InterviewAlexis Mac Allister previews Liverpool v Man Utd: 'I love playing these games'

The Argentina midfielder has come up against United three times in his Reds career so far, though all those occasions have been away from home.

Mac Allister, who joined from Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer of 2023, missed last season's goalless draw in L4 with a knee injury but is eager to contribute in this latest instalment of the famous fixture.

Previewing Sunday's showdown, the No.10 told Liverpoolfc.com: "Since I arrived at the club, I understood the rivalry between both clubs. I love playing these kind of games.

"Hopefully it's going to be a nice one for us. We are working really hard to play a good game.

"It's the first time I will play Man United at Anfield, so it's going to be a nice game and hopefully we can get the win."

We sat down with the 26-year-old at the AXA Training Centre on Friday for insight into the team's build-up and form going into this game – read on for the rest of the chat.

Alexis, it's been a rare midweek break but sometimes that can be just what the players need – a couple of days with the family away from the pressures of Premier League football and all that brings…

Yeah, definitely. I think it's really important for us to have some days off, as you say, be with the family and enjoy life. But now our focus is back on the Premier League and we know that it's going to be a long and hopefully nice month for us.

Your own performance at West Ham United last time out was brilliant – you were second only to Trent Alexander-Arnold in terms of the number of touches. Is that up there as one of your own favourite performances for the club?

I think it was good. I always put the team ahead of me. I think the team played a really good game but I really enjoyed it. I've had quite a few nice games in the last couple of weeks, maybe the most important were Real Madrid and Man City; really good games. But definitely against West Ham I felt that it was a good performance.

And is this the most comfortable you've felt as a player here so far?

Definitely. We come back to the days off I had, I want to say thank you to Arne [Slot], the coaching staff and my teammates as well because while they were running a lot, I had a week off in between because I was suspended for the Premier League and Champions League at the same time. I had a week off, which was really important for me to be with the family and to enjoy and recharge the batteries. I'm really glad about my performances so far. Hopefully we can keep on going.

You must be happy with your numbers as well this season. We know you set very high targets and it feels as though everything is clicking in the midfield...

Numbers are not the most important thing but at the same time I want to improve them. I love scoring and assisting and I want to do it more often. But at the same time I understand that football is not just numbers – there are a lot of things. I feel really important for the team and that's the only thing I want.

The atmosphere seems brilliant within the camp at the moment. When you look at that midfield position that you play in, it's in such a good place at the moment...

I always say it's quite easy to play with these guys. They are too good. And we are supported by our defence and our attacking players as well. I think it's about finding the balance in the team and I think everyone in the team is doing really, really well. Hopefully we can keep this togetherness and we can move forward and keep winning games.

There is a gap at the top of the Premier League table, not that any of the players are thinking about that at the moment. Tell us what the appetite is like within the dressing room...

We know that we are in a really good place and, of course, we look at the table every single day and we dream to win this Premier League. But there is still a long way [to go]. We know that this month is going to be really important for us. Our dream is to win it, so hopefully we can do it.

It's been well documented that Manchester United are not in the greatest of positions at the moment – does that hold any relevance for a game like this?

No, I don't think so and I think when teams play Liverpool they always give something more. We know that it's going to be a tough game, they have really good players. Of course they are not in the best moment but [they have] really good players, [a] new coach, so we expect a really tough game. But we are really confident ourselves and we will do our best to win it.

• Read a round-up from Arne Slot's pre-Man Utd press conference