Manchester United failed to sweep aside one of the most mediocre Liverpool sides to visit Old Trafford in recent history and were only able to salvage a point from the match. James Milner’s penalty in the first half saw the visitors take a 1-0 lead. However, Zlatan Ibrahimovic equalled the score late in the second half but the hosts were not able to find the winner as the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
As it was a hotly contested affair, there was no shortage of talking points in a game which saw United squander the opportunity to equal their noisy neighbours on points in the league table. Liverpool, on the other hand, moved up to the third place, level on points with second-placed Tottenham, and seven points off leaders Chelsea.
Here are five talking points from the match.
#1 Paul Pogba fails to impose himself on the match
Pogba, who became world’s most expensive player in the summer transfer window was slowly coming into his groove and was proving his mettle one match after the other. However, in one of the biggest matches of his United career, the Frenchman failed miserably and was outplayed by the Liverpool midfield.
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While his passes were not finding the target, he missed a gilt-edged opportunity to put United in front when a piercing through ball from Mkhitaryan saw him through on goal. His night went from bad to worse as a hand-ball in the box saw referee Michael Oliver point to the spot, which takes us to our next talking point...
#2 James Milner and penalties, still a better love story than Twilight!
After the referee pointed to the spot, Milner lined up to take his sixth spot-kick of the season. Prior to this, the Englishman had struck two penalties on the right, two on the left and one in the centre of the goal.
Showing nerves of steel, Milner buried the penalty on the left of David de Gea, who despite judging the direction of penalty correctly, was not able to stop the ball from bulging the net. Liverpool went one-nil up and now it was up to their defenders, including Milner of course, to stop the hosts from scoring.
#3 Klopp does a Mourinho!
When the two perennial rivals last met in the Premier League, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho made sure that even though his side fail to score one, they do not concede at any costs. Klopp took a leaf out of his counterpart’s book and flooded the midfield whenever the hosts tried to control the game.
Pogba was badly affected by this tactic as whenever he got the ball on his feet, the Liverpool midfielders didn’t allow him an inch of space, which left him frustrated. The direct result of it was that United were not able to control the game like they would’ve hoped for.
The Liverpool backline also played a huge part in keeping the hosts away from the goal for majority of the match.
#4 Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the rescue, again!
The 35-year-old Swede has taken the Premier League by storm, despite claims that he wouldn’t find it easy in what is termed as the most difficult league in the world. While chances were hard to come by in the first half, the introduction of Rooney in the second half saw the hosts making a flurry of chances.
However, it was after Fellaini’s arrival that United were able to break the Liverpool defence. Rooney’s cross saw Fellaini heading the ball onto the post, and Ibra perfectly looped a header from the subsequent cutback from Valencia over Mignolet and into the goal. The United talisman is now the joint top scorer this season with 14 goals to his name.
#5 Title hopes all but over for United but Liverpool still in the race
The Red Devils came into the game knowing that a win would lock them on points with City, who had just lost to Everton at the Goodison, 4-0. Three points and their seventh win on the trot would’ve left them 10 points off leaders Chelsea and just two points away from fourth-placed Arsenal.
On the other hand, a win for Liverpool would have seen them leapfrog Spurs into the second spot, just five points away from the Blues. However, none of the teams was able to hand a knockout blow to the other and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
While the match lived up to the expectations and was a complete opposite of the reverse fixture, a winner for either of the teams might have made the title race exciting. As it stands, probably the biggest winners of this match were Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.
