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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is among the injured Manchester United ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash between the two rivals.
Erik ten Hag’s side are under pressure after dutifully relinquishing their place in Europe in midweek with a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich, while last weekend they were humiliated 3-0 at Old Trafford via Bournemouth. Liverpool, on the other hand, are the most sensible. The Premier League had to rest a star-studded side for their Europa League match on Thursday night with qualification already secured.
That means the Merseysiders are heavy favourites to get the win this weekend, buoyed by a strong record of setbacks against United, including a 7-0 defeat in the corresponding game last season. But Klopp is not advancing despite the contrasting form of the two teams.
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“I never like it when the headlines about United are wonderful before they play, because then it’s the game where they can fix everything,” Klopp said. “I’m not attached enough to United to know what the challenge is. But I saw Erik ten Hag become coach of the month last month, I saw they were the in-form team last month. How all this can be wrong, I just don’t understand.
“The 7-0 we had that day is a strange result that happens almost once in a lifetime. If anyone can use it for the next game, it’s the team that lost 7-0 and not the one that won.
“If we just play a football game against historic opponents at Anfield, it will be a special game and that’s what I need to see: a special game. “
United start the weekend in sixth place but have lost 12 of their 24 games in all competitions. This has put more pressure on Ten Hag as the Reds look for consistency amid a disappointing crusade so far. Liverpool are 10 points higher at the top of the Premier League and have only lost one game at the top of the season.