Preview: Manchester United vs Liverpool

8 months ago 172

Liverpool FC v Manchester United - Premier League Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Liverpool head down to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup.


MANCHESTER UNITED VS. LIVERPOOL

| Sunday, March 17th |
FA Cup | Old Trafford
4:30PM GMT/11:30AM EST

After playing out a disappointing draw with Manchester City in the Premier League, Liverpool head down to Old Trafford to take on City’s rowdy neighbors in the FA Cup quarterfinals.

Liverpool made it into the quarterfinals of the Europa League on Thursday and look to continue on in another cup on Sunday. Liverpool have scored 10 and conceded two goals in the three games of their FA Cup so far. Most recently, they beat Southampton 3-0 to reach this point.

Manchester United got into the quarterfinals through a late winner by Casemiro against Nottingham Forest to snatch a 1-0 win. Sunday’s match will be their first home game in the competition this year.

It’s hard to predict the outcome with Liverpool and Manchester United meet due to the rivalry that exists between the two teams. Liverpool are currently fighting a battle for the Premier League title and are still in the Europa League. United, on the other hand, will have had a whole week to rest and have their work cut out for them to make it into the top four.

The priorities of the two teams could be a factor in this. United, and particularly Erik ten Hag, their struggling manager, are feeling the pressure to perform well. A win that also knocks Liverpool out of a competition would help with that.

However, as the Reds are in the middle of the Jürgen Klopp goodbye tour, they may push hard for the chance to earn the well-loved manager another trophy.


Predicted Liverpool Lineup (4-3-3)

Kelleher; Bradley, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Mac Allister, Endo, Szoboszlai; Salah, Núñez, Díaz


I could predict a weaker starting XI, but I think that Klopp will field a strong crew, especially with the international break that follows.

At this point, we can probably all recite the injury list by heart. Missing from Liverpool’s line up will be: Stefan Bajcetic, Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota, Ben Doak, Joel Matip, Alisson Becker, Curtis Jones, and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Ibrahima Konaté will also likely be unavailable. The good news is Salah returning to the team, and Ryan Gravenberch also being likely ready.

For Manchester United, Anthony Martial, Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia, and Lisandro Martinez will all be out. Omari Forson, Harry Maguire, and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are all doubtful for Sunday.


What the Managers Had to Say

Jurgen Klopp: “Erik ten Hag is a really good manager. He will prepare them, he knows exactly how we play, so there we will face some challenges we don’t know in the moment, that’s how it is. We don’t have this time to prepare like this for an opponent and have to be ready anyway.”

Erik ten Hag: “They are very consistent. They play good football, have very good performances and get very good results.”


The Officials

Referee: John Brooks. Assistant referees: Lee Betts & Timothy Wood. Fourth official: Anthony Taylor. VAR: Tim Robinson. Support VAR: Christopher Kavanagh. Assistant VAR: Edward Smart


If you haven’t done so already, take a moment to sign up for an SB Nation account and join the community at The Liverpool Offside, where we’ll bring you and your fellow Reds fans from around the world full coverage of every Liverpool match from the 2023-24 season in the Premier League, Europa League, and domestic cups along with breaking news, insight and opinion, tactical discussion, and post-match reaction

Read Entire Article