SOMEONE has to be the first to beat Manchester United this season and I believe Liverpool have got a real chance at Anfield tomorrow.
United may be top of the league but they haven’t been convincing so far this season. Their games have been so open and they’ve been playing almost a 4-2-4 formation.
The question is will they come to Anfield and try to play like that? If they do I think that will play into Liverpool’s hands and they run the risk of us running straight through them.
Will they play Rooney and Hernandez up front or just Rooney and then pack the midfield?
Alex Ferguson got it horribly wrong at Anfield back in March. He played Giggs and Scholes as he wanted to bring some calm to the midfield but they dropped deep. Liverpool pressed them really high up the pitch and dominated.
Years ago you had to work hard to create a chance against United but this season teams have been getting so many opportunities. Even when they beat Arsenal 8-2, they were very poor defensively. Arsenal could have scored five or six.
The reason they are still unbeaten is that teams haven’t taken their chances against United. I just wonder how long they will keep getting away with it.
In their last game Norwich kept catching them on the counter attack but they couldn’t take advantage because they lack quality in the final third. Norwich don’t have a Luis Suarez but Liverpool do and there should be space for him to exploit.
We usually talk about United being solid at the back, well organised in midfield and able to really compete physically but I’m not so sure anymore. There are question marks over the keeper and I think there’s a weakness in centre midfield. Of course when they have the ball they are dangerous. The most difficult thing to defend against is pace and United have plenty of it. Ashley Young has done really well for them and provides great crosses.
Wayne Rooney has had a wonderful start to the season for his club. He’s an exceptional player but hasn’t got a great record against us.
When you go a long time without beating a particular team it becomes a mental block. Plenty of clubs have that when it comes to United but we don’t after beating them emphatically back in March. A similar performance is required tomorrow.
