Jurgen Klopp has described Manchester United as a "results machine" and backed Liverpool's fierce rivals to compete all the way for the Premier League title.
United travel to Anfield on Sunday unbeaten in 11 matches and having lost only one of their 20 games since the World Cup break, winning 16 of those.
That run of form has propelled the Red Devils within 11 points of leaders Arsenal with a game in hand, while they ended a six-year trophy drought with a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United in the EFL Cup final last Sunday.
Indeed, no Premier League team has won more points than United (23) since the campaign resumed in December, which Klopp believes stands them in good stead to push for the title.
"They have turned into a results machine," Klopp said at Friday's pre-match news conference. "They are squeezing results out with some really good performances.
"They're playing some top football, and if it is not going so well for them they still get results. That's why they are there [in the table].
"Everyone knows it: they are fully in a fight to win the league. That's not really important for Sunday because we are there as well when we try to be at our best."
Marcus Rashford's goalscoring form has played a massive part in United's impressive first campaign under Erik ten Hag, particularly since the World Cup.
The England international has scored 10 goals in his past 10 league games, netting in each of his past five appearances, and has 25 goals for the season in all competitions.
Only Ruud van Nistelrooy (three separate runs), Eric Cantona (in April 1996) and Cristiano Ronaldo (in April 2008) have scored in six successive league games for United.
While reluctant to praise any players of Liverpool's biggest foes, Klopp says it is hard not to take some joy from Rashford's upturn in fortunes.
"It's pretty much impossible to be happy about something positive at Manchester United when you are the Liverpool manager, but I am really happy for Rashford," Klopp said.
"He had a very difficult last year where he was not performing on the level that he is able to perform.
"I knew this would change again but sometimes in life we don't have enough time to change it. Now he is playing incredible. His speed, his technique – it is a mix of everything.
"How calm he is in front of goal. He scores worldies, he scores the simple ones, he can put his head in. All these kinds of things.
"We have to defend against that collectively. He is not their only world-class player."
With one trophy in the bag, United are still competing for silverware on three further fronts, whereas Liverpool are now effectively just battling for fourth place in the league.
The Reds trail Real Madrid 5-2 ahead of the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, but Klopp is remaining upbeat heading into some key fixtures.
"I said before last game, this is a week to give the season a proper push. Now we have to make the next steps," he said.
"Nothing is done yet which is good for us. We all know everything is possible in football. We need to use our crowd in home games."
Liverpool are unbeaten in six home league games against United (W3 D3) since a 1-0 loss in January 2016 – their longest run without defeat since a run of nine in the 1970s.
United will be confident of ending that run on Merseyside this weekend, but Klopp insists form will play no part in what remains one of the biggest fixtures in the game.
"They have had a better season so far but thank God it means absolutely nothing on Sunday," Klopp said.
"We have to show it's still incredibly difficult to play against us. We have to make sure they realise that. I couldn't be less interested in what United are doing, I just respect it.
"It's what I enjoy most. Around these games we put ourselves out of this sometimes not so nice reality and dig into the game.
"Football is the most important thing for 98 minutes or whatever. I love that. The whole world will watch it. I would watch it if I was not here.
"It's 'the game'. They are playing a much better season than us but that means nothing. It doesn't mean you win the game, it just means you have more points."
Outgoing Brighton boss De Zerbi not walking into new job
Roberto De Zerbi insisted he does not have another job lined up after overseeing his final game as Brighton and Hove Albion boss on Sunday.
One day after surprisingly announcing De Zerbi's departure, Brighton ended their Premier League campaign with a 2-0 home loss to Manchester United.
That meant they slipped below rivals Crystal Palace to finish 11th in the table, their first bottom-half placing since finishing 16th in 2020-21.
De Zerbi has been linked with several big clubs since leading Brighton to European qualification last season, with Bayern Munich, Milan and Napoli touted as possible landing spots for the former Sassuolo and Shakhtar Donetsk coach.
However, De Zerbi says he has not reached an agreement with any other club, telling reporters: "There isn't any club – no-one offered me anything. At the moment, nothing.
"I hope to work in the Premier League again. I don't know where or when, but it was an honour to work in the Premier League."
Sunday's defeat was De Zerbi's 70th Premier League game in charge of Brighton, with his top-flight win percentage of 37 per cent (26/70) the highest of any boss in the Seagulls' history.
Battling a lengthy injury list for much of 2023-24, Brighton made a total of 143 changes to their starting lineup throughout the course of the campaign, with only Manchester City in 2019-20 (144) ever making more in a single Premier League season.
Asked by BBC Match of the Day if there was a particular reason for his exit, the Italian added: "We didn't find the agreement to move on. I want to keep my way.
"I know very well what I want to do and I know I am a coach and I have to accept the policies of the club.
"They gave me an incredible chance. They gave me the possibility to know incredible people, to play and to work in the Premier League, to play in the Europa League. They gave me the opportunity to know this club, this city, these fans and that I cannot forget."
Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna and Nice coach Francesco Farioli have both been tipped as possible contenders to replace De Zerbi, with Brighton having a reputation for excellent succession planning under owner Tony Bloom.
Asked about the search for a replacement on Sunday, Bloom said: "We always try and have a plan. We have got a plan. We now need to execute that plan."
Mateta 'finishing everything that comes to him' as Palace rout Villa
Jean-Philippe Mateta is "finishing everything that comes to him", according to his Crystal Palace team-mate Eberechi Eze.
Palace thumped fourth-placed Aston Villa 5-0 at home on the last day of the Premier League season to seal an unlikely top-10 finish, with Mateta scoring a hat-trick and Eze adding two goals of his own.
They ended the season with a seven-match unbeaten run under Oliver Glasner, who made a huge impact after replacing Roy Hodgson in February.
Mateta has been a huge beneficiary, as since Glasner's first game in charge on February 24, he has scored 13 Premier League goals, which is more than any other player in the competition.
He ended the campaign with 16 top-flight goals, putting him level with the likes of Bukayo Saka and Jarrod Bowen in the scoring charts. Only Andrew Johnson has netted more for the Eagles across a single campaign in the competition, when he netted 21 in 2004-05.
"He is what I'm playing for," Eze said about Mateta, per Palace's official website.
"He is finishing everything that comes to him, which makes our life a lot easier when I'm playing for him, so it's good.
"I did come close [to a hat-trick myself], but the most important thing is putting in good performances. We're all going to flourish, we're all going to have games where we score.
"We're preparing the work and we're doing the work before we go on to the pitch, so we're enjoying it, that's the main thing."
The match also saw Mateta become just the second Frenchman to score in seven home Premier League home appearances in a row, after Thierry Henry for Arsenal between May and October 2004.
Eze has also finished the season with a flourish, ending the campaign with 11 goals and four assists.
Mateta is among those who have called for him to earn a place in the England squad for Euro 2024.
"Of course it's an honour [to play for your country]," said Eze. "It would be a great experience.
"I think it is a dream for any player to play in any big tournament. But the main thing, I'm being realistic. It is what it is: if I get a call, I get a call.
"But the main thing is doing what I need to do for my club, and that's the performance."
Villa are the first side to concede five or more goals in their first and final matches of a top-flight season since Manchester City in 1962-63, having been beaten 5-1 at Newcastle on the opening weekend.
But they were magnificent in between those two losses, enjoying a campaign to remember as they qualified for the Champions League, confounding pre-season expectations.
"Thank you to our supporters because even today they were with us," said Villa boss Unai Emery after Sunday's loss.
"We achieved our objective on Tuesday [when UCL qualification was confirmed] and we did everything we could with our supporters in Villa Park on Monday [in the 3-3 draw with Liverpool].
"They were travelling here to be with us, supporting us so we are disappointed with the result, but we have to accept it.
"We have to be happy and share with our supporters the whole season, not just today. Every match is very important and we lost, but we’d achieved our target.
"We have to accept it and keep going forward. Now it’s time to rest and try to follow our players with their national teams and prepare as best as possible the next season.
"We have to enjoy the season we did and we’re very excited for the next season, but we have to take our time now."
Metz 0-2 Paris Saint-Germain: Ligue 1 champions make history with unbeaten away run
Paris Saint-Germain ended their Ligue 1 campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win at Metz on Sunday, courtesy of early goals from Carlos Soler and Lee Kang-in.
The Ligue 1 champions, who rested several key players, ended the season with 76 points, nine ahead of Monaco in second place.
Luis Enrique's team also became the first side in Ligue 1 history to go unbeaten on the road through the entirety of a campaign.
PSG rested several key players, including Kylian Mbappe, ahead of the Coupe de France final on Saturday against Lyon.
The visitors made an excellent start with Soler, who was teed up by Lee, breaking the deadlock with a shot from outside the box seven minutes in.
Lee subsequently doubled the lead five minutes later, becoming the first South Korean player to score and deliver an assist in the same Ligue 1 match since Hwang Ui-jo for Bordeaux in 2019.
Metz had their chances late in the match and went close on several occasions, but could not find a way back into the contest, and they will now face a relegation play-off against Saint-Etienne.
Data Debrief: History boys
PSG are the first team in Europe's top five leagues to have gone an entire league season without trailing for a single minute in an away match in the 21st century.
Their tally of 76 points trails only Saint-Etienne (77 in 1968-69, 81 in 1969-70, counting three points for a win) when it comes to a points total over the course of an 18-club league campaign.
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