Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
The antagonism between Manchester United and Liverpool is a conflict that goes well beyond the traditional definition of a sporting rivalry.
The clubs have long been each other’s footballing nemesis, and every fixture between England’s two most successful sides comes heavily wrapped in layers of hate.
On Sunday at Old Trafford, Manchester United and Liverpool will write the latest chapter of this thrilling generation-spanning war epic.
It’s a game that rarely fails to deliver goals, drama and incident by the ton. Consequently, Liverpool vs Manchester Untied is a terrific fixture to pick out some lucrative looking selections in the bookmakers’ player markets.
Take at look at our selections below.
Looking for more Manchester United vs Liverpool betting tips? Check out our detailed match preview of Sunday’s contest.
Daniel James over 0.5 shots on target – 4/5
In what has been an overwhelmingly gloomy start to the 2019/20 season, Welsh winger Daniel James’ performances have been one of the few positives for Manchester United.
The largely inexperienced 21-year old arrived in the summer from Swansea City for £18m, and immediately and unexpectedly established himself as one of the biggest attacking threats at his new club.
James is United’s joint leading scorer in the Premier League so far, and the youngster ranks 3rd at the club for average attempts on goal (2), which 0.9 of those efforts hitting the target per 90 minutes.
Sadio Mane under 2.5 shots – 4/5
Liverpool’s flying wide attacker Sadio Mane has been Liverpool’s most prolific Premier League finisher this season, hitting the net five times in seven starts for the Reds in the summer.
Remarkably, Mane (2.4) has shot his way to the top of Liverpool’s scoring charts despite having fewer attempts on goal per game than the other members of the club’s attacking triumvirate Mohamed Salah (3.3) and Roberto Firmino (3).
Mane’s clinical edge has been razor sharp so far this term, especially in Liverpool’s Premier League away matches. In the four games on the road that the Senegalese international featured in, Mane racked up over two attempts just once.
Scott McTominay over 2.5 tackles – 6/5
22-year old Man Utd academy product Scott McTominay is one of the first names on the teamsheet these days, and the Scottish international was named in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting XI in 100% of the club’s Premier League fixtures since the summer.
McTominay ranks high at United for average tackles per game (2), interceptions made (1.5) and fouls conceded this term (1.9), as he comes to grip with being the team’s main midfield enforcer.
Against the swarming lines of Liverpool’s attack and their hard-working midfield runners, McTominay’s defensive workload is likely to be very high on Sunday, and we expect him to tackle his way past our target with relative comfort.
Manchester United’s tussle with Liverpool also features in our Premier League cards and corners betting tips article this week. Make sure to check out the rest of our predictions for the weekend’s action
Trent Alexander-Arnold over 0.5 assists – 11/4
Record-breaking assist provider Trent Alexander-Arnold has started the new season in typically creative fashion for Liverpool, laying on three goals for his teammates so far in domestic and continental competition.
The fullback has also played more key passes (3.5) on average per 90 minutes of Premier League action than any other Liverpool player, with his incredible delivery from set pieces helping to fuel that impressive total.
Liverpool are almost certain to have a glut of goal-scoring chances at Old Trafford on Sunday, and Alexander-Arnold’s incredibly ability to carve open defences makes him a prime candidate to grab another assist.
Harry Maguire over 58.5 passes – 5/6
Manchester United’s dismal lack of invention and penetrative play this season has been well documented, and because of their inability to move the ball through the lines, possession tends to be recycled between their defensive players for large chunks of their matches.
Towering centre half Harry Maguire is the starting point for many of United’s attempted moves from the back, though the ball generally finds it way back to the 26-year old pretty quickly.
The defender has played 68.6 passes on average per Premier League game for United this term, a total that puts him second only to Paul Pogba at the club for that metric.
Maguire has in fact, passed his way north of our targeted 58.5 passes in six of his eight Premier League starts for United, and we’re confident that he will distribute his way past it again on Sunday.
Don’t forget – You can also take a look at all of our match previews and betting tips for the weekend’s action on our Premier League predictions page.
