Liverpool have a terrific opportunity to put some distance between themselves and their title rivals.
Arsenal’s share of the spoils with Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday now ensures that Arne Slot’s men can go eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table with a game in hand.
They just need to fulfil Roy Keane’s pre-match prediction for the encounter and live up to their billing as genuine title challengers.
In theory, it shouldn’t be overly difficult for a manager who has picked up 14 wins from his first 18 games in the English top-flight in the 2024/25 campaign.
Here’s to making it 15.
What Gary Neville & Jamie Carragher were spotted doing before kick-off
Credit where credit is due, Gary Neville has a terrific sense of humour.
We only hope it’ll be enough to see the former Red Devils fullback through what could, in all likelihood, end up being an extremely uncomfortable 90 minutes of action at Anfield.
Sky Sports’ pre-match coverage of the main event on Sunday saw the ex-England international jokingly shovelling snow back onto the turf in an “attempt” to get a game postponement back on the table.
For the record, the clash in question will still be going ahead despite initial concerns in light of the Met Office’s amber weather warning this morning.
You can catch the footage below, courtesy of Sky Sports coverage:
Please never change, @GNev2 & @Carra23 pic.twitter.com/TpwN4an07v
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 5, 2025
What has Neville said about Liverpool v Manchester United
United fans hoping for a more optimistic outlook from Neville will have been left bitterly disappointed.
The MNF pundit stopped short of suggesting the visitors could be hammered at Anfield, though he admitted his old side would be feeling a bit fearful ahead of the impending tie in the red half of Merseyside.
“There’s no doubt they’re shot to pieces in terms of confidence – they are vulnerable,” the 49-year-old spoke on Sky Sports.
“But also a point that’s just been made by Roy; they’re lacking in quality. Both are a massive problem. If you have high-quality players that lack confidence, you hope that confidence can return. But if you have low-quality players lacking confidence, even when that confidence returns, I doubt these players are going to be good enough.
“He’s got to try and get something out of them.
“There’s no doubt coming here is… no Manchester United team has won here for eight years. Manchester United do have a challenging record here; this is the most difficult place to come.
“They’ve got to be sensible in this match in the earliest parts of the game and try and build into the game step by step. But there will be fear and there will be anxiety.”
“It’s been a horrendous start” @GNev2 on Manchester United’s start to the Premier League season pic.twitter.com/nyhKmO45w3
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 5, 2025
