MANCHESTER UNITED are praying that the international break curse doesn’t strike twice when they travel to Anfield this Sunday.
The feel-good factor from the win before the September break was short-lived when instantly after the two-week recess ended.
Manchester United face their toughest fixture of the calendar on SundayCredit: EPA
United’s 2-0 win over Sunderland quietened the speculation over Ruben Amorim’s futureCredit: EPA
After picking up their first three-points of the season at home to on August 30, had two weeks to prepare for his squad’s trip to the Etihad.
Much of the pre-match talk surrounded City’s dip in form, having suffered back-to-back defeats to Spurs and Brighton in their opening three Premier League games.
United entered the game above City in the table for the first time in years and travel to Liverpool having shown better form over their last three matches.
But a revitalised City, buoyed by goals from and , cruised to rampant victory when United visited straight after the break – without really getting out of second gear.
The derby offered a perfect chance for to regroup and reset his squad’s troubles, with Haaland saying: “We’ve been great since”.
And has the opportunity to do the same against Amorim’s side after Liverpool’s winning run came to a crashing end.
Successive defeats at , Galatasaray and Chelsea have set them back after a series of late winners carried them through the start of the season.
Slot’s champions still boast a 100 per cent home record this season, while United haven’t won at Anfield since 2016 when scored the only goal of the game.
Arne Slot’s season hit a roadblock against Crystal PalaceCredit: Getty
Liverpool have lost three in a rowCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
For Slot, who now sits one point behind leaders in second, a victory on Sunday is crucial. Amorim, meanwhile, will surely be happy to come away with a point.
Just like City were recently, ‘s defence is looking vulnerable and is drawing criticism.
But Salah was rested for Egypt’s 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau on Sunday as his country had already secured qualification for the 2026 World Cup last week.
United are one of the winger’s favourite opponents however, having scored a record 16 goals in this grudge fixture.
Like they did against over a month ago, United beat fellow newly-promoted side Sunderland before the October international fixtures.
But the Red Devils have won just SIX Prem games in the last eight months and all of them were against promoted or relegated teams, or sides down to ten men.
The crucial victory over the Black Cats eased the pressure on Amorim and quietened speculation over his future.
In fact, minority owner the former Sporting boss for a further two years.
Discussing the 40-year-old’s position, Ratcliffe said: “You can’t run a club like United on kneejerk reactions to some journalist who goes off on one every week.”
While the win temporarily silenced the noise around Amorim’s job, a heavy defeat to Liverpool will immediately bump up the pressure once again – like it did against City.
City reset before hosting United after the last international break
United’s poor defeats against , and 10 goals conceded their last four meetings, have almost always come down to losing the midfield battle.
After a decent run of form, Amorim benched Brazil star for in United’s defeat to City.
Casemiro was back in and scored in the 2-1 Chelsea win a week later, before being sent off on the stroke of half-time after two bookings.
But Amorim has to rely on 33-year-old and Manuel Ugarte’s untrusted legs to service the United engine room until the winter window, at least.
While Bruno Fernandes is the other pivot holding midfielder, defending is the skipper’s weakest area.
The new man between the sticks, Senne Lammens — fresh off a winning debut against Sunderland — now faces the toughest test of his career in the bearpit of Anfield.
