EPL Preview: Manchester United vs Liverpool, key stats, line-ups, odds, prediction

The unforgiving Premier League fixture pile-up continues for Manchester United this Thursday as they welcome their fierce rivals Liverpool two days after hosting Leicester City.

Stadium: Old Trafford

Key Statistics

The Red Devils last loss to Leicester brought a halt to a run of five consecutive wins at home.
The loss was their first in eleven home matches in all competitions.
The home team have kept just one clean sheet from their last six competitive matches.
Liverpool are unbeaten in six PL games.
They have won three of their last four away games in the League.

Manchester United

Manchester United play their third game in five days when they host top-four chasing Liverpool this Thursday. The game, which was rescheduled due to fan protests, allows the Red Devils to solidify their grip on second place as the season draws to a close.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have qualified for next season’s Champions League but are now looking to finish as high up the table as possible. They will be looking to deny their rivals who are still outside the top four a chance for qualification.

They head into this tie with two losses from their last ten competitive games. Two of those losses have come in the previous three games as the hosts have faced a fixture pile-up in recent games.

Despite a patchy form and the tightness of their fixture schedule, they remain a formidable side on any day. After resting a couple of star names in their last outing, they will hope to start a stronger XI against Liverpool.

However, that XI will not include Anthony Martial and Harry Maguire, who sits out the game due to an injury sustained against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Possible line-ups

Dean Henderson, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Scott McTominay, Fred, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Edinson Cavani.

Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool would have been watching closely on Tuesday evening as Leicester City beat Manchester United to deal a massive blow to the Red’s top-four bid with a 2-1 win over the Red Devils.

Now they have the opportunity to respond to falling seven points behind in the top-four race when they visit Old Trafford this Thursday.

The visitors who need to win all four of their remaining league games stand a chance of CL qualification head into this tie without losing their last six PL games. However, three out of those matches ended in disappointing draws for them.

Their challenge in recent times have been the inability to kill off games and their profligacy in front of goal. They have scored more than once in just three of their last ten competitive matches, with a good share of their goals coming late in the second half.

With United already guaranteed CL football for next season, the visitors is the side with the greater need for a win here. They will hope to put up a big performance and keep their slim chance of a top-four finish alive.

Jurgen Klopp’s injury list remains long, with at least seven first-teamers missing via varying injuries. However, Ozan Kabak and Nat Philips are expected to make the matchday squad after suffering different niggles in recent weeks.

Possible line-ups

Alisson Becker; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Nat Phillips, Ozan Kabak, Andrew Robertson; Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum, Thiago Alcantara; Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane.