Premier League preview: Stumbling Man Utd haunted in trepidation ahead of Anfield trip

Liverpool has 37 points from 16 games, with Arsenal on 36 and Villa on 35. Champions Manchester City is in fourth place with 33 points and hosts Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag. | Photo Credit: Action Images via Reuters

Peter Schmeichel admitted this week that he would rather not think about Manchester United’s Premier League clash against Liverpool on Sunday and many fans will share the fears of the club’s treble-winning goalkeeper.

United could hardly be heading to Anfield at a lower ebb after a humiliating 3-0 home defeat by Bournemouth and then a meek 1-0 loss at home to Bayern Munich that condemned Erik Ten Hag’s side to a European exit.

A chronic lack of goals and creativity are two of the root causes for United’s current plight, while a lengthening injury list that now includes defenders Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw is causing Ten Hag further headaches.

No wonder the spectre of last season’s 7-0 hammering at Anfield is lurking and why some United fans might make the short trip with a deep sense of trepidation.

United lost 4-0 at Anfield the previous season and has scored just one goal in its last seven visits, with the last victory away to its inter-city rivals in 2016. It also has the memory of a 5-0 home drubbing two years ago.

While United has lost half of its 24 games in all competitions this season, Liverpool has moved to the top of the table, even if it has not been completely convincing.

Derbies, however, can be unpredictable, and United has made a habit under Ten Hag of answering a crisis with a strong performance, although to add to its problems on Sunday, captain Bruno Fernandes is suspended.

Another heavy defeat will pile more pressure on Ten Hag, especially with INEOS Group owner Jim Ratcliffe’s imminent 25% buy-in to the club likely to prompt a directional change in football operations.

Despite its home rout against United last season, it was a rare highlight for Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp’s side finished below United in the table.

This season has seen a Liverpool resurgence, though, and three successive league wins have allowed them to leapfrog both Manchester City and Arsenal to the top of the table.

Liverpool, which was set to rest many players for Thursday’s Europa League game at Union Saint-Gilloise, also has injury worries, though, with Joel Matip having undergone knee surgery and doubts over the availability of midfielder Alexis Mac Allister.

Liverpool will likely have been knocked off its perch by the time it kicks off with second-placed Arsenal at home to Brighton and Hove Albion and third-placed Aston Villa at Brentford earlier on Sunday.

Liverpool has 37 points from 16 games, with Arsenal on 36 and Villa on 35. Champions Manchester City is in fourth place with 33 points and hosts Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Villa has emerged as a genuine dark horse in the title race thanks largely to a stupendous home record of 15 successive home league wins -- the best sequence in the club’s 149-year history.

Chelsea will seek to emerge from a run of three defeats in four league games as it hosts bottom club Sheffield United on Saturday while the weekend action begins with fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur’s away trip to Nottingham Forest on Friday.