No Paul Pogba, no Marouane Fellaini.

Two brutes in the centre of Manchester United’s midfield, missing.

Jose Mourinho’s side have been sweeping away teams with ease so far this season, playing some enthralling football.

Many have put forward the case that even away from home at Liverpool, they are still firm favourites. But, the loss of Pogba and Fellaini in the centre of the park will be of paramount importance to Liverpool.

One of United’s biggest strengths is the height that they have throughout the squad.

David De Gea- 6ft 4 in

Sergio Romero- 6ft 3 ½ in

Eric Bailly- 6ft 1 in

Luke Shaw- 6ft 1 in

Matteo Darmian- 6ft

Chris Smalling- 6ft 4 in

Phil Jones- 6ft 1 in

Marcos Rojo- 6ft 2 in

Victor Lindelof- 6ft 2 in

Nemanja Matic- 6ft 4 in

Ander Herrera- 6ft

Michael Carrick- 6ft 2 in

Marcus Rashford- 6ft 1 in

Romelu Lukaku- 6ft 3 in

Zlatan Ibrahimovic- 6ft 5 in

Marouane Fellaini- 6ft 4 ½ in

Paul Pogba- 6ft 3 in

This collective aerial prowess allows them to often reign supreme when challenging for the ball from set pieces as well as anywhere else on the pitch where crosses  are flying in.

But now that these two players will be absent, just what will that mean for the away side’s midfield set-up?

Yes, Matic will still be available, but now attention is likely to turn to Herrera to sit alongside the Serbian, the Spaniard is still a towering 6ft tall; however, he does not boast the same physical presence to that of his injured team-mates.

The duo of Pogba and Fellaini has been effective as they complement each other when playing. The Belgian is not so concerned about scoring goals and grabbing the headlines, his mind is set on the task in hand and nothing else. This allows the Frenchman to roam the midfield, acting as the creative spark to conjure up opportunities for his side.

Fellaini is enjoying the best spell of his United days, but things haven’t always been plain sailing. The former Everton midfielder has been subject to mass criticism over the last few years, mainly down to his unorthodox and predominantly unattractive playing style.

He does not offer you skill and elegance, his technique is questionable to say the least, but it’s effective.

Mourinho has found a way to get the best out of him, using him as a target man more than anything, which has even seen him score a few goals. This has worked for the side many times now, as no one can get near him. Not only this, he brushes past opponents as if they’re an irritating fly; swatting them away with little remorse.

The fact that he’s unavailable undoubtedly plays into Jürgen Klopp’s hands.

There is a stark contrast between Liverpool and Man United in terms of the players they own. Listed above, are the players in Mourinho’s side that are notably tall, if we look at who Klopp has at his disposal there is a lengthy gap.

Klopp’s side aren’t the tallest; there are ten first-team players who are six foot and over, compared to United’s 17. But, the thing that is most striking of all is the positions the players are in.

Seven of Liverpool’s ten 6ft+ men are defensive players  ( Simon Mignolet, Loris Karius, Dejan Lovren, Joe Gomez, Ragnar Klavan, Joel Matip, and Danny Ward), the other three up field are Emre Can, Marko Grujic and Dominic Solanke.

The problem is; United’s are scattered all over the pitch.

Most of the Red Devils’ defensive unit are over six foot tall, with the only exceptions being Antonio Valencia and Daley Blind; who are both a close 5ft 11’.

In midfield, there are the likes of the two men ruled out; Pogba and Fellaini, Carrick, Matic and Herrera. But also in attack, Lukaku, Ibrahimovic and Rashford lead the line definitively.

By taking two very physical players out of the picture, it swings the pendulum back in Liverpool’s favour.

Liverpool are already renowned for their poor defensive abilities, especially from set pieces, and when faced with a team that has a set of players that Mourinho has, it doesn’t bode well.

The Portuguese manager will always set up to counteract his opponent, remaining fully aware where the Reds’ weaknesses lay; therefore doing everything possible to make life hard for the defence.

Long balls upfield for Lovren and Matip to deal with is somewhat of a certainty to be prominent, what isn’t guaranteed, however, is whether they will deal with the bombardment of hit and hope hooves.

Fellaini’s non-attendance in particular, will theoretically make life easier for Liverpool in this department, though . He is quite frankly a massive nuisance, which will bring the Reds’ centre-back pairing some relief.

So, Liverpool must stamp their authority in the middle of the pitch as this could prove to be a game changer.

Mourinho is likely to shut up shop, as he tends to do in the big matches, this will make United difficult to break down and get past. But, with the two absentees; there will be inviting pockets of space for the Reds’ attacking trident to optimise.

This is a must win game for the Reds.

United’s injury woes will help the home side, but there are still plenty of other items that will need considering.

Tom Cavilla.