Liverpool are strong favourites to beat Man United this weekend for a reason, with their rivals a mess both on and off the pitch.
Arne Slot‘s side take on their biggest adversaries in the Premier League on Sunday, as they look to continue their march towards title glory.
Liverpool are vastly superior to Man United but this fixture is forever unpredictable, with the Reds failing to beat them three times last season.
The Red Devils are embarking on a new journey under Ruben Amorim, but he hasn’t yet had a big impact, with his side still languishing in 14th place in the table.
This Is Anfield’s Henry Jackson spoke to Man United fan Kadeem Simmonds (@KadeemSimmonds) who wasn’t optimistic about his team’s chances.
How would you assess Man United’s season?
To say it’s been disappointing would be an understatement but at this point, seasons like this are becoming the norm.
The decision to stick with Erik ten Hag was the wrong one – something I said in the immediate aftermath of the FA Cup final win over Man City – and while saying that it set the team back 10 years is hyperbole, it will take a few summers to right the wrongs.
Despite what is happening on the pitch, the off-field issues are more concerning but not surprising if you have paid attention to what Jim Ratcliffe does when it comes to making people redundant and slashing his workforces.
Forget the results, Man United need to treat their workers better, and cutting funding to charities and making a quarter of the workforce redundant when you are paying multiple bad players over £100,000 a week is the bigger issue.
Clean up the stuff off the field and United might stand a chance of doing something half decent on it.
How has Ruben Amorim fared so far? Right man for the job?
United look less open without the ball and are starting to look more cohesive with it. None of that matters if they don’t learn how to defend set-pieces, though.
Their xG against is great, but all the silly goals from corners undoes all the hard work United have done in limiting teams’ shots on goal.
While he may be the right man in the long-term, if performances don’t improve in the short-term, then it won’t matter.
Low expectations have many praying for a top-half finish, which at this point seems like the best case scenario.
What’s the aim for the season now?
It depends on who you speak to.
Some fans are making jokes about avoiding relegation, while others are still holding out hope for a finish in the top eight and securing European football next season.
A top-half finish should be the medium-term plan, and a fairly decent run in Europe while moving closer to what Amorim wants on the pitch.
Essentially, be this season’s Chelsea and finish the season as strongly as possible so you have something to build on in the summer.
Who have been Man United’s best and worst players? Is it time to sell plenty?
Selling plenty may help but we all know it won’t happen in one window.
Getting rid of players like Marcus Rashford, Antony, Tyrell Malacia, Victor Lindelof, Casemiro and Christian Eriksen should be the starting blocks of who leaves in the next two windows.
Our best player has been Amad Diallo by a long shot, but the worst player is a tough one as nobody has been horrible – people could point to Rashford but he hasn’t actually been that bad.
Diogo Dalot probably stands out simply because he looks out of place as a wing-back and his end product has halted a lot of good United attacks.
A special mention to Noussair Mazraoui as one of the best players and Joshua Zirkzee as the worst, although being replaced after 30 minutes against Newcastle was a shame.
It’s tough to see how he bounces back from something like that.
What are your thoughts on Arne Slot at Liverpool?
To say it’s been spectacular is an understatement. No one expected Arne Slot to come in and take to the Premier League like a duck to water.
Man City’s decline shouldn’t take away just how impressive Liverpool have been. He’s the right man for the job and I can only see them getting better.
How do you assess the title race?
There isn’t one, and that’s no offence to Nottingham Forest who deserve to be in second place.
Arsenal and Man City have been disappointing to various degrees, and the gap already seems too big for either to catch up.
Assuming Liverpool don’t collapse, this should be a title win in Slot’s debut season and possibly the perfect send-off for Van Dijk, Trent and Salah.
What are your best and worst memories of games against Liverpool?
My favourite memory is Steven Gerrard’s final game, given that he comes off the bench and gets sent off almost immediately.
As for my worst, it’s the 7-0 at Anfield a couple of seasons ago – just brutal from start to finish.
What’s your prediction?
Liverpool 3-0 Man United.
We haven’t scored at Anfield for years and I can’t see that changing this weekend.
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