Manchester United vs Liverpool is, quite simply, the most awaited fixture in the Premier League. The hype surrounding this game between England’s two biggest teams is always high and even though both clubs are not the European superpowers they once were, the North-West Derby is still the biggest game in England.
Jurgen Klopp’s men could not possibly be coming in to this game at a worse time as they have now gone three games winless for the first time this season. On the other hand, Jose Mourinho and co. have won their past nine games and look nigh unstoppable at the moment.
Also read: EPL 2016/17: Where the Manchester United vs Liverpool clash will be decided
However, form goes out of the window as far as this game is concerned and fans will just be hoping for an exciting game of football.
Here are the 3 key battles in this much-anticipated fixture:
#1 Zlatan Ibrahimovic vs Dejan Lovren and Ragnar Klavan
The arrogant but amazing Zlatan was just recently crowned Premier League’s Player of the Month for November. The Swede has been tearing apart defences and scoring in almost every game, leading Manchester United closer and closer to the top four spots. With 14 goals this season already, the former PSG man is showing no signs of slowing down and will be a massive headache for the Liverpool defence.
Unfortunately for Kopites, while Zlatan has been in top form, the Liverpool defence has been as shaky as a tent in a storm and despite their best efforts, the duo of Lovren and Klavan are just not defensively sound enough to deal with the threat of the intimidating striker.
Individual errors and lack of communication between Liverpool’s centre backs cost the Reds their last game against Southampton and even before that this pairing has barely looked up to scratch, something that has not gone unnoticed with the Liverpool faithful.
Zlatan will spare no one in this game and Liverpool’s defenders have their work cut out, especially these two who will be facing certain doom unless they’re on the very top of their game.
#2 Ander Herrera vs Jordan Henderson
While Herrera has been having the season of his life so far under his new manager, Liverpool’s captain looks like a man reformed this year. These two are arguably two of the best central midfielders in the league right now and it will be interesting to see how two in-form players compete with each other on the pitch.
Both Herrera and Henderson are workhorses, covering every blade of grass on the pitch in order to help their team. Although Herrera has come into his own lately, Liverpool look like a completely different side in the absence of their captain, as was evident in their games against Sunderland and Southampton.
Not only did they have problems unlocking the defence, the passing in the middle of the field looked uncertain and the tempo of their game was poor.
The Englishman is nearly certain to make his return post injury (which he suffered against Manchester City a couple of weeks back), and it will be Herrera’s job to see that the former does not have the space to pick a pass and control the game.
Henderson runs like the wind when fit, and only the Spaniard is capable of tracking him and ensuring his team some safety from the rejuvenated Liverpool captain.
#3 Jose Mourinho vs Jurgen Klopp
Alright, we might be cheating here, but if the past few games have taught us anything, it’s that this particular encounter will be decided more in the dressing room and training grounds than on the pitch itself.
When United visited Anfield earlier this season, the game was a tactical stalemate (and quite honestly, a bore) due to Mourinho parking the bus and Liverpool being unable to break it down. A shot from Coutinho which forced a world class De Gea save and a botched Ibrahimovic chance were the highlights of that game as the Reds were left frustrated and United took away a point.
In the past few games, Mourinho’s men have been playing some freestyle, enjoyable football that the fans have missed since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson. Liverpool, on the other hand, have been average since their loss against Bournemouth and as seen recently against Southampton, Plymouth, and Sunderland, they have been unable to break down sound defensive units and the absence of Sadio Mane only hampers them further.
When City came to Anfield on New Year’s Eve and attempted to play free flowing football, the Reds caught them on the break and won the game. The question then that Mourinho needs to ask himself is whether he should deploy a defensive approach. Sure, at Anfield it worked well, but to play like that at Old Trafford would be against the very nature of United’s footballing brand.
But if his team do play the way they have been in the past few games, Liverpool will be free to counter and it might actually work in their favour, as Chelsea, Arsenal and City have already found out this season.
Klopp needs to sort out his midfield and attack too, and will himself be in a dilemma as to whether to play Can and go with Firmino as a false 9 or start either Sturridge or Origi.
At the end of the day, this game could go either way and even though United are favourites to win, taking Liverpool for granted is something no one will do and we can expect a high octane 90 minutes as the two rivals battle it out.
