The Red Devils beat Liverpool 2-1 at Old Trafford thanks to Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford. Despite losing their first two matches, Man United looked like an inspired team in the first 20 minutes, passing the ball all over the field. As Erik ten Hag’s squad had a one-goal lead at the half against an injured Liverpool team without a win this season, the intensity was hard to match. As Lisandro Martinez cleared the goal line to prevent Bruno Fernandes from scoring his own goal, they were hanging on by the skin of their teeth.
A huge win at home for Erik Ten Hag’s Red Devils over Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool was the response to the defeat on field Man United beat Liverpool
After the half, ten Hag subbed Anthony Martial for Anthony Elanga not to get complacent. In the 51st minute, Martial assisted United’s second goal. Late in the game, Mohamed Salah got one back after Fabio Carvalho’s shot attempt. United’s first goal from open play and Casemiro’s presentation before the game marked the end of the Ten Hag era, with United winning with three points.
Likewise, Liverpool has been unable to win their last three games and suffered a performance to forget at Old Trafford as they were outworked on every front. The Reds should have woken up after Anthony Elanga rattled the post from the first whistle. After being on the pitch for too long, Sancho was substituted.
After receiving a yellow card for taking down Elanga, Trent Alexander-Arnold was targeted and looked like someone thinking twice about defensive challenges. In the absence of Fabinho and with Joe Gomez making his first start since April of 2022, the defense was in shambles. On the road, Liverpool had attacking chances to steal a point. After rattling off 17 shots, Roberto Firmino didn’t offer a threat, stepping in for Darwin Nunez, who is still serving two more matches on his suspension for headbutting. United managed to block everything in sight, leaving Ten Hag rather upbeat in his postgame interview abroad.
We can talk about technical aspects, but it’s all about attitude. Now you see that attitude is brought to the pitch,” he told Sky Sports. “You could see the communication, the fighting spirit, and most of all, the teamwork. Because they can play football.”
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A few notable changes in attitude included the exclusion of captain Harry Maguire and Portuguese castaway Cristiano Ronaldo from the starting lineup. Maguire’s lack of pace did not detract from the stout defense, which was able to play to the wide attack of willing runners. After Tyrell Malacia contained Salah late in the game, they could be deemed surplus to requirements along with Luke Shaw.
The front three make such a difference
As a result of Sancho, Rashford, and Elanga/Martial, Liverpool were dealt a devastating blow. The goals came from Sancho and Rashford, while the assists came from Elanga and Martial. In particular, Rashford impressed with five shots as a central striker instead of his usual left-wing position. As soon as he came on, Martial created two chances and assisted Rashford’s goal. Rashford’s shot is still confident, but that’s more important.
In addition, they tracked back well to prevent Liverpool from overloading the defense, which is impossible with Ronaldo on the side. Since United were outrun by Brentford last week, much has been said about sprinting numbers. However, the ten Hag ball’s system relies on the team sprinting to be successful. Since Casemiro is a different type of midfielder than McTominay, I wonder if he will be asked to run when he joins, but allowing him to sit deep may allow the team in front of him to be more expansive.
The absence of Thiago is still causing Liverpool problems
It is difficult for Liverpool to create from deep, which makes their crosses too predictable. Between Harvey Elliott, Jordan Henderson, and James Milner, only four chances were created. Alexander-Arnold provided Liverpool’s only through ball of the day, as they struggled to get the ball into space in order to defeat Manchester United.
Salah performed well in attack, but the Reds should add another midfielder before the transfer window closes. Just over a week remains in the transfer window, so it may be difficult to secure the services of a talented, young central midfielder. For now, a formation change to a 4-2-3-1 to give more freedom to Elliott or Fabio could make sense. Carvalho seems like the best option to open up the attack, but that would likely require moving Salah to center forward while dropping Firmino to the bench. It’s a lot of change for the Reds but a shakeup is needed at this stage.
Defensive partnership in the making
The Manchester United defense was led by Raphel Varane and Lisandro Martinez. As they attacked the ball, they made 16 clearances between them. Furthermore, they didn’t dive into tackles to make themselves vulnerable to Liverpool’s attack. As well as protecting David De Gea, Martinez showed his anticipation by blocking three shots. Martinez had a rough start even though Martinez was withdrawn at halftime of the Brentford match, he didn’t need much time on the ball against Liverpool to demonstrate his effectiveness.
Manchester United’s next few matches will determine Harry Maguire’s role with him on the bench. Unless the current back four continues to perform well, the team captain could be benched for some time. It’ll be quite a fIn light of his team’s recent performances, a change might be necessary for Maguire and England’s national team setup.
