Liverpool head to Old Trafford on Monday night to take on Manchester United in the Premier League.
Both sides are still in search of their first three points of the season after disappointing starts. For United, they’re looking to bounce back from two damaging losses, while Liverpool look to stop their run of draws.
Jurgen Klopp has a number of injuries still on his plate, as Liverpool try to deal with a depleted squad as best they can.
With Darwin Nunez also suspended, Klopp won’t be able to call on his current top-scorer. As a result, here’s how we expect The Reds to line up in the biggest game of the season so far.
Defence
With all the injuries currently plaguing the squad, Klopp can at least rest easy in the knowledge that Alisson Becker will continue in goal.
In-front of him, Liverpool should also look strong. Trent Alexander-Arnold was excellent last time out against Crystal Palace and will go again on Monday. As will Virgil Van Dijk and Andy Robertson.
The final spot in the defence will go to Joe Gomez. As the only fit member of the trio of top-level options that Klopp has to partner Van Dijk, he’s already been assured of his starting berth.
Midfield
Predicting Liverpool’s midfield for this game is a tough ask. Few would have expected James Milner to start the last game, but that’s exactly what happened.
That decision seemed to be a direct result of Jordan Henderson being not quite fully ready. Having been in training today, Henderson, who Klopp has previously called ‘incredible’ via The Daily Mail, looks like he’ll be back in time.
Fabinho hasn’t been quite at his best recently, but if he’s fit, he’s always needed in the biggest games. That won’t change on Monday.
That leaves the third spot in the midfield relatively open. There have been suggestions that Naby Keita isn’t happy with his current game-time and Klopp could appease him here. But we think the manager will instead keep the impressive Harvey Elliott.
Attack
As with Liverpool’s defence at the moment, the attack is also very straightforward. It’s a case of last man standing for The Reds as both Jota and Nunez sit out.
Instead, Roberto Firmino will get the chance to play on a ground he scored twice at two seasons ago. Interestingly, Firmino also started Liverpool’s 5-0 rout of United on the same pitch last year.
Supplementing Bobby is certain to be Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz. Salah needs no introduction to this fixture, having scored nine times in it over the years. One more will make him Liverpool’s all-time Premier League top-scorer against their great rivals.
Diaz meanwhile is coming off the back of scoring a sensational goal in the last match.
A huge game awaits Liverpool. Three points would kick-start their season. Another failure would mean some worry may start to creep in.
Liverpool’s predicted XI vs Man United: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Van Dijk, Robertson; Fabinho, Elliott, Henderson; Salah, Firmino, Diaz
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