Five things we learned from Liverpool 3, Manchester United 1: Reds pass another test; Jose Mourinho’s men losing touch with top five; Xherdan Shaqiri proves his worth
The tests keep on coming for this Liverpool team and, with a new-found composure and a growing sense of destiny, Jurgen Klopp’s side keep on batting them away.
On Sunday the challenge was to translate their momentum into a first Premier League win over Manchester United since 2014 and return to the top of the table, having been temporarily dislodged by Manchester City.
Liverpool accomplished their task with authority, winning 3-1. And while there was some fortune in Xherdan Shaqiri’s two deflected match-winning goals, there was nothing lucky about the result.
Five days after their crucial Champions League group stage victory over Napoli and eight after they hit the front in the title race, this amounted to the end of a perfect week for Klopp.
United losing touch with top five
For the third time already this term, United found themselves not just beaten but utterly outclassed by rivals from the top-flight’s Big Six.
Having fallen behind to Sadio Mane’s volley, the visitors equalised before half-time when Jesse Lingard took advantage of Alisson spilling a low cross from Romelu Lukaku, but their attempts to frustrate Liverpool unravelled in the second half and the hosts had the volume of efforts to win by an even greater margin.
United were, if anything, further outplayed when losing to City by the same margin last month. They also lost 3-0 to third-placed Tottenham at Old Trafford in August.
Now 19 points behind Liverpool after just 17 games, Jose Mourinho’s team are but a speck in the rear-view mirrors of the league’s best.
Shaqiri the bargain
Shaqiri may have been the cheapest and least feted of Liverpool’s summer reinforcements, but the £13m signing from Stoke is making a strong case for offering the most bang for buck.
In the post-Philippe Coutinho era, and with Adam Lallana struggling to recapture his old form, Shaqiri has become the creator Klopp turns to when help is needed unlocking stubborn opponents.
The stocky Swiss entered the field in the 70th minute. Three minutes later his shot ricocheted off Ashley Young and high past David de Gea, and by the 80th minute he had made the points safe, via a deflection off Eric Bailly.
Despite only starting nine of the club’s 25 games this season, he has now scored four goals – all of them coming in the last eight league games – and is becoming an increasingly influential figure.
Mourinho targets fourth
Mourinho made two claims in his post-match media duties that may have raised a few eyebrows – as is his wont.
While accepting that Liverpool had shown themselves to be the stronger team, he argued that United had been frustrating them and about to land a counter-punch when the home team luckily regained the lead.
It was a generous interpretation at best, and his dismissive mention of the Reds’s corner count failed to add that they had laid siege to United’s goal with no fewer than 36 attempts.
His second claim was that United will definitely finish the season in the top six “like all the historic teams” and can still finish fourth. Whether that proves more credible than his first assertion remains to be seen.
Lingard finding form again
Silver linings were few and far between for United at Anfield, as they have been all season, but the performance of Lingard should be cause for some hope.
The England attacking midfielder smartly converted his scoring chance and, on a day when Marcus Rashford and Lukaku failed to sparkle and Paul Pogba remained an unused substitute, looked the man most likely to hurt Liverpool.
A late return to pre-season training following the World Cup and a month-long thigh injury hampered Lingard’s start to the season, but he has now started seven of United’s last nine games.
A player with a taste for the bigger games, he also netted in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal earlier this month. His contribution could be vital if they are to rally in the second half of the season.