There has never been a Manchester United versus Liverpool rivalry grudge match like this one, and not in a good way! Hard to think of another time that these two have met where both entered winless. Typically, they meet much later in the season, and usually, both teams come in sitting on the first page of the standings, not the second.
With United dead last in the standings, talk of the Glazers selling the club swirls about the run up to this clash. There are potential buyers circling, but how serious are the Glazers about selling? Probably pretty serious, if and only if the price is right.
Manchester United vs Liverpool FYIs
Kickoff: Mon Aug 22, 8pm, Old Trafford
After Extra Time Podcast: Spotify Apple
Team News: Man United Liverpool
Starting XI Predictions: Man United Liverpool
Details on Planned Supporter Protest: go here
Google Result Probability: Liverpool win 60% Draw 21% Man United win 19%
Watch: This is not on TV in the United States, only on a fee required streaming service, and it’s the additional cost, premium version of that service too.
Man United Team News
Anthony Martial (thigh) is a doubt, but he has returned to training.
Victor Lindelof (knock), Brandon Williams (undisclosed) and Facundo Pellistri (ankle) are all out with injuries. Lindelof hasn’t played yet this season and Pellistri is out until September. Mason Greenwood will be missing too, as he remains indefinitely suspended. The other Manchester club also has a key player who is suspended indefinitely, while he faces rape charges.
That’s Benjamin Mendy, whose trial began this week. His case is quite different from Greenwood in that he faces more criminal counts in total.
Both men maintain their innocence, and neither club will make an ultimate decision on the future of their player until the legal process has fully run its course. The answer for Mendy will come well before we know the fate of Greenwood.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.