- Match on 23rd September 2012 from 1330 BST.
- Match live on ESPN and ESPN HD from 1755 IST.
- Match taking place at Anfield.
Does it get bigger than this? No, the North
West derby is by far the greatest rivalries in England. Two teams
separated by just 33 miles on road, but separated by a lot of rivalries and
bitter incidents, the most recent one in October of 2011, when Luis Suarez was
handed 8-match ban and£40,000 for having called Patrice Evra a racist word. These two teams have won a
total of 119 trophies between them, which includes 37 top flight titles, 18 FA
Cups, 12 League Cups, 8 Champions Leagues, 3 Europa Leagues and 34 domestic
charity shields.
North West Derby dates back to 1895, when the
1st match between the two teams was played. That instance of
the fixture ended up comfortably winning the match by 7-1. Even though the
all-time record is in favor of Manchester United with 72-51-62, one should
never take Liverpool lightly in this fixture. The latest instance of this
fixture ended up with a 2-1 victory Manchester United.
With both teams issuing statements
condemning the chants against the disasters faced by the teams, this match will
be one of the most anticipated matches off-late. Also, this is the 1st Premier
League match that Liverpool is playing at Anfield after the Hillsborough
Independent Panel had submitted their report few days back.
Liverpool
Liverpool are going into this fixture
sitting beside the relegation zone with 2 points after scoring only 3 goals in
their 4 premier league games, while they have conceded 8 goals in those
matches. The main worry for any Liverpool fan would the inability of the main
striker Luis Suarez to find the back of the net. He has featured as the Center
Forward in all 4 of Liverpool Premier League matches, but has netted only 2
goals, even though he has had umpteen chances.
The Liverpool defense is another
cause of concern. They have leaked 8 goals, of which 4 have been gifts to the
opposition.
But then, there is something that
would lift some pressure off any Liverpool fan. That would be the outcome of
their 1st European league match in almost 2 years, where the
Liverpool ‘reserve’ won 5-3 against a full strength BSC Young Boys Bern of
Switzerland in Bern.
Expected Line-up: Reina; Kelly, Agger, Skrtel, Johnson; Allen, Shelvey, Gerrard;
Sterling, Suarez, Borini
Key Players: Joe Allen, Jonjo Shelvey, Raheem Sterling, Luis Suarez
Manchester United
Manchester United would be one the
happier off the teams going into the fixture with a decent run of 4 victories
in all competitions, the last fixture being a home European match against
Galatasaray, which they ended up winning by 1-0.
Wayne Rooney will not feature in this
fixture with the striker stretchered off few weeks back, while Chris Smalling
and Phil Jones are also expected to miss this match, as the presence of Nemanja
Vidic will be at most crucial for the Devils.
United has already scored 10 goals of
which 3 had been scored by their star signing, Robin van Persie against
Southampton FC, which they have conceded 5 goals in their 4 matches, which
might be a worry for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Expected Line-up: De Gea;
Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Carrick, Scholes; Valencia, Kagawa, Nani; van
Persie
Key Players: Shinji Kagawa, Paul Scholes, Robin van Persie
Previous Season Meeting
At Anfield:
Liverpool 1-1 Manchester United (Gerrard, Hernandez)
At Old Trafford: Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool (Rooney [2], Suarez)
2012-13 So Far
Liverpool
(L) 3-0 vs. West Bromwich Albion FC at The Hawthorns
(D) 2-2 vs. Manchester City FC at Anfield
(L) 0-2 vs. Arsenal FC at Anfield
(D) 1-1 vs. Sunderland AFC at The
Stadium of Light
Manchester United
(L) 1-0 vs. Everton FC at Goodison Park
(W) 3-2 vs. Fulham FC at Old Trafford
(W) 3-2 vs. Southampton FC at St. Mary’s Stadium
(W) 4-0 vs. Wigan Athletic FC at Old Trafford
Prediction
Liverpool FC 2-2 Manchester United FC
#WECOMENOTTOPLAY
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