Many Manchester United fans might be fearing the worst when Liverpool visit Old Trafford after the international break.
United find themselves 12th in the Premier League after a rotten start to the campaign and they're already 15 points behind Jurgen Klopp's side, who sit top of the table with eight wins from eight.
There is already a fear that an injury-hit United could be on the wrong end of a heavy defeat a week on Sunday, piling the pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
But perhaps all hope is not lost. The stats boffins at Infogol have come up with a Premier League table that is based on performances so far this season and there is some good news for United.
The website’s model assessed the chances that each team creates and concedes in every Premier League match, then simulates the chance of getting each result to estimate the expected number of points.
After the number-crunching United are actually third in the table, with Liverpool one place further back in fourth. Using the Infogol metric it's Manchester City who sit top of the pile, with Chelsea in second.
United's two missed penalties, against Wolves and Crystal Palace, are contributing to the arithmetic that places United third in this table. Infogol also use the model to forecast a predicted Premier League table at the end of the season, which currently has Solskjaer's side finishing in fifth.
The reality might be that Liverpool are overwhelming favourites to win at Old Trafford next week, but United will be hoping they can live up to this 'expected league position' table.
Solskjaer certainly has written the game off. After seeing his side's winless away run stretch to 11 games with a disappointing defeat at Newcastle United last week, the Norwegian suggested this fixture could actually be ideal for United.
“That’s a perfect game for us," he told BBC Sport. “The international break is also at the perfect time because their heads need a bit of airing.
“They will go away with their national teams, meet their team-mates and come back fresh.
“We have had a good time together, we have prepared since the first day of pre-season, we have stuck to the same principles.
“We have not got the result today but we have to keep carrying on.”
