Source Kop star Mo Salah
When Liverpool lost Phillipe Coutinho in the transfer window there was some fear how they would cope without their star man. But Egyptian Mo Salah has stepped up and taken the role in his stride, he was already having a decent season but ramped it up even more bagging 7 goals in 7 league games while also providing 3 assists. With 23 and 8 assists overall he is the Premier League top scorer and will be aiming to keep his run going as he continues to smash a new record seemingly every time he kicks the ball.
With Salah up front are Liverpool's other danger men, Saido Mane and Roberto Firmino. The stats may say different but Mane hasn't had the best season and at times looked a little low on confidence, he has perked up recently since a hat trick against Porto but still seems to squander easy opportunities, if he learns to compose himself and start putting them away he could very easily be scoring at a similar rate to Salah. Roberto Firmino is not the typical central striker and was initially played in midfield when he came to Liverpool. But with his incredible work off the ball and hold up play he was perfect to be the man in between the 2 pacey Africans. This season he has added more to his game and has a really impressive record of 23 goals, 10 assists from 43 games overall.
As well as the big 3 up top Liverpool also now possess a star at the back too in record signing Virgil van Dijk, it is clear why Klopp was desperate for him and he's transformed Liverpool since arriving helping keep clean sheets against his former club, Porto and Newcastle in his last game. Previously Liverpool seemed to lack leadership and strength at the back but now with Virgil in their defense they have someone who can compete with the likes of Lukaku and Fellini.
How I see the game going
Klopp only sets his team out to play one way and will be looking for more goals away from home and keep their recent run going. Mourinho is a smart enough manager to know he cannot fight fire with fire and look to take Liverpool on and so will set up his team to contain and frustrate them. I have not been impressed when I have seen Man U lately though and do think they are there for the taking, whether Liverpool can overcome the final obstacle and get the ball past De Gea will be the deciding factor.
I am hoping for a big win for Liverpool to jump ahead into 2nd but I think that we may have a nervy game that will remain on a knife edge for the whole 90 minutes.
Prediction - Draw 1-1
Please let me know how you think it will go and what the score will be. Thanks for reading and enjoy the game!