Jose Mourninho has been warned that Manchester United are not capable of “doing the defensive jobs they have done on Liverpool in the past”.
The Red Devils have, under their Portuguese boss, often favoured a pragmatic approach when taking in trips to their fiercest Premier League rivals.
Accusations of ‘parking the bus’ have become commonplace, with Mourinho considered to adopt a defensive mentality when pursuing precious points on the road.
United are, however, enduring struggles at the back this season - with 26 goals conceded in 16 top-flight outings to date – and Jan Molby doubts they can contain Liverpool’s fearsome attacking unit if they head to Anfield in containment mode again on Sunday.
The Reds legend told the Liverpool Echo: “I don’t know if Manchester United are capable of doing the defensive jobs they have done on Liverpool in the past
“The longer it goes without them producing those heroic performances, the more I doubt they are capable.
“I know they got a couple of draws with Arsenal and Chelsea, but Liverpool are another level.
“I’m not convinced that Mourinho can produce a tactical masterclass to get himself a result. I think Liverpool will have too much for them.
“They are too inconsistent. The defeat in Valencia, I know it was a fringe team, won’t do them any good. I’d be amazed if we didn’t have too much quality for them.
“The level of quality you expect from Manchester United is not there. They have some average players and some good players who aren’t performing at the level expected of them.
“I think what Mourinho wants to do is go with a defensive tactic and hope that the bit of pace he has causes problems. But you need good enough defenders to invite Liverpool onto you, and I’m not convinced.
“But you are playing Manchester United. That’s why you can never be sure, because we know ourselves that big clubs can find results that nobody else can.”
Mohamed Salah is likely to pose Mourinho the biggest headache as he prepares for a trip to Merseyside, with the Egypt international having rediscovered his spark of late.
After a relatively slow start to the season by his standards, the current holder of the Premier League Golden Boot has recorded a hat-trick against Bournemouth and a vital Champions League match-winner versus Napoli in his last two outings.