Manchester United vs Liverpool - A combined XI

Central Midfield

Steven Gerrard – Michael Carrick – Jordan Henderson

Arguably the easiest of the selections, the three players who’ll be occupying the central midfield positions have been on their A-game right throughout the season. Whilst Gerrard has demonstrated that he can hold his own as a holding player, Carrick continues to show England just what they are missing out on. With a pass completion rate of 88.1% in the League, it is no wonder why the players rate Carrick so highly. And it is not just his pass completion rates, but the fact that he initiates most attacks as a quarter back that makes him standout in an area where United have struggled this season.

Alongside Carrick are two players who have showed everyone just how important they are to the Reds lineup. Gerrard is undoubtedly one of the finest box-to-box midfielders in recent times. But this season, he has had to reinvent himself in a deeper role. A role which many thought he couldn’t do, but one that he is accomplishing with great élan. Eight goals and nine assists show that even in a withdrawn role, Gerrard is the player who makes the Reds tick.

Alongside him is a player who has started all of Liverpool’s league games this season and has slowly but surely started to repay the faith put in by his manager. At the start of the campaign, not many would have predicted the Englishman to be in or around the England setup this close to the World Cup. But, three goals, six assists and a pass completion rate in the high 80’s mean that Henderson probably deserves his place in Brazil, if he is chosen.

Attacking Midfield

Wayne Rooney

Currently the highest-paid player in England by virtue of his lucrative new contract, Wayne Rooney has thus far shown that he is worth every penny he is set to earn. Although he missed quite a few games due to injury, the Englishman has still managed to rack up some impressive numbers. With 11 goals and 10 assists in 21 League starts, Rooney is arguably the most complete forward in the League at the moment. He has been the creator-in-chief for most of United’s goals and has shown that his transfer request is a thing of the past.

Strikers

Luis Suarez – Daniel Sturridge

Sturridge and Suarez, or SAS, as they have come to be called are the most lethal strike partnership in the League this season. The duo have between them scored 42 goals this campaign, four fewer than what the entire Manchester United squad have managed. Add to this, their 15 assists and you have the most complete strike partnership anywhere in Europe. And whilst Robin van Persie started brightly, the Dutchman has been overshadowed by the duo who have terrorized opposing defenders all season.

While Suarez is on track to finish with the record for most League goals in a single season, it is Sturridge, whose form, has surprised one and all. The Englishman had scored in eight-successive games before failing to find the back of the net against Southampton. He has scored 10 goals in his last nine League games and has taken over the mantle of scoring, with Suarez having netted only twice in his last seven matches. And although Suarez hasn’t been in scintillating goal scoring form recently, he has stilled managed five assists and two Man of the Match performances in his last seven League games.

Substitutes

Simon Mignolet, Nemanja Vidic, Jon Flanagan, Raheem Sterling, Adnan Januzaj, Juan Mata, Robin van Persie.