Liverpool's Lucas Leiva, Mamadou Sakho in contention to face Manchester United

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that midfielder Lucas Leiva and defender Mamadou Sakho are in contention to make their return to action following respective injuries.

The pair came through an Under-21 match unscathed, which has ensured their places in the squad for Sunday's highly anticipated clash against Manchester United.

"We're fine - we've had Lucas Leiva and young Sakho [come] back in," Rodgers said in Friday's press conference. "It's a great credit to them. When I gave players time off, they actually wanted to stay behind.

"It shows you the commitment of this squad. They had an opportunity to have a break, they'd been working very, very hard with the medical team, but they decided to stay and last Friday they travelled down themselves in a car to London to play in an Under-21 game."

Liverpool are currently 11 points ahead of rivals United in the Premier League table.