Paul Ince believes Liverpool doesn’t come close to be a genuine contender for the Premier League.
The former Liverpool player believes Manchester United has an upper hand advantage before they enter the battle against Liverpool.
United are 7 points ahead of Liverpool with Ince also fearing that absence of Sadio Mane due to an injury will reduce the hosts chance of reducing that gap.
Ince said: “Sadio Mane being out for six weeks is bad news for Liverpool – he’s a much bigger loss than Philippe Coutinho would be.”
“Mane is much more involved in the game from start to finish. Without him, Liverpool’s side is a lot weaker – he’s vital.”
“Jose Mourinho is smart. He’s a winner and a master tactician – he’ll be expecting for those first 20 minutes that Klopp’s team will fly out of the traps and try to blow United away like they did to Arsenal.”
Ince boldly said:
“Win or lose, United will still be challenging for the title. Liverpool doesn’t come close.”
“Jose Mourinho will want to win it. He knows that in this tie all eyes are on him. He can answer those doubters who are saying ‘well they’ve not played anyone yet’ and he knows that. It’s a chance to shut people up.”
“They’re scoring lots of goals, Romelu Lukaku is on fire, and that could really be the difference between the two teams. Liverpool don’t take chances and their defense is poor, you would think Lukaku would have too much for that back line. Man United at Anfield, against that back line, in the form they’re in now? They’ll score. There’s just no doubt about it.”
Ince went on to win two Premier League titles and two FA cups along with many other elite honors with Manchester United before moving to Inter Milan and then to Liverpool. He feels that Klopp has a lot to prove than Mourinho this weekend.
Ince added: “This game is Manchester United’s first acid test. They’ve been demolishing teams and, no disrespect to the others, but this is a big step up.”
“To go to Anfield is different gravy, this is where they’ll truly be tested for the first time this season.”
“I think United have to prove they really are title contenders, but I actually think Jurgen Klopp has more to prove than Jose Mourinho.”
“If Liverpool loses, could you really class them as title contenders? At the minute, I can’t see it anyway. They’re way behind United and City and if they drop three more points here, they’re not going to make that gap up – no chance. It’s a huge game for Liverpool.”
“If you look at the two sides at the minute, everything considered, you have to say United are way ahead of Liverpool.
“Klopp hasn’t found the right formula for his team yet and, after this length of time at the club, with the players he has, he really should have.”
Author’s Take:
I completely agree with what Paul Ince said. Liverpool has a lot of groundwork to do before they get into the race of Premier League title. And going into the game vs Manchester United, while Mane is out, will surely hamper their chances of winning. It’ll be an important match for Jose Mourinho, as he’ll be looking for a chance to shut people up, who doubted him after his side lost to Basel. Even Klopp has a lot of work to do, and it’ll prove to be one of the most entertaining matches of all time, as both the manager will look to keep their haters mouth shut up.
