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The North-West Derby is one of the most bitter rivalries in England and in Europe as a whole, with age-old rivals Liverpool and Manchester United slugging it out almost 200 times over the decades across every competition the two mega-clubs have been in — and on Saturday they meet again in the Premier League, with pride and crucial points in the EPL on the line.
Manchester United have been dominant this season in the Premier League, dropping just two points all season and sitting just one point of goal differential behind first-place Manchester City. They’ve had a dominant attack thanks to Romelu Lukaku, they’ve had a dominant midfield thanks to Nemanja Matic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, and while no one person has stood out as a star in defense, they’ve still worked excellently as a unit and have allowed just two goals all season.
But while Liverpool haven’t enjoyed quite as strong a season — sitting seventh thanks to some injury and inconsistency issues that have plagued them this season — they love to play spoiler to Manchester’s successes. A loss here for United could see them start to slip away from City, and Jurgen Klopp would love to see the loyal Anfield crowd get a reason to roar and shove one in Jose Mourinho’s face. A win here for Liverpool could help them jump-start their season, and would be massively important for their confidence moving forward.
Both teams will be missing major and important players to their teams, with Sadio Mane for Liverpool and Paul Pogba for Manchester United heading up their injury lists. Liverpool will also be without Adam Lallana and Nathaniel Clyne, while Manchester are missing Marouane Fellaini, Michael Carrick, and Phil Jones, as well as the continued long-term absences of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo. That’s a significant amount of crucial depth missing for both clubs, leaving both teams a bit thin in important areas of the pitch.
Match info, plus how to watch on TV and stream
Match Date/Time: Saturday, 7:30 a.m. ET, 12:30 p.m. local
Venue: Anfield, Liverpool, England
TV: NBCSN (U.S. - English), Universo (U.S. - Spanish), Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League (U.K.)
Online: NBC Sports live, NBCSports.com (U.S.), Sky Go (U.K.)
Make friends: Check out Liverpool Offside for more Liverpool coverage, and head over to The Busby Babe for more on Manchester United.
Listings for more countries can be found at LiveSoccerTV.