Liverpool faces Manchester United tomorrow. Jürgen Klopp will have a key midfielder back in the squad, as other players also close in on their returns to action.
Liverpool goes into its second game with Manchester United in the space of three weeks knowing it needs to win. The pair last clashed in the FA Cup quarter-final three weeks ago, which United won thanks to a very late goal from Amad Diallo.
Now the pair meet again in the Premier League. And, with Arsenal and Manchester City winning their respective games this weekend against Crystal Palace and Brighton, Liverpool needs to win to retain the top spot.
Jürgen Klopp is now entering his final weeks as Liverpool boss, and the German will want to end his nine-year stint as manager in the best way possible: by winning the two trophies still on offer. Klopp, and Liverpool, have eight cup finals left, and with Arsenal and City unrelenting in their bid to win the league, every game counts, and no points can afford to be dropped.
Every game against United, no matter the competition, is a serious test for Liverpool. Despite their patchy form and even though they have failed to win the two games following the victory against Liverpool, Klopp’s side cannot underestimate them, and it’s going to be a challenge to leave Old Trafford with all three points.
Jürgen Klopp faces Manchester United dilemma
Jürgen Klopp goes into the game with Manchester United facing something of a dilemma. Liverpool still has injury problems with many players out, yet Klopp will be happy with the return of Japan international Wataru Endō in midfield. But it also gives the German a selection headache, in a good way.
Alexis Mac Allister has been in fine form lately playing further up, but the only way to accommodate the Argentine, plus Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai into the same midfield, is to play the World Cup winner further back. Whether Klopp will do that remains to be seen.
Liverpool receives double injury boost as comebacks near
Liverpool’s injury crisis is finally clearing. At the beginning of the year, the club seemed to be losing players every time a match was played. Now, however, players are finally returning to fitness. Alisson, Diogo Jota and Trent Alexander-Arnold are closing in on their comebacks, while Japanese midfielder Wataru Endō is fit again and could feature from the start against Manchester United tomorrow.
Jota and Alexander-Arnold will return to training next week, and their return will be a boost to Jürgen Klopp, with Liverpool still fighting in two competitions as we enter the business end of the season, and the games arriving thick and fast.
