Manchester United have a punishing schedule but hurting Liverpool’s top four hopes will provide motivation says Max Liu who recommends a Bet Builder wager for Thursday night’s derby…
“It’s worth noting that four of the last 10 between this pair have ended goalless. A draw would be a better result for United than it would for Liverpool who are sixth in the table and 2.727/4 for a top four finish.”
Manchester United play their third match in five days when they host Liverpool tonight in their rescheduled Premier League clash. A lot has been made of that punishing schedule, rightly, but do the Red Devils really deserve to be as long as 3.052/1 on the Exchange?
They lost 2-1 to Leicester 48 hours ago but who, in this instance, is ‘they’? Ole Gunnar Solskjaer fielded a reserve side against the Foxes, restricting Bruno Fernandes to under 20 minutes, while Paul Pogba, Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka – all key men in this resurgent United side – were unused substitutes.
Klopp’s wait for Old Trafford win to continue
Paul Higham points out in his match preview: “Win at Old Trafford is something Liverpool haven’t done since March 2014 – even with their recent dominance in the league the Reds have won just that one contest in their last 15 trips down the M62 (D4 L10).”
Their last visit was in the FA Cup in January for a tie that finished 3-2 to United. Jurgen Klopp, who has never won at Old Trafford, saw his team go ahead that day before goals from Mason Greenwood, Fernandes and Marcus Rashford exposed the flaws in Liverpool’s defence.
There should be fewer than the five goals we saw in the cup game. It’s worth noting that four of the last 10 between this pair have ended goalless. A draw would be a better result for United than it would for Liverpool who are sixth in the table and 2.727/4 for a top four finish.
Cavani can trouble Liverpool defence
United will be up for this and would love to dent their old enemy’s chances of securing Champions League football. Solskjaer’s players will be prepared to be patient. They have won 10 times in this Premier League season after going behind and there is a growing sense of self belief about them that is not easily shaken.
It is tempting to back Draw/Man Utd 6/1 in the half-time/full-time market, or even Liverpool/Man Utd at 22/1, but I’m reluctant to complicate matters and will instead throw a goalscorer bet into the mix.
Prior to the Leicester match, Edinson Cavani had scored five goals in three appearances (one of them from the bench) and I can see his movement, supplemented with the pace of Greenwood and Rashford, troubling a Liverpool defence that is still conceding a lot of chances.
Source: Betfair Premier League
