Liverpool maintained their position in the Premier League’s top four on Thursday as they secured a creditable point away at league leaders Arsenal.
The Reds have quickly had to readjust their aims for the season having fallen far short of an expected title challenge.
Instead, a place in next season’s Champions League is now the aim, with a battle against the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, Newcastle and Aston Villa set to begin.
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It remains to be seen who Liverpool‘s closest challengers are likely to be, but as they sit only two points behind them in sixth position, United will pose a significant threat despite choosing to sack manager Ruben Amorim this week.
After watching the Reds pick up a point against Arsenal, Man United legends Roy Keane and Gary Neville have given their prediction on which of English football’s two most successful clubs will finish higher this season.
Liverpool backed to finish ahead of Man United
Heading into the season, Liverpool finishing ahead of Man United should have been a virtual guarantee. The Reds were likely title defenders while the Red Devils were aiming for a top-four finish.
And while things have clearly changed drastically over the last five months, both Keane and Neville still believe Arne Slot’s team have the upper hand.
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“Yes,” Keane answered on Sky Sports when asked if Liverpool will finish above United. “Obviously it depends on the manager and recruitment [at United] in the next few weeks.
“Liverpool have gone through a difficult spell, I could be wrong, United have potential going forward but defensively as bad as Liverpool have been, United have been worse. If you’re asking me, which you are, I think Liverpool will finish ahead of United.”
“I said no five or six weeks ago, because I looked at United’s next six games against teams losing games all over the place, and I think they picked up five points out of 18, they should have had 10, 11, 12,” Neville said.
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“I think they’ve missed their opportunity to steal ahead of Liverpool in a period they were struggling. Now I don’t think they will.”
Where will Liverpool finish this season?
Despite Liverpool sitting in the top four for now, the Premier League table really is incredibly tight as things stand.
There are only six points separating Liverpool in fourth from Everton down in 12th. A couple of bad results and the Reds could tumble down the table.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 4 |  LiverpoolLiverpool | 21 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 32 | 28 | 4 | 35 |
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 7 |  Manchester UnitedManchester United | 21 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 36 | 32 | 4 | 32 |
Conversely, Slot’s team are eight points behind both Man City and Aston Villa in second and third respectively. The same amount of points the other way and you reach Tottenham down in 14th.
So, while Keane and Neville are right to be confident about Liverpool’s chances of finishing above United, there is still plenty of time left for this to swing.
Thursday’s performance was a step in the right direction for Liverpool, but in order to secure a top-four finish they must find more consistency. A win at Old Trafford to avenge October’s miserable defeat against United also wouldn’t go amiss.
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