Jose Mourinho guided United to a 0-0 draw at Anfield last season
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho says it "will be beautiful" to take his side to Anfield despite expecting an atmosphere of "animosity."
United can go 10 points ahead of their rivals with victory on Saturday, while Liverpool will hope to win at home for the first time since August.
"We know that the fans have huge animosity against us historically, but this is what we want," Mourinho said.
"I never see a player complain, 'Oh, this atmosphere was very strong.'"
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp will mark two years in the job this weekend but will be without key forward Sadio Mane at Anfield.
The attacker suffered a hamstring injury while playing for Senegal but Klopp thinks his side can cope.
"Obviously we can still play football without Sadio as we have had to do this in the past - much more than we would have wanted," said Klopp.
"He is the highest-quality player and was very unlucky with injury.
"A lot of players in this international break from different teams had injuries - it is a big problem with change of training, different rhythm.
"We can play without him even if we would love to have him in the line-up."
Team news
Liverpool will be without Mane, who faces a six-week absence with a hamstring injury.
Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino are expected to be available despite a lengthy journey back from Brazil.
Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini is set to miss out after injuring knee ligaments whilst playing for Belgium.
Captain Michael Carrick is still unavailable because of a calf injury.
Defender Phil Jones missed England duty with a knee issue but is likely to feature on Saturday, while in-form striker Romelu Lukaku is also fit despite a recent ankle problem.
MOTD COMMENTATOR'S NOTES
Guy Mowbray: "'It's only three points' seems to be Jose Mourinho's mantra, but that won't stop this being hyped as the biggest game around - which, in terms of worldwide interest, it might well be.
"It comes at the same stage as last season's Anfield meeting, which was similarly ramped up but ended up being turgid, with United in full-on shut-up shop mode.
"This HAS to be different, doesn't it?
"This time Mourinho's goal-filled team will surely attack - but perhaps only after a stifling start. Expect Liverpool to go hard for the early goal to open it right up.
"12.30pm starts can be slow burners in terms of atmosphere and action. This shouldn't be."
Twitter: @Guymowbray
WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho: "When you are in a big club, when you are a big player, when you are a big manager, every game is important.
"You cannot look at some matches as cup finals and other matches differently. It's three points, not four. It's just a three-point match. That's the way I approach it.
"Will I be as negative as last season? I will play with one defender and nine strikers, that's for sure. New system. Nine strikers, don't worry about it."
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
It is always a huge occasion and it is probably the type of fixture Liverpool need right now just to fire them up.
However, Liverpool have conceded an average of just under two goals a game in the league this season, so I am expecting United to score, especially with the form they are in.
Prediction: 1-1
Lawro's full predictions v rapper Wretch 32
Think you can do better than Lawro? Predict the score for this match and the rest of this round's Premier League fixtures in our Predictor game.MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Liverpool have failed to beat Manchester United in six Premier League games since since a 3-0 victory at Old Trafford in March 2014 (D2, L4).United have won three of their past five league visits to Anfield (D1, L1), keeping clean sheets in the last two games.
Liverpool
Liverpool have lost just one of the last 14 home games in all competitions (W8, D5).However, they have only one victory in their last seven league and cup matches (D4, L2).Defeat would leave Liverpool on 12 points from eight Premier League games, the same tally as when Brendan Rodgers was sacked in 2015-16.Jurgen Klopp has only lost once in seven competitive meetings with Jose Mourinho (W3, D3).Philippe Coutinho has registered nine goals and three assists in his last 12 Premier League games.
Manchester United
A win on Saturday would give Manchester United a Premier League club record 22 points after eight games.They have kept 17 Premier League clean sheets in 2017, three more than any other side.United have also kept eight clean sheets in their last nine league games.Romelu Lukaku could become the first player to score eight goals in his first eight Premier League games for Manchester United.However, Lukaku has just one goal in his last seven games against Liverpool, failing to register a shot on target in five of those matches.Marcus Rashford has recorded five goals and four assists in his last 10 appearances.
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SAM's verdictMost probable score: 1-1Probability of draw: 28%Probability of home win: 40%Probability of away win: 32%
SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale at the University of Liverpool that is used to predict the outcome of football matches.
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Source: bbc.com