The meeting of Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield on Sunday evening headlines the 17th round of matches in the 2018/19 Premier League, with Jurgen Klopp’s Reds hoping to consolidate their place at the top of the table.
‘Pool claimed top spot this past weekend after winning 4-0 at Bournemouth (with a hat-trick from Egypt’s Mohamed Salah) and will hope their ascension to the head of the table is reflected when they come up against a United side struggling to challenge for the top four.
Jose Mourinho’s men put up one of their more impressive performances this season when they defeated Fulham 4-1 last Saturday, but such a showing against the team at the bottom of the standings in nothing to get excited about.
The Red Devils lack both defensive stability and attacking prowess – two elements Liverpool are right on top of at present – but they may have one advantage coming into the match: their midweek Champions League match at Valencia is essentially a dead-rubber in which they can field fringe players (United are through to the last 16, the Spanish side will move into the Europa League), while Liverpool face a must-win clash at home to Napoli in which Klopp must play his strongest available team.
Manchester City will be in the strange position of cheering on their cross-town rivals. Pep Guardiola’s side suffered a first defeat of the season this past weekend when they were outfought 2-0 at Chelsea. Yet a win at home to Everton in the early game on Saturday will send them back to the top of the pile and from there they’ll hope Liverpool are stymied at home by the Red Devils.
Other key battles this weekend is a must-win London derby for Fulham at home to West Ham United, with Claudio Ranieri’s team hoping to stop the in-form Hammers in their tracks, while Wilfried Zaha’s Crystal Palace will target a second straight home win when they host Wilfred Ndidi’s Leicester City.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will come up against compatriot Mario Lemina (and fancy his chances of adding to his 10 league goals) when Arsenal take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday, while Chelsea will look to build on their win over Man City with a strong performance on the South Coast against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Key match stats
Liverpool v Manchester United – Head-to-head, Premier League
Matches played 52
Liverpool wins 13
United wins 28
Draws 11
Fulham v West Ham United – Head-to-head, Premier League
Matches played 20
Fulham wins 4
West Ham wins 11
Draws 5
Manchester City v Everton – Head-to-head, Premier League
Matches played 42
City wins 15
Everton wins 18
Draws 9
Add some more excitement to your betting and bet Live In-Play on every Premier League game this weekend
