This weekend, Liverpool will host Man United at Anfield in the 20th round of the Premier League. The home team is flying high at the top of the table, 6 points ahead of the second-placed Arsenal and has 1 game in hand. Meanwhile, the away team is languishing in 14th place and is only 7 points above the relegation zone.
Liverpool certainly want to win to maintain their position, while Man United, no matter how hard they try, are unlikely to get a point to leave Anfield. It is not impossible that after this match, the "Red Devils" will drop further in the rankings. The current level of the two teams is too different and not many people believe in a miracle for Ruben Amorim's army at Old Trafford.
The gap between Liverpool and Man United before Sunday's match is 23 points. This is not the biggest gap in Premier League history between the two teams because in the 2019-2020 season, The Kop had a 24-point lead over their arch-rivals and then won the championship. However, in terms of strength, the gap in level has never been felt as big as it is now.
Arne Slot and Ruben Amorim come into this season with different backgrounds. Slot inherited a huge legacy from his predecessor Jurgen Klopp in the summer. Meanwhile, Amorim received the rubble from Erik ten Hag after the Dutch strategist was fired. However, looking at the bigger picture in recent years, Liverpool have won every tournament, become a top team in Europe, competing for the Premier League title every year. Meanwhile, Man United are only worried about whether they can get into the Top 4 of the Premier League or not.
The old year 2024 has passed, all hopes for a good new year 2025 are present in the minds of Liverpool players. They have the chance to win both the Champions League and the Premier League. Man United also hope for good things to come in 2025 but this year could be as bad as previous years when their first match of the new year is predicted to be a nightmare at Anfield.
In the first leg of this season, Liverpool easily defeated Man United 3-0 at Old Trafford. That victory was the clearest proof of the gap in level between the two teams at the moment. Optimism for Man United only flickered a little bit when in previous years, when Liverpool were at their strongest, Man United sometimes held their opponents to a draw.
When will the old days come? The current reality is too cruel for Man United. A victory over Liverpool at Anfield is unthinkable. Many fans of The Kop now consider the match with Man United (known as the English Derby) as easy as the Merseyside Derby with Everton. The rivalry may still exist but after 90 minutes, all of Liverpool's opponents have to bow their heads and admit defeat, especially the matches at Anfield.
For a long time, Liverpool's biggest rival in the Premier League has been Man City. After that, names like Chelsea, Arsenal and occasionally Tottenham have appeared. Man United have almost been eliminated from the list of opponents that Liverpool need to beat at all costs to be able to step up to the podium to receive the title.
If Liverpool win the Premier League this season, they will have won the English championship for the 20th time in their history after a few missed opportunities because of Man City. Once the number of national championships is equalized, Liverpool will deserve to be the greatest team in England, having won the European championship twice as many times as Man United (6 compared to 3).
