Manchester United and Liverpool renew hostilities at Old Trafford as these fierce rivals, separated by around 35 miles and just three points in the table, seek to emerge from difficult campaigns with qualification for next season’s Champions League.

Michael Carrick will hope that earning United’s second league victory on home soil over Liverpool since 2018 could help seal a permanent role as head coach. For Arne Slot, a victory would be timely given the pressure mounting on his position.

Our Manchester United writer Carl Anka and his Liverpool counterpart Andy Jones discuss the key issues surrounding this combustible fixture.

How would you sum up your club’s season?

Anka: Manchester United’s 2025-26 has largely been a game of snakes and ladders. The team tripped over a few cobras at the beginning of the campaign, but had a big leg up in January following Carrick’s arrival as interim head coach. Nine wins in 13 matches have taken the club from outside contenders for a Champions League place to being within a point of qualifying.

Jones: Given Liverpool entered the season as defending Premier League champions and spent £449million ($611m) on new talent, the campaign has been a huge disappointment. Their title challenge was over before winter had arrived, and even Champions League qualification was looking like a struggle, too.

Being in Europe’s top competition is the bare minimum expectation for Liverpool every season and while a run of three straight Premier League wins has put them back on track, questions need to be answered this summer.

It has been a difficult title defence for Arne Slot (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)

How surprised have you been at the clubs’ change of fortunes from a year ago?

Anka: In the immediate aftermath of the 2025 Europa League final defeat against Tottenham Hotspur, I wrote a column saying United could be set for a few years in the (relative) footballing wilderness. I believed a season without European football meant they lacked the transfer funds and competitive allure to sign talented players who could help rebuild the club.

Oh, how wrong I was. There were stumbles under Ruben Amorim but last summer has turned into one of the club’s best transfer windows since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.

Before the season started, I said I’d be surprised if United finished higher than eighth. The team is third, and I’m eating humble pie with a big grin on my face.

Manchester United have proved Carl Anka wrong (Naomi Baker/Getty Images)

Jones: Nobody could have anticipated the steep drop-off Slot’s side has suffered. Last summer involved a lot of change and trauma, and left an unbalanced squad not suited to a more physical, set-piece-heavy Premier League.

New signings have taken time to settle, key performers from the previous season have regressed, they have missed some of those who departed, and the injury bug has bitten them, particularly at right-back. The death of Diogo Jota has also affected everyone who worked and played with him.

Would you like Slot to be Liverpool manager at the start of next season?

Carl: Yes, but he really shouldn’t be.

Liverpool’s season bears strange similarities to Erik ten Hag’s 2023-24 campaign at United. Injury problems at full-back. A naive out-of-possession shape that exposes an already underpowered midfield. A team that is most dangerous on the counter-attack, but also vulnerable to conceding to them. A star player who signed a new contract after a brilliant season, but has been asked to change his game after the acquisition of a new centre-forward.

The selfish, United-supporting part of me wants Slot to continue, because he doesn’t believe he’ll be able to fix things and take Liverpool back up the table. Xabi Alonso is available. I would like the comment section to indicate whether they’d prefer to have him in charge.

And would you like Carrick to be in charge of United?

Jones: Based on how he has done, absolutely not, but it is a more complex question than looking at Carrick’s results since he took over.

Giving an interim manager the job permanently always comes with risk — and we saw that play out with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer eventually. Under Carrick, results have largely been excellent, but I’m not sure performances have quite matched up. They’ve maximised their qualities from set pieces and counter-attacks led by the incredible form of Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro’s continued renaissance.

How this all looks, and how Carrick would cope with a much more demanding schedule and less time on the training pitch, are the key questions. If he does get the permanent position, he could prove he is capable, but I would rather let him try than have a more experienced person in the dugout building on the momentum Carrick has generated.

Michael Carrick has had a transformative effect on Manchester United’s season (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

Is this still the most important game for your club’s fans?

Anka: Yes. There will come a day when United play Liverpool late in the season with both teams neck-and-neck in a title race. And then we’ll see just how big the global reach of both clubs is.

Jones: That entirely depends on who you ask, as the ‘Would you rather beat Everton or Manchester United?’ question is a never-ending debate. For some supporters, such as me, the Merseyside derby against Everton will always take precedence, but for others, it is United.

Even with the different trajectories of the two clubs over the last decade, beating United is still towards the top of the list of desires for Liverpool fans every season. In more recent years, from a competitive standpoint, Manchester City was arguably the most important match, but it will never rival this fixture.

Which one opposition player would you like to see signed by your club?

Anka: Of the players most likely to play on Sunday? Dominik Szoboszlai.

Of the entire Liverpool squad, including the currently injured? Hugo Ekitike.

Jones: The obvious answer is Bruno Fernandes. He and Florian Wirtz in the same midfield is a match made in transition. It would be fun, but would it work?

Goalkeeper Samme Lammens has been excellent since his arrival and could have been worth considering if Alisson moved on this summer. Liverpool must also add dynamism and pace in wide areas, which brings me to the final answer: Bryan Mbeumo.

Andy Jones would want Liverpool to sign Bryan Mbeumo (Naomi Baker/Getty Images)

What’s your prediction for Sunday?

Anka: A repeat of the Anfield fixture. United score from a counter-attack goal and a header to win 2-1.

Fernandes gets his 20th assist and enters the pantheon of all-time Premier League playmakers.

Jones: Predicting Liverpool this season has been borderline impossible because who knows what Liverpool will turn up at Old Trafford? Corners and counters will be Slot’s main concerns. The absence of Mohamed Salah will diminish their goal threat.

Let’s say Liverpool hang in for a 1-1 draw.

Who will finish higher in the Premier League this season?

Anka: United have the momentum and a slightly more favourable fixture list — but both teams will finish in the top four.

Jones: Given I’m predicting a draw, United would maintain their three-point advantage with three games to go, and Slot’s side have the tougher schedule. I’d be surprised if United didn’t finish higher given the circumstances.

And who will finish higher in the league next season?

Anka: Both clubs will be spending heavily this summer, looking to bring in at least three first-team players each who can balance uneven squads. United will shade it again in 2026-27. The matches between the two will be quite something.

Jones: I haven’t got a clue. Both need to figure out what they are doing in the dugout and, as Carl says, both need to recruit three or four starting-calibre players.

Wirtz and Alexander Isak should be much better next season, and I’ll give Liverpool the edge because United’s added Champions League demands could stretch their squad.