September 1st 2024.
Last month, Liverpool faced off against Manchester United in a pre-season friendly and came out on top with a 3-0 victory. Fast forward to today, and the two teams are once again set to go head-to-head at Old Trafford. This time, however, there's a bit more at stake as Arne Slot, Liverpool's new head coach, aims to continue his winning streak in the Premier League.
After replacing Jurgen Klopp in the summer, Slot has had a positive start with his team, defeating both Ipswich Town and Brentford. But today's game will be a true test of their abilities as they face their fierce rivals, United, who are determined to bounce back after a disappointing 2-1 loss to Brighton.
Interestingly, the match was originally scheduled to kick off at 4:30pm BST, but it has now been pushed back by 30 minutes to 4pm. You may be wondering why the change in time, and why it's not being played at the usual 2pm slot. Well, read on to find out.
As it turns out, the match was moved to an earlier time due to the intense rivalry between the two clubs. The police and local authorities are keen to avoid any potential fan trouble or disorder, and their research has shown that even a small change in kick-off time can have a positive impact on reducing crowd issues.
Last season, when United and Liverpool faced off in the FA Cup quarter-finals, the match was given a unique 3:30pm kick-off time in an effort to minimize any potential problems.
Moving on to team news, football pundit Darren Bent has urged Liverpool's manager, Erik ten Hag, to include Alejandro Garnacho in the starting line-up. So far, the young Argentine has only come off the bench in United's first two Premier League matches, but Bent believes he deserves a chance to prove himself.
"Garnacho has got to start," Bent said on talkSPORT. "He's got to start. If that means dropping Marcus Rashford, then so be it. He has to start. I would play Garnacho, [Amad] Diallo, and [Joshua] Zirkzee as the front three."
According to Bent, Garnacho's energy and performance in the Community Shield final were impressive, and he believes the young player is now ready to shine. He also questioned why Rashford continues to be chosen ahead of Garnacho, despite the latter's hunger and determination to do well.
"In the end, he's going to get annoyed, and the fans are going to get annoyed too," Bent added. "That has to be the front three going forward. What has Rashford shown so far? Why does he deserve to be in the team instead of Garnacho?"
Bent's sentiments were echoed by many, as they believe Garnacho should be given a chance to prove himself on the field. Only time will tell if ten Hag will take this advice and include the young talent in the starting line-up.
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