Always a monster clash, Manchester United host Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday with both teams hoping for a massive boost early in the season.
[ MORE: Prediction for Manchester United vs Liverpool ]
Erik ten Hag’s United are struggling with defensive injuries (what’s new?) and need to rebound from their late defeat at Brighton last weekend. Will the new signings start in this huge game? Can they get the balance right without Rasmus Hojlund up top?
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Liverpool boss Arne Slot has overseen two routine wins to kick off his time in charge of the Reds and there’s a very clear switch in their style of play. Liverpool will possess the ball more and won’t be as open on the counter, while Mohamed Salah is thriving in this new system and looks fired up.
[ MORE: Manchester United vs Liverpool preview ]
Below is a look at the possible Manchester United vs Liverpool starting lineups, with analysis on who could start where and why.
Manchester United lineup (4-2-3-1 formation)
——- Onana ——-
—- Mazraoui —- De Ligt — Martinez —- Dalot —-
—— Casemiro —— Mainoo ——
—- Garnacho —- Fernandes —- Rashford —-
——- Zirkzee ——-
The big decisions for Erik ten Hag are up front and at center back. With Luke Shaw out it’s likely that Dalot will stay at left back and Mazraoui will start at right back, while the big decision is who starts alongside Lisandro Martinez at center back. It’s a big ask to bring Matthijs de Ligt in for his first start in a game of this magnitude, but should he start ahead of Harry Maguire? Why not? The latter has experience but looked shaky at Brighton last weekend and De Ligt has now had time to settle in at United. With Leny Yoro and Victor Lindelof both out injured, now seems like the right time for De Ligt to start ahead of Maguire and stake his claim. In midfield the duo of Casemiro and Mainoo will continue in the holding roles, while ahead of them it gets very interesting. How can you not start Alejandro Garnacho given his performances off the bench? He may come in for Amad Diallo, while Rashford is likely to continue on the left given his big-game experience. Bruno Fernandes will start just under Joshua Zirzkee who will play as a false nine. With Rasmus Hojlund out injured, Erik ten Hag will go with the 4-2-3-1 system which basically operates as a 4-2-4. It has worked well to clog up midfield and stop the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City gaining control of the tempo of the games as Fernandes and Zirkzee will press Liverpool’s two center backs high as a duo and stop them playing out.
Liverpool lineup (4-3-3 formation)
——- Alisson ——-
—- Alexander-Arnold —- Konate —- Van Dijk —- Robertson —-
—- Szoboszlai —- Gravenberch —- Mac Allister —-
—- Salah —- Jota —- Diaz —-
Well, not much surprise here. Liverpool look very settled and their usual back four will be in place, with the only real change of the Slot era being Ryan Gravenberch in midfield. The Dutch midfielder will be encouraged to get on the ball deep and that allows Szoboszlai and Mac Allister to push high and support Salah and Diaz on their respective sides of the pitch. Diogo Jota will roam around up top and pick little pockets of space to dart in to, while Salah and Diaz will both be eager to run beyond Jota to stretch United’s defense. With Nunez and Gakpo to come off the bench too, Liverpool have quality forwards who can cause all types of different problems. New signing Federico Chiesa won’t be available for this weekend but he’ll add further layers to Liverpool’s attacking machine.