The moment football lovers have been waiting for is finally here, as Manchester United will be welcoming nemesis Liverpool to Old Trafford in what will be another instalment of the fierce rivalry of England’s most successful clubs today at 5pm.
The stakes will once again be high and maximum points will be there for the taking, in what has been dubbed a battle of the bald-headed Dutchmen in managers Erik ten Hag and new Liverpool gaffer Arne Slot.
Slot and Ten Hag know all about each other from their duels in the Netherlands Eredivisie, having been involved in the Feyenoord Rotterdam and Ajax Amsterdam ‘De Klassieker’ derby.
Despite it being early in the season, the encounter between United and Liverpool is never short of action, goals, and drama in their battle for bragging rights and crucial three points.
With only two games into the new English Premier League season, Ten Hag and his Red Devils have endured a mixed start and are already under pressure.
They won their first game at home 1-0 with a last-minute winner by new signing Joshua Zirkzee against Fulham, which was followed by an upsetting last-gasp 2-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend.
So, they will be hoping to bounce back and return to winning ways, but standing in their way is a Slot-led Liverpool side that goes to Manchester marching with confidence after their back-to-back league wins.
Since taking over the reins from Jurgen Klopp at Merseyside, Slot has laid a good foundation by beating new kids on the block Ipswich Town and Brentford with the same 2-0 scoreline.
For Ten Hag and his United, a victory against their fiercest rivals could just be the perfect remedy to restore momentum, as there already have been questions about the team’s readiness for what is expected to be a busy and challenging season ahead.
The last time the two sides met, was in last season’s FA Cup quarterfinal 4-3 thriller, which saw United get the better of Liverpool and come out as top dogs.
For Slot and his Liverpool, one of the many tasks will then be to reclaim the bragging rights, and what better way to do it than slaying United in their own backyard?
