This season's Capital One Cup may well be in its infancy but already we've been handed a plum tie of which to warm ourselves with in these early autumn days. Manchester United vs Liverpool - when these two famous clubs were each paired together on August 28, this fixture instantly became the tie of the round and belies Hull boss Steve Bruce's claim that watching matches in these early stages of the competition is like "watching paint dry". This is a game where fireworks could, and probably will, fly. For a start, there's the small measure of revenge on United's behalf following their 1-0 defeat to tonight's opponents at the turn of the month at Anfield. Then, of course, there's the issue of a certain Luis Suarez, the controversial Uruguayan striker who just so happens to have completed his 10-match ban for biting Branislav Ivanovic. Put his hostile relationship with Red Devil's defender Patrice Evra and United's quest for vengeance together and what you have is a third round League Cup tie that could very easily be the final itself. But who will win? With no replays, this could do straight to the wire, and here, we examine 5 Key Battles that could determine the outcome.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
