Manchester Utd v Liverpool Manchester United are bolstered by the return of captain Roy Keane - who has missed the last five games with a hamstring problem - for the visit of Liverpool to Old Trafford this afternoon.
However, Juan Sebastian Veron has still not recovered from the knee injury he picked up against Leeds at the beginning of last month and United boss Alex Ferguson admitted last night the £28.1 million Argentine has only a "slight chance" of playing in the Bernabeu Stadium on Tuesday.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is likely to make way for Keane's return, with Mikael Silvestre set to be recalled in preference to John O'Shea as Ferguson makes a couple of changes to the side which briefly went top with a win over Fulham a fortnight ago.
"The only thing I have to wonder about is whether there is any shortage of energy within the squad because we have had 10 players on international duty in the week," Ferguson said yesterday.
"We have to remain strong and get some good team efforts. They have the ability, character and experience to handle it."
A place at the Premiership summit is also the prize on offer today, although Arsenal will recapture the position they currently occupy with a victory at Aston Villa in a match which will start less than an hour after United have finished.
Michael Owen remains a major doubt for Liverpool after injuring his back playing for England in midweek.
"You always want to have your best player available for a big game, but, at the same time, you have to live with it if he is not ready," Gerard Houllier said. "We have a big squad and it may be a good opportunity for other players to show."
If Owen fails to make it, Czech striker Milan Baros is the likely replacement to partner Emile Heskey in attack.
Baros had a great international week, coming on a substitute to help the Czechs to a 1-1 draw with the Netherlands and then starting in the 4-0 thrashing of Austria.
Heskey, on the other hand, suffered from a barrage of media criticism.
Despite having a hand in both England goals against Liechtenstein, Heskey was replaced by Wayne Rooney in the starting line-up for the Turkey game, with Aston Villa's Darius Vassell then getting the nod ahead of him as a second-half replacement for Owen.
And Houllier has warned Heskey that it is time for him to emerge "from the comfort zone" and prove his quality with Liverpool if the striker is to regain an England starting place. Houllier met the 25-year-old yesterday before training in an attempt to patch up his fragile confidence.
"It will help him and his career if he does well for Liverpool for the rest of this season," said Houllier, who has stood by Heskey despite the forward's eight goals in 45 club appearances this season.
"It's the right time for him to step out of the comfort zone and do it on the pitch. I believe he can and he will."
Liverpool hold something of a hoodoo sign over United, having lost just one of their last nine league games against them.
That run includes wins on their last two visits to Old Trafford, both 1-0 courtesy of Danny Murphy strikes, and they also have last month's League Cup final win in Cardiff to draw confidence from.
With a top-four finish still attainable, Houllier would love to take something from today's encounter to put the pressure on Chelsea, who are currently two points ahead in fourth place.
FA PremiershipTop Six
P W D L F A Diff Pts
Arsenal 31 20 6 5 66 33 +33 66
Man Utd 31 19 7 5 51 27 +24 64
Newcastle 31 19 4 8 54 35 +19 61
Chelsea 31 15 9 7 57 31 +26 54
Liverpool 31 14 10 7 47 31 +16 52
Everton 31 14 8 9 39 36 +3 50
