Join AI Pro

Manchester United 2 – 2 Liverpool – The Postmortem

This was a game (much like the FA Cup defeat) that should have been won convincingly, however, the low block endeavour of the lesser team once again proved the Achilles heel for this Liverpool side, who failed to deliver despite so much dominance and so many first half chances.

Below is how the team lined up, with match details following.

The Starting Eleven

GK – Caoimhin Kelleher
RB – Conor Bradley
RCB – Jarell Quansah
LCB – Virgil van Dijk (c)
LB – Andy Robertson
RCM – Dominik Szoboszlai
CDM – Wataru Endō
LCM – Alexis Mac Allister
RF – Mohamed Salah
CF – Darwin Núñez
LF – Luis Díaz

Subs
Joe Gomez – Conor Bradley (65 mins)
Curtis Jones – Dominik Szoboszlai (65 mins)
Harvey Elliott – Wataru Endō (69 mins)
Cody Gakpo – Darwin Núñez (69 mins)

Goals

Manchester United 0 – 1 Liverpool
Luis Díaz (Darwin Núñez) 23 mins

Manchester United 1 – 1 Liverpool
Bruno Fernandes – 50 mins

Manchester United 2 – 1 Liverpool
Kobbie Mainoo (Aaron Wan Bissaka) 67 mins

Manchester United 2 – 2 Liverpool
Mohamed Salah (Penalty) 84 mins

Important Match Stats

Possession
Manchester United 38% – 62% Liverpool

Total Shots
Manchester United 9 – 28 Liverpool

Crosses
Manchester United 10 – 27 Liverpool

Corner Kicks
Manchester United 6 – 11 Liverpool

Goalkeeper Saves
Manchester United 5 – 3 Liverpool

The First Half

The opening period of this game was a disallowed goal away from becoming a very standard start (for the reds), as the hosts had an early strike chalked off by VAR. From that point onwards, the visiting team stamped their authority on proceedings and gained territorial advantage with relative ease. The vulnerable back line of Manchester United was exploited time and time again, yet the final ball was often lacking. Eventually, the first goal of the match arrived courtesy of Luis Díaz, who was able to lash the ball home from close range, following a Darwin Núñez flick on from Liverpool’s corner. The next twenty minutes or so was a stream of relentless pressure, as all the attacking assets of Merseyside tried and failed to capitalize on a beleaguered opponent. You could see the reds German manager becoming more and more animated on the touch line, as the first half closed out at just 0-1, when the game should have been put out of sight.

The Second Half

On resumption of the second half, no changes were made and it took just minutes for the Manchester club to equalize. Some very relaxed possession play (at the back) ended with the unfortunate Jarell Quansah playing a ball into the feet of Bruno Fernandes, as his unsighted presence pounced onto the wayward square ball to his skipper. Without hesitation and with superb precision, the Portugal midfielder struck from close to the half way line and beyond a very advanced Caoimhin Kelleher. The game was turned on its footballing head and once more the encounter was in the balance.

Substitutes arrived to try and galvanize the title chasing group, however, the team who had been so roundly decimated in the first half were the team to take the scores to 2-1. A wonderful hit from teen sensation, Kobbie Mainoo, flew into the top corner and the entire away support was stunned. The game state did not match the score line and the hopes and dreams of the Anfield giants lay in tatters. After an end-to-end battle, slowly Liverpool regrouped and further alterations allowed them to apply more pressure. The most effective change was to introduce Harvey Elliott, who drove into the box, before being felled close to full time. The clear penalty decision allowed a very ineffective Mohamed Salah to bring the scores level and create a final flurry to attempt to secure more valuable points.

The script did not favour Liverpool FC and the game finally petered out to a disappointing 2-2 result.

What Are My Final Thoughts…?

This was a game that may damage the title aspirations of the red men, though the next seven games still offer enough points to take this enthralling Premier League campaign to the last day. I believe the reintroduction of Trent Alexander Arnold and Diogo Jota will prove pivotal and that the title will still be won by Liverpool, allowing their glorious German manager the swan-song he so richly deserves.

Steven Smith

Join AI Pro