Liverpool are hot favourites to break free from discordant Man United

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  • Liverpool and Manchester United is meant to represent the zenith of English football.

    For Sunday’s hosts, this has become the case during a resounding 2018/19. For United, a precipitous decline sees them head west with a sense of dread about what is to come.

    Here is Sport360’s preview for this rancorous Premier League clash:

    TALKING POINT

    Moving in opposite directions

    Rarely has the contrast between these great rivals been so stark.

    Liverpool come into this 201st derby in a neck-and-neck battle with Manchester City for Premier League glory, plus they impressively booked their place in the Champions League’s knockouts midweek with an authoritative 1-0 victory against Napoli. Manager Jurgen Klopp can do no wrong as a quest to end his trophy drought on Merseyside picks up pace.

    Opponents United are a mess. A limp 2-1 defeat – a seventh loss in all competitions during 2018/19 – at Valencia on Wednesday saw a golden opportunity spurned to finish as UCL table toppers in Group H.

    This painful reversal, with a much-changed side, killed momentum gained in last weekend’s 4-1 home victory against Fulham, albeit this result still left them 16 points off the new top-flight leaders Liverpool with 16 games played.

    Sunday’s hosts represent a club in unison, from the boardroom to the pitch. United are a picture of discord and mismanagement, exemplified by £89.9 million midfielder Paul Pogba’s current status as persona non grata under boss Jose Mourinho.

    It speaks volumes that United’s diminished horizons means frustrating Liverpool is the best they can, conceivably, hope for. The attainment of a fourth top-flight clean sheet in a row at Anfield is the height of current ambitions.

    But centre-back Phil Jones’ comical own goal at Valencia showcased the difficulty of this limited approach.

    Klopp will be confident he has added a necessary pragmatism that will end his club’s run without victory on home soil in this fixture since September 2013.

    Even amid the dialling down from last term’s entertainers, Liverpool’s attack has outscored United’s in the top flight 34-28. Klopp’s defence has also been breached just six times in the league, United must add 20 to this figure.

    Moans about Mourinho could reach a searing pitch if, expected, humiliation at Anfield follows.

    KEY BATTLE

    Dejan Lovren v Marcus Rashford

    Liverpool’s impervious defence is showing signs of cracking.

    Their opponents, however, aren’t doing the damage. Structural weakness has been caused by injuries to Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, meaning that Dejan Lovren should line-up against United.

    He has only started four times in the top flight during 2018/19. But the Croatia international’s average tackles of two per Premier League game is far superior to any other Liverpool centre-back; Gomez is next with 1.3.

    Similarly for aerials won, his average of 5.8 per game heads a field from which Virgil van Dijk is second with 4.4. If Lovren manages to retain his composure, even a reserve should put the brakes on United’s attacking ambition.

    With doubts continuing to swirl around the lumbering Romelu Lukaku, Manchester’s own Marcus Rashford should lead the charge on enemy territory.

    The England striker has entered a hot run of recent form, scoring twice and notching four assists in his last four appearances. The latest came with a resounding header, although a late consolation, at Valencia.

    Prior to this quartet of matches, Rashford had scored once in 10 run-outs for club and country.

    Mourinho has used a two-man or three-man attack in every game this month. This switch has been to the benefit of Rashford, who’ll need to scamper past Liverpool’s powerful centre-backs.

    WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY

    Klopp: “It’s a big one. It is a very important game and it is very special.

    “When I was back in Germany, I tried everything I could to watch it. Very often it was very intense. Now I’m here, it’s always tight.

    “In Europe, we were good against them and I don’t remember bad results too much.”

    Mourinho:  “We know that we are going to play against the leader, against a team on a high.

    “But we have our qualities, we have our potential and even with the problems we have and the doubts in terms of team choice, of tactics, approach, philosophy, we have doubts about everything, but we are going to arrive with the players we have available and going to have a team capable of going there and fight for the victory.”

    VERDICT

    Recent history in this rivalry is against Liverpool, but everything else points to them attaining glory on Sunday.

    They are superior in defence, midfield and attack. Even United’s sublime Spain goalkeeper David De Gea has entered a trough in form which places Brazil’s Alisson as currently superior.

    A mauling on Merseyside awaits.

    Liverpool 2-0 Manchester United

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