Rio Ferdinand has urged England midfielder Jude Bellingham to pick Manchester United over Liverpool this summer.
The Borussia Dortmund star is expected to leave Germany at the end of the season, with a number of Europe's biggest clubs battling for his signature.
Liverpool are keen to land Bellingham to bolster their faltering midfield, but are set to face competition from Real Madrid and Manchester City.
Ferdinand has thrown his former club into the mix as well, and thinks Bellingham would be wise to choose the Red Devils due to their current trajectory under Erik ten Hag after ending their six-year wait for a trophy last weekend by lifting the Carabao Cup.
'If you put the two teams on a graph, Manchester United are going in one direction and Liverpool have stagnated,' Ferdinand told the BBC.
'I wouldn't say Liverpool are in decline, but other teams are catching them up and maybe going beyond them.
'If I'm a player, say Jude Bellingham or Declan Rice - two of the most in-demand English midfielders that may get moves this summer - and someone says, "Manchester United or Liverpool, where are you going?", forget my Manchester United ties, I have to go with United right now.
'The way the team looks, the way the squad is shaping up, the way the managers are navigating their teams' fortunes and who I see being more successful in the upcoming future - I really would be sitting on the side of United.'
The two English giants are due to face each other on Sunday at Anfield with United holding a 10-point advantage over Liverpool heading into the contest.
Ten Hag's side are still involved in three competitions and remain in with a chance of completing an unprecedented quadruple.
It has been some turnaround from where they were last year as they finished down in sixth under Ralf Rangnick.
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp's men have fallen away badly after coming close to pulling off their own quadruple last year, and are six points outside the top four.
A win for United could dent Liverpool's chances of signing Bellingham, with the 19-year-old likely to want to be playing Champions League football at his next club.