Jerzy Dudek and Phil Babb have become the latest Liverpool Legends players to guarantee Thursday's meeting with their Manchester United counterparts will be a full-blooded encounter.

Istanbul hero Dudek is competing with fellow goalkeeper Sander Westerveld for a place in manager Ian Rush's starting XI to take on the old enemy at the Friends Arena in Stockholm.

And the Polish shot-stopper is certain that the Reds will come up against a team who, like them, won't be treating the game as a simple friendly.

"For sure, it'll be competitive. I don't think anyone wants to have a friendly, nice game, everyone wants to win - it's in our blood," he told Liverpoolfc.com.

"They want to come and win against us as well, there's a lot of history even if you're only playing legends.

"There will be a lot of big challenges on the pitch."

Babb echoed those sentiments, explaining that the fans' passion for the rivalry has rubbed off on the former Anfield stars.

"The rivalry between the two clubs is well-documented and well-known - I certainly don't have to remind the fans about it!" he said.

"There is that fierce rivalry between the ex-players as well, because we tap into that. 

"There's always a bit of gentle ribbing going on but, come kick-off, it'll be a tasty little game, I'm telling you."

The former Republic of Ireland international was not part of the Legends squad that faced Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in June, in what was their first official outing.

The defender admitted to feeling some degree of jealousy in seeing his former teammates running out at such an iconic area, and is looking forward to getting his own taste of such an occasion in the Swedish capital.

"I was working for LFCTV for the game against Real Madrid and it was something I was gutted to miss out on," he continued.

"There were fantastic stars on display, a fantastic crowd, so I'm glad I've made the squad!

"I did some training with Robbie [Fowler] last week and I think it's paid off so I'm really excited to get on with the game now."

To find out more about how you can watch the game, head to liverpoolfc.com/legends