Our head coach has been intensely analysing Manchester United following the appointment of their interim manager, and former Red Devils striker, Van Nistelrooy, with the Blues returning to Premier League action after exiting the Carabao Cup during midweek.

Maresca and Van Nistelrooy were paired together at Malaga for a short period during their playing days, taking to the pitch 13 times together for the Spanish club during the 2011/12 campaign. And when asked about their relationship, the Italian had nothing but praise for the temporary United boss.

‘He is a very good professional and a humble guy,’ Maresca opened.

‘He’s fantastic to sit and chat about everything with. I will give him a big hug on Sunday before the game!’

Having watched the Red Devils take on Leicester City during the week, our head coach explained that their interim manager has made some changes since taking the role.

Maresca continued: ‘Overall they tried to maintain the same thing because it’s quite difficult to change things in such a short period of time, but I see that they changed small things. Overall against Leicester, they were more or less the way they were previously.

‘I think after a while the team reflects the coach and the manager and, in terms of Ruud, the more time he can work with the team then the more likely it is that the team does what he wants them to do.

‘When you change manager, in the first three or so games you will see a reaction from the players, but in any case, it will be a tough game.’

Reminiscing on his time coming up against Manchester United as a player Maresca believes that Old Trafford’s atmosphere will be a test akin to Anfield a few weeks ago, but the boss knows that his side can rise to that challenge.

‘Old Trafford is one of the stadiums in Europe, and the world, that is intimidating, like Anfield,’ he added.

‘In Italy, it’s like San Siro or Barcelona and Real Madrid in Spain – they are stadiums that are nice for intimidation. I played there two times and I was very young. I played against Paul Scholes, Roy Keane and [Juan Sebastian] Veron.

‘We played a few weeks ago at Anfield and the performance was there, and I don’t think that the players felt that kind of intimidation. Hopefully, that can be the same on Sunday [at Old Trafford].’