Manchester United will be going in search of their first victory of the season when they lock horns with arch-rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on Monday evening.
United, who beat a much-changed Liverpool side 4-0 in their pre-season opener in Bangkok last month, will be determined to bounce back from last Saturday's 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Brentford and secure their first competitive win of the Erik ten Hag era. Defeat in the capital left United bottom of the Premier League table, meaning they are already under intense pressure to get their campaign up and running.
Liverpool, who hammered United 5-0 on their last visit to Old Trafford, will also be going in search of their opening win of the campaign after drawing each of their opening two matches. After twice fighting back to secure a point against Fulham on the opening day of the season, they were held to a 1-1 draw by Crystal Palace last Monday evening at Anfield.
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Although Liverpool have started this season below their usual standards, they remain red-hot favourites to scoop maximum points at Old Trafford, purely because of United's disastrous defeat at Brentford. But despite being guilty of committing two errors at the Gtech Community Stadium last weekend, David de Gea is expected to start between the sticks and continue in goal.
The Spaniard was guilty of committing two costly mistakes against the Bees and some supporters have called for United to bolster the goalkeeping department before the transfer window closes. However, certainly for now, De Gea is guaranteed to keep his place.
Selecting the back-four, however, could see Ten Hag ring a change or two. Lisandro Martinez came in for hefty-sized criticism after the defeat at Brentford and was hooked at half-time, while the Manchester Evening News understands that Ten Hag is considering dropping Harry Maguire.
But considering United need all of the experience they can get at the moment, Martinez seems like the most obvious candidate to drop out, paving the way for Raphael Varane to earn his first start of the season. Diogo Dalot is likely to continue at right-back, but Tyrell Malacia stands a good chance of coming in at left-back after Luke Shaw's early-season struggles.
In midfield, United will not be able to unleash Casemiro just yet, with the deal still not officially completed. That means that Scott McTominay and Fred could be in line for one last dance in the engine room. Christian Eriksen started in defensive-midfield at Brentford and it was an experiment that cannot be repeated, especially against a side of Liverpool's quality.
That means he and Bruno Fernandes will be in direct competition for the attacking-midfield berth. Fernandes has gone missing in the opening two games and Eriksen, even if not by much, has shown more signs of life. However, Fernandes is still considered an undroppable and is likely to retain his place.
As far as the front-three is concerned, Ten Hag needs a performance from each member of it. Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford have been anonymous in the opening two games, meaning Anthony Martial will be chomping at the bit to replace either of them after overcoming his hamstring injury.
However, Ten Hag might not be prepared to throw him straight in at the deep end in a game of such magnitude, even if it feels tempting. Cristiano Ronaldo will continue to lead the line in pursuit of his first goal of the season.
Predicted line-up vs Liverpool: De Gea; Dalot, Maguire, Varane, Malacia; McTominay, Fred, Fernandes; Sancho, Ronaldo, Rashford.
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