A match between two traditional rivals, this particular one is partially overshadowed by the events surrounding the Hillsborough incident. Both come into the game after wins in Europe but both will be concerned about how easily their defence was split apart.
Liverpool should have all their big name players back after they were rested in Europe. they should continue their 4-3-3 formation. The weaker points of the first team squad lies in Shelvey(though I missed out on the mid-week game where I heard he was awesome) and Borini(a striker brought in to solve their lack of scores must score way more often). For Shelvey's spot, Sahin can replace him though his defending is a bit suspect at times but he should help to make the game flow more smoothly in Liverpool's favour but I really cannot see any player of Liverpool able to take over Borini's spot with much improvement. Anyway, there is no indication that Brendan Rodgers will drop him so the point is moot but if I was him I will put Henderson there who will at least provide some extra endeavor. Liverpool's centre back pairing of Skrtel and Agger should do decently against United as both are pretty mobile, which is very very important against United's midfield runners and wingers who like to move into central positions to receive chipped passes.
United will look to continue their attacking form from their Champions league encounter, where they attacked with pace and precision and looked to score everytime they got the ball. Their main course of action will be to have their attackers interchange a lot of positions and hopefully drag Liverpool's defenders out of position to leave space for their runners. Kagawa in particular has impressed me with his play this season. Sir Alex Ferguson likes to start Giggs in this big games though, and I'm afraid he will slow down the fast attacking play of United as he is unable to get up fast enough to provide the numbers for their counter attacks. Their suspect defence will leave some food for thought though. Rafael Da Silva will struggle to cope with the Sterling-Johnson combination down the right flank especially if Johnson cuts in as he always does. If he gets an early yellow, I foresee that he will have a lot of trouble for the rest of the game and he is a risky risky figure. Ferdinand needs to play in the game for United to have a better chance of winning because he is a defender that waits for the opponents to come to him instead of getting tight, which will be dangerous when facing Suarez who can turn a defender very easily. As for the goalkeeping dilemma, SAF can probably stick with De gea for this game as Liverpool's route of attacks are unlikely to be from crosses.
Predictions:
If Suarez plays in the space between United's centreback and their sidebacks, this could be a very difficult game for United. Look for Gerrard to burst into the space Suarez creates for him and betters might want to take a Liverpool win and hope their finishing is okay tonight. Also worth a pop is the more than 2.5 goals bet as it is hard to keep United out for the whole game and Liverpool should also be able to put at least 2 past this United defence if they play their cards right. Look out for a red card in the game, that could swing the whole game in either team's favour completely.
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