Manchester United host second place Liverpool this afternoon (4pm kick-off) as the Red Devils go in search of a tenth successive victory.

Jose Mourinho’s men have beaten Reading 4-0 to reach round four of the FA Cup and Hull 2-0 to put themselves in the ascendency in their League Cup semi-final this week, and they’ll be confident of securing a hat-trick of victories against Jurgen Klopp’s men later today.

The Red Devils have won their last six Premier League matches, Everton were the last team to take points off United in a 1-1 draw on December 4, which is a run that has put them within five points of today’s opponents.

Thus, it is a massive game for Klopp’s Liverpool, even more so after the sluggish start they have made to 2017.

The Reds have drawn with both Sunderland and Plymouth, the latter in the FA Cup, at the start of the year, and they also lost 1-0 at Southampton on Wednesday in the first leg of their League Cup semi-final.

However, they have won 13 of their 20 league games this season, and will go to Old Trafford confident of securing a first victory of the New Year.

In what is set to be an exciting encounter at Old Trafford, here are THREE reasons why Manchester United will take all three points this afternoon…

Sensational run of form

United now hold the longest winning streak in the Premier League following Chelsea’s defeat to Tottenham last week.

Mourinho’s men have won their last six league matches, with the likes of Tottenham, West Brom, and West Ham all coming up short against the Red Devils.

They are unbeaten in their last 11 league games, dating back to their 4-0 defeat at Chelsea in October, and haven’t lost at Old Trafford since neighbours City won there 2-1 on September 10.

Add in their League and FA Cup exploits, and United have won nine in a row and are unbeaten in their last 15 matches – they’ll be supremely confident of making it ten successive victories this afternoon.

Forwards firing

Marcus Rashford ended a barren run of no goal since September by firing home a brace against Reading in the FA Cup last weekend.

The England international had been struggling for form and confidence, but he’ll now look to push on should he start against Liverpool today.

It’s not just Rashford though who has looked good in recent weeks: Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the most in-form strikers in the division, having netted nine goals in his last nine league games, while the likes of Anthony Martial, Wayne Rooney, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan have all netted in the past few weeks.

Mourinho has several forward options to choose from against Liverpool, with the knowledge that he can bring quality players off the bench to change the game if needed.

They can get at the Liverpool defence

United’s excellent form and the confidence they have gained from it will cause a vulnerable Liverpool defence problems this afternoon.

Klopp’s Reds have conceded 23 goals in the Premier League this season, which is more than any side in the top six, and they were completely dominated by Southampton in midweek, with goalkeeper Loris Karius to thank for keeping them in their League Cup semi-final.

This Liverpool defence can be got at – Ibrahimovic will enjoy the challenge of Dejan Lovren in the middle of the park, yet if the Swedish star is not fit to play, the likes of Martial and Rashford could cause both Lovren and Ragnar Klavan no end of problems with their pace and directness.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan is likely to line up against makeshift full-back James Milner, which is another battle United will feel confident of winning, so it all points to Mourinho’s men creating space and opportunities in the Liverpool final third.