Manchester United signed themselves in the midst of a very important time in the season where they could potentially lose everything. The club are still in with a shout to finish in the top four and qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, although it is looking highly unlikely in itself.
They are nine points behind fourth placed Manchester City, who have two more games in hand. This could potentially put them at a huge disadvantage since finishing in the top four gives Champions League football for next season.
Further, they are on the verge of being knocked out of Europe’s Premier competition after suffering a 2-0 defeat against Olympiakos in the first leg. The return leg will be at home, which provides the club with some confidence that they can overturn this deficit. Prior to that, they have to focus on the league match with Liverpool at Old Trafford.
Former defender Gary Neville says that this is a much bigger match than the midweek Champions League encounter primarily because this is a derby. He also says that there is more at stake in this match since it could help them get back into the race for the top four with a win.
United are coming to the encounter with reasonable confidence after a 3-0 win over West Brom last weekend.
“If you were say to me ‘which game are they more likely to win 4-0 or 3-0?’ it would be Olympiakos. That’s the game. Even just to win the match, it would be the easiest of the four. West Ham on the Saturday will be tough and City and Liverpool go without saying. For me, the game they are more likely to win is Olympiakos. It’s whether they can win it by the scoreline they desire,” said Neville.
