Liverpool's clash at Manchester United key in deciding Premier League title, says Matt Le Tissier

Posted Wednesday, February 20, 2019 by Skysports.com

Liverpool's clash with Manchester United on Super Sunday will be pivotal in deciding the outcome of this season's Premier League, says Matt Le Tissier.

Jurgen Klopp's side travel to Old Trafford this weekend to play their game in hand on City, who face Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final later that afternoon.

Avoid defeat and Liverpool will return to the top of the table with 11 top-flight fixtures left to play this season.

Defeat to their rivals would mean the chance to win a first league title in 29 years would be out of Liverpool's hands.

"If we (Liverpool) win on Sunday, we will win the title. And that is definite because it is that sort of game to give you that push towards the end of the season," Phil Thompson told Sky Sports.

Le Tissier agrees with the former Liverpool captain's view that Sunday's match will be decisive in the race for the championship.

"There is a long way to go yet and you get some funny results in the run-ins, the teams at the bottom scrapping for their lives will often take points off the big boys at the top," said the Sky Sports pundit.

"But it is a massive game in terms of Liverpool and where they currently sit in the Premier League table and their chances of going on to win the title.

"Obviously, a defeat here hands Manchester City the initiative and you would expect, if that did happen, for City to go on and win the title.

"But if Liverpool do win at Old Trafford, I think that will give them a massive confidence boost and then they are still in the box seat, in terms of it is theirs to lose, because if they were to go on and win every game from now until the end of the season, they will not get caught."

However, Le Tissier says Liverpool will be coming up against a United team brimmed full of confidence since the appointment of caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in December, and even more so after their 2-0 win at Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round on Monday night.

"You cannot help but be impressed (with United) - any team who have won 11 out of 13 games with just the one defeat thrown in there against a very good PSG team, you have to be impressed," he said.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (right) has brought about a huge upturn in United's form since replacing Jose Mourinho in December

"There are a lot of fixtures in there that you would expect a Man Utd team to win, but there is also a very good away victory at Spurs and they showed great character to come back from 2-0 down with 86 minutes on the clock to draw with Burnley.

"And again last night, a very impressive performance to knock Chelsea out of the FA Cup. And that was as good a defensive display from United that I have seen in a long time."