United View: Can United get a result at Anfield

The last time Manchester United won at Anfield, Donald Trump had yet to serve his first term as US President, Leonardo DiCaprio had just won his first Oscar, and David Bowie released his final studio album. 

Nine years later, they have an opportunity to end a horrible run of form away to Liverpool.

Wayne Rooney’s late strike on 17th January 2016 was enough to ensure a 1-0 win against a Liverpool side at the beginning of a monumental turnaround in fortunes, in what was Jurgen Klopp’s first season at the Merseyside club.

Liverpool have won two Premier League titles since that day, whereas United are still looking to kickstart yet another rebuild. 

Although Liverpool are the current Champions, and were many people’s favourites to retain the title, recent results have shown there are chinks in their armour.

Arne Slot’s side cruised to their second Premier League title last season, with the majority of the side remaining the same from Jurgen Klopp’s final season in charge. 

And even though they spent close to £450million, they haven’t been as ruthless as many predicted.

Their 2-1 defeat to Chelsea before the international break was their third defeat in a row, also losing to Crystal Palace and Galatasaray. 

A sign that there are still teething issues as their new signings adjust to the team and system.

The additions of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike are extremely exciting, but what made Liverpool so dominant last season was the familiarity with their already established squad and how they made it so difficult for teams to play through them – swarming the middle and offering no time on the ball.

They still pose a considerable threat upfront, but those results have shown they can be exploited at the back and with Mohamed Salah not firing anywhere near his best, United should be looking at this as a genuine opportunity to achieve a significant result.

Ruben Amorim’s side have been mixed this season, but with the attacking quality brought in this season, if it were to click, they could inflict damage on Slot’s side. 

And coming off what was a comfortable win over Sunderland, morale should be positive going into this.

This is by no means a forgone conclusion; Slot will undoubtedly try to tweak his system to nullify his side’s weaknesses, and fans can expect Liverpool to be fired up for a game of such magnitude.

The most important thing is that United deliver a good performance. 

Despite reports that Amorim is safe in his role, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe coming out and saying he would like to keep the Portuguese head coach in charge for three years, a heavy defeat would ramp up pressure in what has been an inconsistent start to the season.

United still have yet to record successive wins in the Premier League under Amorim, but one of his side’s best performances last season came in a 2-2 draw at Anfield – a game they came very close to winning.

This should, in theory, encourage them that they are capable of stepping up to the challenge, although concerns over the midfield could be highlighted on Sunday.

It will also be a trial by fire for Senne Lammens, who stood out in the win over Sunderland. 

The young goalkeeper can expect to get through much more work against Liverpool, but after his last display, there is a quiet feeling of confidence in the Belgian.

It goes without saying just how important three points could be, with United currently sitting in 10th place, just five points off Liverpool. 

Hopefully, it can be a significant result for all the right reasons.