Home   >   MOTDs   >   MOTD: Liverpool 1-2 Manchester United

MOTD: Liverpool 1-2 Manchester United

By on March 22, 2015

This was it, no more embarrassing results and no more long balls, either. No more speculation — Louis Van Gaal is finally carving out his long-term job prospects at the club. Manchester United finally clicked. This confirmed that Van Gaal is finding “the system” that can reestablish United as a world powerhouse. Forget Liverpool’s shortcomings — fantastic in the case of Steven Gerrard’s sending off — this was United’s day.

And nobody could have guessed that their lineup wouldn’t even include Robin van Persie, Luke Shaw, or Marcos Rojo, and only used Angel Di Maria and Falcao from the bench. On the back of his summer spending spree, Van Gaal must have felt obliged to play his big money signings, yet today’s United feels more genuine than any seen since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson. Wayne Rooney started up top, Ashley Young on the wing, and Chris Smalling and Phil Jones in the back. It lacked stars but still comprehensively outplayed, out-thought, and out fought both Tottenham and Liverpool, almost like a classic Alex Ferguson side. Juan Mata’s scissor-kick goal even emulated Rooney’s famous strike against Manchester City long ago.

They’ve got the results to back the current side as well — not only were their wins over Tottenham and Liverpool fantastic results but undoubtedly United’s two best performances of the season. They scored two goals at Liverpool, quieting the Anfield crowd within minutes of kickoff. So begin the declarations of greatness and the forgo pouting over the quality of the Premier League; breakout the champagne, United fans: Manchester United are back.

This new United team is markedly filled with long-term United players. Michael Carrick controls the game from the midfield and Rooney has been pushed back up front after a long saga in the midfield; indeed, even Smalling and Jones are providing competent security at the back. United’s shutout streak extended over six hours before Jones’ was unlucky to have Daniel Sturridge’s effort deflect off his boot and in. Antonio Valencia combined well with Juan Mata down the right while Marouane Fellaini found space between Liverpool’s midfield and defensive lines, playing with Ashley Young down the other wing, as well as Daley Blind on the occasions when the Dutchman ventured forward from midfield. Rooney’s return up front has also made room for Ander Herrera to slot into a playmaker role. United are finally scoring again, too.

Van Gaal’s men dominated the game from minute one. Briefly, last season, Liverpool finished above United but in every sense this season the club have knocked the Reds back off their perch. Fellaini wreaked havoc in his pocket of space while Mata found ample room down the right. Though Liverpool weren’t reduced to ten men until the second half, United played with such gusto that they seemed to have their numerical advantage throughout the first half, as well.

Just fourteen minutes in, United proved their intentions. The move began with Fellaini knocking down David De Gea’s long ball for Carrick, who began playing neat triangles with Jones and Blind before finding Fellaini with a through-ball. Space opened up for United and the Belgian played it across to Herrera; in turn, the Spaniard slipped Mata through down the right side of the box, and Mata’s clipped far-post finish was exquisite.

United’s control was unfaltering, but Liverpool slowly worked their way back into the game. Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling were nearly invisible in the first half, but thirty-six minutes in, Adam Lallana managed to come close with a half-volley from Sturridge’s layoff. Brendan Rodgers prepared his men for a comeback in the second half, bringing on Steven Gerrerd, but the veteran midfielder found himself ridiculously wound up and sent off for a stamp on Herrera not a minute after coming on. The clock counted thirty-two seconds into the second period when Martin Atkinson whistled for the foul. It was incredible, the reckless nature of Gerrard’s stamp in his last match for the club against United. Perhaps it was United’s fans taunting that wound him up, or the knowledge that his men were being so dominated by United. Either way, he changed the match, just not in the way his substitution was intended.

This bizarre opening to the second half continued as United found a second. Gaps of space that Liverpool’s halftime tactical switch was supposed to cover began to gape wide again, and Di Maria came on for Young to exploit them. He did in spectacular fashion, with his lovely scooped pass into the run of Mata floating right in front of the Spaniard. Mata turned his body with incredible control, leapt up and sliced a brilliant scissor-kick into the bottom left corner of the net. United began to dominate once more.

Liverpool got one back out of nowhere in the sixty-eighth minute, with Sturridge’s effort from a tight angle creeping past De Gea at the near post off the boot of Jones; indeed, to their credit, the home side pressured United for many minutes more with a man down. Yet United recovered, and after wrestling hold of the match towards the end, Blind won a penalty after Di Maria’s through ball put him on the wrong side of Emre Can. Simon Mignolet pulled a brilliant save from Wayne Rooney’s spot-kick, but there wasn’t enough time or skill from Liverpool to pull off a comeback.
Man of the Match: Juan Mata

Homepage photo credit: Ivan PC on Flickr

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.