Liverpool PodJockey

Sunday sees Liverpool go to Old Trafford searching for their first win since the days of Gerard Houllier and Danny Murphy; the Reds fans are hoping that this time, they can get the three points their play has surely earned in the past.

It's been terribly frustrating and all too common for Liverpool to go to places like Old Trafford and control the game, without ever doing what counts - scoring goals. Last-gasp United winners from players like John O'Shea and Rio Ferdinand have punctured decent performances in recent seasons, so it's time to go out there and really perform.

There seems to be some kind of mental hoodoo surrounding this fixture as far as Liverpool are concerned, and it's something that seems to afflict us at the beginning of every season - a lack of belief. It's like we expect to go to Old Trafford and be horribly disappointed right at the end, the same way we start a Premier League season dreaming of glory, but deep-down we seem to just know we'll fall short - and then we do.

But why? We've shown that we can match the best teams in Europe at home and away and are fresh from knocking Inter - the runaway Italian champions - out of the European Cup. We're five straight wins on the bounce in the league to boot, so I think there's really no better time to go to Old Trafford and show that we're ready for a fight.

Key to this game will be Mascherano and Torres. At Anfield, Rio Ferdinand had Torres fairly under control but I'm expecting the Spaniard to cause a few more problems this time around, with Gerrard getting forward and causing the United defence a few headaches too.

Gerrard has been guilty of going missing in matches against United in the past, so he will have to be at his best to try and stamp his authority in a game that is asking for someone to boss the midfield, and United just don't have the quality that we do in that part of the field.

For me, the only player we need really fear from United's point of view is Ronaldo. He rarely performs against the "big teams" but his form is such that he will need to be looked at very carefully. I expect Carragher to come across to left back to try and nullify this threat, and Mascherano to pick him up if he drifts across the pitch. Deny Ronaldo space and you stifle almost all of United's attacks.

All in all, Reds should be quietly confident of picking up three points and rubbing it in the noses of any United supporters they know - Number 17? They're having a laugh.