Liverpool vs Manchester United preview - Fergie ready for `game of the season`

Posted Saturday, October 15, 2011 by PA

Sir Alex Ferguson has declared Manchester United's annual showdown with Liverpool the match of the season and urged supporters to respect the history of their rival club.

United head to Anfield on Saturday with their ticket allocation reduced due to past problems and bracing themselves for another fierce reception.

Ferguson has already penned a note to those fans who are travelling, pleading them not to stand throughout the game, which has become a tradition among the United contingent but is not affecting the number of tickets the club receives.

But on Friday, he broadened the theme.

Although he accepts an intense atmosphere is inevitable between the clubs who represent the biggest two cities in north-west England, Ferguson feels more should be acknowledged in a past during which the pair have won 37 titles between them, rather than the twin tragedies of Munich and Hillsborough, which have been the subject of so much venom down the years.

"I have always considered this to be the game of the season in English football," said Ferguson.

"It's never going to change. Both clubs need each other.

"Both clubs' history should be appreciated by each other's sets of fans.

"It is annoying when I hear silly chants about Munich and Hillsborough. It doesn't do either club any good and if it came to a stage where fans were banned from each other's ground it wouldn't be the same game.

"Things may change in the next two or three years with Manchester City and whether or not the derby can equal a Manchester United game against Liverpool. But at the moment it remains the biggest.

"The history of both clubs should be respected. Hopefully we can see that because it's fantastic for fans to see these games - the rivalry, great footballers, the intensity."

Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish admits Manchester United have set the modern-day benchmark for success but insists the status quo should not just be accepted.

Dalglish played a major part both on and off the field in the trophy-laden dynasty established by the Merseysiders in the 1970s and 1980s.

However, as the last Reds boss to win the league title in 1990, Dalglish is all too familiar with the shift in power which took place almost as soon as he quit Anfield two decades ago.

United, under long-time foe Ferguson, became the dominant force and their sustained success resulted in them eventually eclipsing Liverpool's proud record of 18 league titles last season.

The return of Dalglish to the manager's job last January raised expectations that the gulf between the two could be closed sooner rather than later and fans hoped the 3-1 win over their arch-rivals at Anfield last March was a portent of things to come.

This campaign has not gone entirely to plan, with defeats at Stoke and Tottenham, but the only gap Dalglish is interested in closing is the one between his fifth-placed side and Ferguson's unbeaten league leaders six points further ahead.

"They are in a position that everyone wants to be in and that's top position in the league," said Dalglish.

"You cannot argue with that because you want to be there yourself.

"There is no point in being envious. They've set a standard for everyone else to follow or surpass and it's up to us to take up the challenge and we'll try our best to do that.

"We've got an opportunity to reduce the gap and it's up to us to take it.

"They are a fantastic team, a hugely successful football club, and we know it's going to be a very difficult game."

The international break came at the wrong time for Liverpool as they had just bounced back from those successive defeats to beat Wolves and Everton and restore confidence within the squad.

It has, however, allowed the Reds medical staff to get everyone back to full fitness and with their internationals reporting back with no problems, Dalglish has a fully-fit squad for the first time this season.

The match could also see a first start in six months for captain Steven Gerrard, who has been out since March after groin surgery.

Ferguson faces a major selection dilemma over whether to recall skipper Nemanja Vidic.

Vidic made his first appearance since injuring his calf in the opening day win at West Brom in Serbia's shock Euro 2012 exit in Slovakia on Tuesday and Ferguson needs to decide if it is enough to warrant being thrown into the Anfield cauldron.

Tom Cleverley (foot) and Rafael (shoulder) are still out but otherwise Ferguson reports a fully-fit squad, with Wayne Rooney expected to play despite the shock of suffering his own European Championship woe at the hands of UEFA's disciplinary panel.