Liverpool head to Old Trafford this Sunday brimming with momentum, buoyed by a decisive run that has put Champions League qualification within touching distance.
Having navigated a high-stakes Merseyside Derby victory over Everton and finally exercised their demons against Crystal Palace, a side that had recently evolved into a genuine bogey team for Arne Slot’s men, the Reds arrive in Manchester on the hunt for a third consecutive league win.
Indeed, Slot’s side appears to now be out the other side of a wretched run of form that saw them be dumped out of the FA Cup and Champions League in quick succession.
In the here and now, the Reds are hunting down their 18th win in the Premier League this season, with a victory on the road at Michael Carrick’s Manchester United doing their Champions League chances the world of good, as only two more points would need to be obtained to regain access to this exclusive European club.
The current PL top five:
| Position | Club | Games played | Points |
| 1st | Arsenal | 34 | 73 |
| 2nd | Manchester City | 33 | 70 |
| 3rd | Man Utd | 34 | 61 |
| 4th | Liverpool | 34 | 58 |
| 5th | Aston Villa | 34 | 58 |
United won’t just roll over to defeat, though, as Carrick has transformed the 20-time Premier League champions into a formidable beast, when they once looked timid and lost under previous regimes, with third spot in the division currently occupied by the Red Devils.
Liverpool will be aiming to leapfrog their sworn enemy on Sunday, though, with everything you need to know ahead of the entertaining clash below.
How to watch
The Sunday afternoon showdown between two of English football’s fiercest rivals will be shown on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League, with the kick-off time at 3:30 pm (BST).
The pre-match coverage starts on Sky Sports Main Event from 2 pm, with the Sky Sports Premier League pre-match build-up starting a little later, at 2:30 pm
Recent form
Manchester United (Home Team)
Heading into this encounter at Old Trafford, Carrick will be confident his team can notch up another win against Liverpool this season, having won earlier in the season at Anfield 2-1, when Ruben Amorim was at the helm.
Across their last five games in all competitions, Carrick’s side have picked up three wins, a draw, and just one defeat, with that loss coming at the hands of Leeds United, unexpectedly, in mid-April.
Other than this blip against Daniel Farke’s Whites, the Red Devils have largely impressed in recent matches, with back-to-back wins under their belt in the Premier League, having overcome Brentford 2-1 on Monday night, after edging Liam Rosenior ever closer to the Chelsea exit door with an equally slim 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
Liverpool (Away Team)
After a rocky period in March and early April, Liverpool’s resurgence has been fueled by newfound resilience.
The 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace last weekend was particularly symbolic; after suffering a string of frustrating results against the Eagles earlier in the season, Slot’s side showed the tactical maturity to kill the game off late through Florian Wirtz.
Despite their recent surge, a lingering concern remains: the Reds have managed just a single victory in their last five outings away from Anfield.
It is a record on the road Arne Slot will be desperate to rectify at the Theatre of Dreams. He’ll be praying his side can channel the same grit and fire they displayed during that breathless 2-1 victory at Everton, which was a performance defined by the kind of impassioned intensity that has often been the difference-maker in this fixture.
After all, a clash with United carries the same seismic weight as a Merseyside Derby, with the two giants having traded blows in some truly unforgettable encounters in recent years. This fixture remains one of football’s ultimate, and with both sides currently locked in a high-stakes battle for league position, Sunday promises to add another storied chapter to their long-standing rivalry.
Head-to-head results
Liverpool versus Manchester United is a guaranteed Premier League staple, with neither team falling to the Championship in their respective histories.
Staggeringly, across both their histories, the two teams have faced each other a bumper 245 times, with the Red Devils just holding the edge.
United come out on top with 92 wins, next to Liverpool’s slightly lesser 82, meaning there have also been 71 draws over the years.
Liverpool vs Utd overall head-to-head:
| Matches played | Liverpool wins | Draws | United wins |
| 245 | 82 | 71 | 92 |
Across their last five meetings, home and away, the Reds have only won once.
Yet, if the reigning Premier League champions were to win on Sunday, Slot would enter the history books as the first-ever Liverpool manager to collect back-to-back away wins at Old Trafford, having steered his side to a convincing 3-0 win in Manchester last season, on the way to his unbelievable debut Premier League title.
He has a very long list of injuries that won’t help his chances, however.
Team news
United: Matheus Cunha (doubt), Matthijs de Ligt (out), and Lisandro Martinez (suspended)
Liverpool: Hugo Ekitike (out), Giorgi Mamardashvili (out), Wataru Endo (out), Conor Bradley (out), Giovanni Leoni (out), Jayden Danns (out), Stefan Bajcetic (out), Alisson Becker (out), and Mohamed Salah (out)
Predicted lineups
United (4-2-3-1): Lammens; Dalot, Maguire, Heaven, Yoro; Casemiro, Mainoo; Mbeumo, Bruno Fernandes, Amad; Sesko
Liverpool: (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Jones, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szoboszlai, Mac Allister; Nguhoma, Wirtz, Gakpo; Isak
What has been said
Michael Carrick (Man Utd):
Carrick spoke at length about the magnitude of the fierce match-up in his pre-match press conference on Friday, with the stand-in Red Devils boss hailing it as one of his favourite games to be involved in.
He said: “It’s certainly one of my favourite games, yeah, without a doubt. It’s a standout game, there’s big games and big rivalries that we have with other teams.
“Certainly, this one is right up there and the history and the ups and downs that the past has produced in these types of games, the excitement, the entertainment and the emotion – which is a huge part of it – make it a really special game.”
He also spoke of the opportunity for United to finish ahead of their arch rivals in the league standings, which is an impressive achievement, considering Liverpool’s Premier League honours just last campaign.
He further said, when quizzed on respective league positions: “I think it shows the big improvement as a group really, and getting stronger. To be coming into this game in such a good position, on the back of good results and trying to achieve, moving forward.
“I’m fully aware of the situation in the league and how close it is between us, but that’s not something we’re really focused on going into this game. I think it’s a one-off game, they’ve got terrific players, they’re a good team and they won the league last year.
We obviously respect everything that goes into the game. We’re treating it as that: as a one-off game. The league position is what it is, but Sunday is a whole different ball game.”
Arne Slot (Liverpool):
Slot also spoke on the importance of the game on Sunday, not just because it’s two Premier League heavyweights clashing, but also because it represents a great chance for the Reds to leapfrog the hosts with a win.
He said: “I think it’s always like that, every game you play has influence on your league position. So that’s not only when you play Man United, it’s every week in every game.
“But we are aware of the fact that it’s a very big game, not only because we play Man United, but definitely also to qualify for the Champions League and to get the highest possible position in the league table, which of course is something we want.
We wanted to, of course, win the league. That’s not possible. And then you have to try to end up as high as possible, and that’s what we are trying week in, week out, and that’s what we’re going to try Sunday again as well.”
Additionally, the Dutchman took time out to praise his troops, who have been put through the wringer this season, with three wins on the spin in all competitions, pleasing the under-pressure head coach.
He added: “But performance-wise, I don’t think it has been our three best performances of this season. So, we can play much better.
“We’ve shown already that we can play much better. But in many of these games we were very unlucky with the outcome of the game. I think in the last three games, I wouldn’t say we did not deserve to win, but we were more lucky than we’ve ever been this season.”
