Acid test for us
United positive vibe
by the Portuguese manager during his time at Chelsea. But he has convinced Mourinho he can be a vital part of his team while banishing talk of a move.
“It [the relationship] has been good and hopefully it will continue like that,” said Mata.
“I believe in myself and my football and the way I train and play. I’m very happy with my role in the team, I feel important in the team and I feel the confidence of my team-mates and the manager, so that’s what a player needs to perform at his best level.”
Sweep aside Liverpool today in the manner they have other teams this season and that confidence will soar. LIVERPOOL manager Jurgen Klopp has seen his price of being the next manager to be sacked tumble from 50-1 to 25-1.
And defeat here could see him move closer to his Merseyside counterpart Ronald Koeman, who is the 4-7 favourite.
We cannot split Liverpool and United and make both sides 7-4 to win the match, although United’s price has come in over the last day or so and certainly our punters seem to think it is the away side who will come out on top.
These games have, in recent years, tended to be incredibly tedious. I remember almost a year ago to the day (October 17, 2016) these two played out a 0-0 game at Anfield which was as bad as I have ever seen – and I grew up on a healthy diet of non-League and League Two football. The draw looks great value at 11-4.
BY JOE CRILLY