Liverpool will aim to start the second half of the 2024/25 Premier League season on a high, while Manchester United will be desperate for a win at Anfield on Sunday.
Gameweek 20 of the 2024/25 Premier League season will continue on Sunday, which will bring us two matches. The action on the day will begin with the game between Fulham and Ipswich Town at Craven Cottage before ending with Liverpool vs Manchester United at Anfield.
Liverpool could not have asked for a better start to life under Arne Slot. While doubts surfaced after the defeat to Nottingham Forest a month into the 2024/25 season, that has been the only loss for the Merseyside outfit thus far this term across competitions. There has been little stopping the Reds in the Premier League, and they have opened up a six-point gap atop the table while having a game in hand.
On the other hand, Manchester United have become the crisis club in the Premier League this term. Erik ten Hag barely lasted two months into the 2024/25 campaign, and Ruben Amorim has endured a baptism of fire in the last few weeks. Things went from bad to worse as the year ended, with the Red Devils losing three successive games. The horrendous run has left Amorim’s charges 14th in the Premier League standings, only seven points clear of the drop zone.
The reverse fixture saw Liverpool beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford, with Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah finding the back of the net. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Liverpool
Arne Slot has greeted a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Liverpool manager will be bereft of the services of only one first-team player vs Manchester United on Sunday.
Joe Gomez is the latest and only absentee after picking up a hamstring injury this past weekend. However, Conor Bradley (thigh) and Ibrahima Konate (knee) have resumed training and require late fitness tests to determine their availability. In addition, Dominik Szoboszlai is available after serving a suspension.
Alisson Becker will take his spot between the sticks, with Liverpool lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Manchester United on Sunday. The backline should feature Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jarell Quansah, Virgil van Dijk, and Andrew Robertson. Konate should start if Slot deems him fit and ready.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch in the double pivot. Szoboszlai will reprise the no. 10 role, with Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz being the two wide attackers. Finally, Diogo Jota should lead the line for Liverpool against Manchester United, although Cody Gakpo is also a viable candidate for the offensive unit.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah, van Dijk, Robertson; Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Salah, Szoboszlai, Diaz; Jota
Manchester United
Unlike his counterpart in the Liverpool dugout, Ruben Amorim does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of the trip to Anfield. The Manchester United manager will be without four first-team players on Sunday.
Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte are available after serving their suspensions earlier this week against Newcastle United. Victor Lindelof (muscle injury), Luke Shaw (calf), and Mason Mount (hamstring) remain on the sidelines, while Marcus Rashford misses out due to illness.
Andre Onana is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Manchester United lining up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him vs Liverpool on Sunday. The central defensive unit should feature Leny Yoro, Harry Maguire, and Lisandro Martinez.
Noussair Mazraoui and Diogo Dalot should continue as the wing-backs, although Amorim needs more creativity from the duo. The returning Ugarte will pair up with Kobbie Mainoo in the double pivot, while Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo will start as the two playmakers. Finally, Rasmus Hojlund will spearhead the Manchester United attack against Liverpool.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Onana; Yoro, Maguire, Martinez; Mazraoui, Mainoo, Ugarte, Dalot; Diallo, Bruno Fernandes; Hojlund
Key Stats
- Liverpool’s only defeat in their last 13 Premier League games vs Manchester United (W7 D5) was a 2-1 loss at Old Trafford in August 2022. The Red Devils’ run of eight away league games without a victory at Anfield (D4 L4) is their longest since a sequence of nine winless games at Anfield between 1970 and 1979.
- Liverpool will begin a New Year atop the Premier League table for the seventh time and for the fifth occasion in seven seasons. However, only in 2019/20 did they win the title.
- Liverpool have lost just one of 27 matches under Arne Slot (W23 D3), and they are unbeaten in 23 outings. The only match Arne Slot lost across his matches in charge of Feyenoord and Liverpool in 2024 was for the Reds against Nottingham Forest in September (P52 W42 D9 L1).
- Manchester United are looking to avoid losing four league games in a row in the same season since 1979. They last suffered four defeats in a row without scoring in 1909.
- Since Ruben Amorim’s first game in charge on 24 November, only Southampton (seven) have lost more matches in all competitions than Manchester United (six). The Red Devils have conceded a joint division-high 21 goals along with Tottenham. Meanwhile, they have collected only seven Premier League points from a possible 24 (W2 D1 L5) under Amorim.
Player to Watch
Mohamed Salah
While the returning Bruno Fernandes was a viable candidate for this section, we have picked Mohamed Salah as our Player to Watch. The Liverpool talisman has an exceptional record vs Manchester United, scoring more goals (12) and providing more assists (six) against the Red Devils than any other player in Premier League history.
Salah has scored and assisted in eight top-flight games this season, already the most by a player in a single Premier League campaign. The Egyptian international has 17 goals and 13 assists in only 18 Premier League games in 2024/25, the fewest appearances a player has needed to reach 30 goal involvements in a Premier League season.
With Salah suggesting this week that he will leave Liverpool when the 2024/25 season ends despite contradictory claims by widespread reports, he will be eager to continue stamping his authority. Expect him to break and add to more records against a hapless Manchester United this weekend.
Prediction
Liverpool 3-0 Manchester United
Only one result is believable heading into Sunday’s match between Liverpool and Manchester United. The two fierce rivals have engaged in a one-sided feud in recent seasons, with the Reds having the upper hand on their visitors.
In addition, goals have been hard to come by for Manchester United in recent outings, with the team struggling to gel in the final third. While the away side will not concede many chances from open play, they will struggle to keep Liverpool at bay for long periods. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-0 win for Arne Slot and his charges, with Mohamed Salah extending his exceptional record against Manchester United.
