'More pressure': Mark Lawrenson predicts Manchester United's result vs Liverpool
BBC football expert Mark Lawrenson has stated his prediction for Sunday’s much-awaited Premier League clash between Manchester United and Liverpool.
The Red Devils have been in a poor run of form in the league with a draw and two defeats in the last three games. They seemed to be heading for another loss against Atalanta in midweek, but made a tremendous comeback from two goals down to win 3-2.
The victory should offer them a boost ahead of the weekend’s meeting against arch rivals Liverpool. The Reds are also on a high after a 3-2 triumph at Atletico Madrid, and Lawrenson believes there could be a share of the spoils (1-1).
He told BBC Sport: “If United had been beaten then that would have been a bonus for Liverpool but, instead, both of them are on a high going into the weekend.”
“There is probably more pressure on United to get a positive result, because they have dropped points in each of their past three league games, but a draw would not be a bad result for either camp and that’s what I’m going for.”
Our view:
United were opened up on several occasions by Atalanta on Wednesday, and they could have quite easily conceded more than twice. Goalkeeper David de Gea came to their rescue with quality saves.
They can’t afford to offer similar chances to the Reds, who have netted eight goals in the last two games across all competitions. It won’t be a surprise if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer prefers his counter-attacking approach.
The Reds’ full-backs like to make regular overlapping runs, and United could capitalise on the space behind them. Trent Alexander-Arnold is a potential weak link in the Reds’ backline.
Marcus Rashford has had the edge over the right-back in past meetings. However, the 23-year-old suffered a dead leg against Atalanta, and it is still unclear whether he will be available for selection.
Cristiano Ronaldo hit the headlines with another late Champions League winner for United. The Portuguese has not scored in three league games, but will have a huge role to play on Sunday.
His duel against Virgil van Dijk has been much talked about. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has never scored when the Dutchman has played in the opposition team. He has the chance to end the streak.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
Read: Manchester United fans appreciate Fred’s Champions League performance against Atalanta.
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